2017 NISSAN PATHFINDER ESSENTIALS: ALL UTILITY, NO SPORT

Gas mileage isn't good enough to forgive the Pathfinder's CVT

What is it: Nissan’s three-row Pathfinder gets a slightly more rugged exterior design, but make no mistake: The Pathfinder has left its truck roots behind and is now firmly in family crossover SUV territory.

Key Competitors: Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, Ford Explorer

Base Price: $44,500

Highlights: Flexible interior space and an innovative sliding/folding second row make the Pathfinder easy to live with, especially for families. Nissan’s infotainment system also gets high marks for intuitive operation.

The 2017 Nissan Pathfinder comes standard with an 8-inch touch-screen monitor, mounted in the middle of the instrument panel, providing interaction and control of a variety of driver-selectable vehicle systems and settings – including the available navigation.

Our Opinion: The Pathfinder’s greatest asset is its well thought-out interior design, which manages to be spacious, open and airy with good-quality materials throughout. Piling seven folks inside is straighforward, and third-row access is exceptional thanks to a neat flip/slide mechanism in the second row. There’s also an impressive level of equipment for the price in this Platinum trim Pathfinder, which includes heated/cooled front seats, a moonroof, leather trim and machined alloy wheels.

It’s easy to live with, but the Pathfinder isn’t particularly nice to drive; the 4,700-lb curb weight just feels like too much for the V6’s modest output. The combination of hard-working engine and continuously variable transmission results in an unpleasant mechanical drone. If extraordinary fuel economy was the result we could be swayed, but our 17.7 mpg average (admittedly almost all city driving) doesn’t even hit the EPA estimate, furthering the argument the Pathfinder needs more power, less weight or both.