Nissan Pathfinder reviews

2004 Nissan Pathfinder Interior Features

The Pathfinder's interior was updated last year (2002), with new front seats and a revised audio system. It's a nice-looking interior with an attractive dash that looks contemporary. Interior materials appear to be of good quality. The simulated wood-grain trim warms the interior of the LE.

The leather-trimmed seats look good and feature perforated leather inserts. The optional eight-way power front seats are supportive and comfortable. The two-position memory system is easy to set up. The new leather-covered four-spoke steering wheel on our LE was comfortable. The main instruments on LE models uses Nissan's trademark black-on-white pattern, while the 2003 SE features a black-on-titanium scheme.

Heating and air conditioning controls are mounted at the top of the center stack where they are easy to reach. A big temperature knob and big, clearly marked buttons make it easy to operate. It's an automatic climate control system, but there's only one zone. The audio system works okay, but is lacking in aesthetics. Audio controls on the steering wheel do not include volume, but it's easy to adjust on the center stack.

In addition to central/remote locking, our Pathfinder had one-touch up/down windows on driver and passenger side and a one-touch open/close sunroof. These are a welcome convenience, because the vast majority of the time we want to open or close the windows or sunroof all the way. The window switches are mounted on the doors where they are easy to find and operate. The inside door handles are small and dainty. The rear glass can be opened by pressing a button on the driver's door grip or by turning the key in the rear door lock. Once open, you can walk under the rear hatch.

The driver's cupholder is on the center console to the left and forward of the shifter, perfect for access. Two more cupholders are mounted in the elbow area of the center console, awkward to reach. Center console storage is two-tiered, and awkward for the driver to reach. Mounted in the overhead console are useful outside temperature and digital compass readouts in LED, along with a good pair of map lights. One tester banged his head on the overhead console every time he got in and put on his seatbelt. Others did not seem to have this problem. A nice, solid shade covers the glass sunroof. Double visors are useful for those times when the sun is coming through the upper corner of the windshield. Homelink buttons are mounted on the driver visor for easy garage door operation.

Rear seats are comfortable and reasonably roomy for two adults. To aid climbing in, grab handles are provided at both rear doors and on the passenger side. Rear seats are split 60/40 and fold down for versatile cargo hauling. Flip the seat bottom forward and then flip the seatback down for a fairly flat load floor. Finding the lever to release the seat bottom can be challenging and it's a little awkward to operate. You have to remove the headrests before folding the seatback down and there's no place provided to store them. The coat hooks are too small for a big load of dry cleaning.