Nissan Pathfinder vs Hyundai Genesis: which is more reliable?
The Nissan Pathfinder and the Hyundai Genesis are level on the federal record — 71/100 against 70/100 across the years we score. Which one to buy is decided by the model year, not the badge.
The record, side by side
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)
Hyundai Genesis
- 6 model years scored
- 1,039 owner complaints on record
- about 14 complaints per year on the road
- 26 recall campaigns, 23 safety-critical
- best year 2014 (97/100) · worst 2015 (39/100)
Mean score is the average across model years from 2013 on, where both records are comparable. How the score works.
Year by year: Pathfinder against Genesis
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
Nissan Pathfinder
- Power Train — 782 complaints
- Unknown Or Other — 471 complaints
- Engine — 467 complaints
Hyundai Genesis
- Electrical System — 245 complaints
- Engine — 232 complaints
- Service Brakes — 190 complaints
They do not fail the same way: the Pathfinder's complaints concentrate in Power Train, the Genesis's in Electrical System. 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
Nissan Pathfinder — avoid: 2013, 2014.
Hyundai Genesis — avoid: 2015.
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 Nissan Pathfinder prices at about $40,800 and a Hyundai Genesis at about $28,200 — the Hyundai Genesis is roughly $12,600 less, and they return 23.0 against 19.0 MPG combined.
Class-level estimates re-priced to your country, not a valuation of one car. Method.
FAQ
Is the Nissan Pathfinder or the Hyundai Genesis more reliable?
On the NHTSA record the Nissan Pathfinder scores 71/100 against the Hyundai Genesis's 70/100, averaged across every model year we hold. The gap is small enough that the model year matters more than the badge.
Which Nissan Pathfinder and Hyundai Genesis years should I avoid?
Nissan Pathfinder: 2013, 2014. Hyundai Genesis: 2015. Each of those scores under 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns.
What goes wrong on the Nissan Pathfinder and the Hyundai Genesis?
The largest complaint group on the Nissan Pathfinder is Power Train (782 complaints); on the Hyundai Genesis it is Electrical System (245).
Is the Nissan Pathfinder or the Hyundai Genesis cheaper to own?
A recent used Nissan Pathfinder prices at about $40,800 and a Hyundai Genesis at about $28,200, before insurance and the maintenance band. Both pages carry the five-year running-cost figure.