Facelifted 2024 Nissan Pathfinder leaked

The refreshed 2024 Nissan Pathfinder has been leaked online ahead of its launch in China next year, revealing the three-row family SUV is destined for smoother front-end styling and a more efficient 2.0-litre turbocharged engine.

The images of the upgraded Nissan Pathfinder were published by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and show how the current SUV’s split headlight design will be replaced by a pair of more conventional swept-back lights.

Also prominent is a larger four-slat grille that stretches across almost the entire width of the car.

It looks almost identical to the all-electric Nissan Pathfinder concept that was shown at the Shanghai motor show in April, but is missing the LED light bar that interlinks the EV’s two headlights.

At the rear there’s a pair of slimmer tail-lights that miss out on the concept’s full-width rear light bar and illuminated ‘PATHFINDER’ lettering.

According to MIIT, the facelifted Chinese-spec Pathfinder measures in at 5130mm long, 1981mm wide and stands 1767mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2900mm.

That’s 126mm longer, 3mm wider but 31mm lower than the current model, although Nissan’s seven-seater pictured rides on modest 18-inch alloy wheels rather than our car’s larger 20s, so expect the height to be similar.

The wheelbase remains identical to the current fifth-generation (R53) Pathfinder that’s sold in Australia.

While the current Pathfinder sold in Australia uses a naturally-aspirated 202kW 3.5-litre petrol V6, the Chinese-spec model features a new turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder that’s said to produce 185kW.

It’s also expected to produce more torque than the V6’s 340Nm, but those details are still to be confirmed.

Combined with all-wheel drive and a nine-speed automatic, the small-capacity engine offers a significant improvement in efficiency over the V6 that can only manage 10.5L/100km (ADR combined).

In any case, we’re unlikely to get the more efficient 2.0-litre turbo as the cars we import are sourced from the car-maker’s US factory rather than Dongfeng-Nissan’s Chinese plant.

It’s not known when American-built cars will be facelifted, but 2024 is likely – three years after the large SUV was introduced in the US.

In March 2023, just a few months after the fifth-generation Pathfinder was launched, Nissan Australia streamlined the line-up to just two models.

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