What’s New for the 2025 Nissan Pathfinder?

The 2025 Nissan Pathfinder doesn’t change much from the 2024 model, but Nissan is trying to sweeten the deal with a complimentary maintenance package and the trickling-down of the standard power liftgate to a couple of its lower trims. While this doesn’t address the few complaints we had with it — specifically, a cramped third row, outdated-feeling infotainment, rough idle and relatively small amount of cargo space — the truth of the matter is, it’s still a great family SUV thanks to its ride quality and luxe interior.

Related: 2024 Nissan Pathfinder Review: You Gotta Take the Good With the Bad

What’s New for 2025?

All 2025 Pathfinders include the Nissan Maintenance Care program with purchase, which covers up to three oil changes during the first 24,000 miles or first two years of ownership. Additionally, the Rock Creek and SV trims now include the power liftgate with position memory as standard equipment, just as it is on the higher SL and Platinum trim levels.

Trim Levels and Pricing

Trim levels carry over from the 2024 model year and include the S, SV, SL, Platinum and the off-road-oriented Rock Creek trim that was introduced for 2023. Pricing is as follows and includes a $1,390 destination fee; differences from 2024 pricing are listed in parentheses.

• S: $38,460 (up $1,315)
• SV: $41,450 (up $1,485)
• SL: $44,650 (up $1,085)
• Rock Creek: $46,550 (up $1,585)
• Platinum: $51,200 (up $1,085)

With the exception of the four-wheel-drive-only Rock Creek, front-wheel drive is standard across the Pathfinder lineup, with 4WD being a $2,000 upgrade. An eight-seat layout with a second-row bench seat comes standard, with a seven-seat layout with second-row captain’s chairs available on higher trims.

Depending on the trim level, buyers can choose from Brilliant Silver Metallic, Deep Ocean Blue Metallic, Gun Metallic, Obsidian Green Pearl and Super Black paint colors at no cost. Baja Storm Metallic (dark beige), Boulder Gray Pearl, Everest White Pearl TriCoat and Scarlet Ember Tintcoat (red) are available for a $425 upcharge, with available colors also varying by trim.

SL, Rock Creek and Platinum buyers can choose from a number of two-tone color options that all have a Super Black roof. This option is $495 with Gun Metallic or Obsidian Green Pearl, or $920 with Baja Storm Metallic, Boulder Gray Pearl, Everest White Pearl TriCoat and Scarlet Ember Tintcoat. As with the other paint options, every color is available on the Platinum trim, but availability varies on lower trim levels.

Powertrain Specs and MPG

All 2025 Pathfinders have a 3.5-liter V-6 engine paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. For most of the trim range, the engine makes 284 horsepower and 259 pounds-feet of torque; however, for the Rock Creek, it gets retuned to 295 hp and 270 pounds-feet of torque.

Per the EPA, fuel economy for FWD Pathfinders is 20/27/23 mpg city/highway/combined. The 4WD versions of the S, SV and SL get 21/27/23 mpg, while the luxe 4WD Platinum trim gets slightly worse fuel economy at 20/25/22 mpg. The Rock Creek’s all-terrain tires and extra off-road kit give it the worst on-road fuel economy in the lineup, as the EPA rates it 20/23/21 mpg.

Pathfinders pack a towing capacity of 3,500 pounds for the S, SV and SL trims, but that increases to 6,000 pounds on the Rock Creek and Platinum. SVs and SLs that come equipped with the Premium Package ($2,000 for the SV and $2,990 on the SL) also get a 6,000-pound towing capacity, as this adds extra transmission cooling, a trailer harness and a receiver hitch.

Tech Features

Most Pathfinders come with an 8-inch infotainment touchscreen with satellite radio, with a larger 9-inch touchscreen available on higher trims. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard, with the SL and Platinum trims adding wireless connectivity for these features. Also standard is a six-speaker stereo system; a 13-speaker Bose stereo system available as an upgrade.

One of our favorite options is a dazzling 12.3-inch digital instrument display that’s exclusive to the Platinum trim. All other Pathfinder trims get analog gauges with a 7-inch digital information display in the middle. Other notable options include a head-up display and 360-degree camera.

Safety and Driver-Assistance Features

If safety is a priority for you, the Pathfinder is definitely worth considering, as it scored the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s highest Top Safety Pick+ award and also earned an overall five-star crash rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The Pathfinder is a great option for parents with younger kids, too, as it stood out in our 2024 3-Row SUV Challenge for its ease of use with child-safety seats. The seven-seat Pathfinder with second-row captain’s chairs got straight As in every test we performed in our Car Seat Check.

All Pathfinders come equipped with the Nissan Safety Shield 360 suite of safety and driver-assistance features, which includes forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking and pedestrian detection, blind spot warning, automatic high beams, lane departure warning, rear automatic braking and rear cross-traffic alert. Adaptive cruise control is available, with higher trims featuring Nissan’s ProPilot Assist hands-on semi-autonomous driving system, which combines lane-centering steering with adaptive cruise control. The SL and Platinum have an upgraded version of ProPilot Assist with Navi-Link, which allows the ProPilot Assist system to use information from the navigation system on things like speed limits or upcoming turns to automatically adjust the vehicle’s speed on the highway.

The available NissanConnect Services can also notify you in the event of a collision, make emergency calls, locate your stolen vehicle and send you customizable reminders (to seek maintenance, for example).

Should You Buy a 2024 or 2025 Nissan Pathfinder?

The 2025 Pathfinder offers so few changes for so much extra money, with prices shooting up four figures for every trim level. Provided you’re not bribing the dealership to gold-plate the drain plug when performing an oil change, we doubt you’d make up for that jump in price with Nissan’s three included oil changes. You might come close to justifying the higher 2025 prices if you factor in the newly standard power liftgate on the SV and Rock Creek trims, but even that feels like a little bit of a stretch.

Our reviewers enjoyed the 2024 Pathfinder that we tested, thanks to luxe interior finishes that punch above its price point, that great big digital instrument panel on the Platinum trim, excellent visibility out of the SUV and its comfortable ride. If you’re willing to put up with its relative lack of cargo and third-row space, outdated-feeling infotainment screen and a slightly louder, rougher idle than many of its rivals, consider saving a little and looking for a 2024 model while they’re still on the lots. Not enough changed to justify paying more for a 2025 if you don’t have to.

More From Cars.com:

• 2025 Nissan Pathfinder Adds Free Oil Changes, Starts at $38,460
• These 71 Cars Earned IIHS Top Safety Pick Awards Amid Tougher Criteria
• Which SUVs Can Tow at Least 5,000 Pounds?
• Which 3-Row SUV Has the Best Real-World MPG?
• Research the Nissan Pathfinder

Related Video:

Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.