Dodge Journey vs Nissan Pathfinder: which is more reliable?
The Dodge Journey and the Nissan Pathfinder are level on the federal record — 74/100 against 71/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
Dodge Journey
- 10 model years scored
- 2,843 owner complaints on record
- about 28 complaints per year on the road
- 41 recall campaigns, 20 safety-critical
- best year 2020 (92/100) · worst 2015 (49/100)
Nissan Pathfinder
- 14 model years scored
- 2,708 owner complaints on record
- about 30 complaints per year on the road
- 49 recall campaigns, 30 safety-critical
- best year 2012 (95/100) · worst 2013 (26/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Journey against Pathfinder
The comparison that decides the purchase. A nameplate is not one car — a redesign can move the record sixty points inside two years, and the two nameplates rarely move together.
What owners actually complain about
Dodge Journey
- Electrical System — 711 complaints
- Engine — 633 complaints
- Service Brakes — 511 complaints
Nissan Pathfinder
- Power Train — 782 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 471 complaints
- Engine — 467 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Journey's complaints concentrate in Electrical System, the Pathfinder's in Power Train. That difference matters more to a buyer than the score gap, because it says which repair bill you are taking on.
Years to avoid on each
Dodge Journey — avoid: 2015.
Nissan Pathfinder — avoid: 2013, 2014.
A year scores below 45 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. Every car’s years to avoid.
What each costs today
A recent used Dodge Journey prices at about $26,600 and a Nissan Pathfinder at about $40,800 — the Dodge Journey is roughly $14,200 less, and they return 21.0 against 23.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Dodge Journey or the Nissan Pathfinder more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Dodge Journey scores 74/100 against the Nissan Pathfinder's 71/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Dodge Journey and Nissan Pathfinder years should I avoid?
Dodge Journey: 2015. Nissan Pathfinder: 2013, 2014. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Dodge Journey and the Nissan Pathfinder?
The largest complaint group on the Dodge Journey is Electrical System (711 complaints); on the Nissan Pathfinder it is Power Train (782).
Is the Dodge Journey or the Nissan Pathfinder cheaper to own?
A recent used Dodge Journey prices at about $26,600 and a Nissan Pathfinder at about $40,800, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.