I am a car person. I like cars. Trucks are OK, but mostly I see them as tools. The Pathfinder is a truck. A pretty good truck, but a truck just the same.

I've never understood the term Sport-Utility. Most SUV's don't have much sport at all. However utility is where the Pathfinder shows what its made of. Inside there are all kinds of storage spaces, cubby holes, racks, and even some very sturdy looking metal tie down hooks. It is very versatile. There is a power outlet for the back seat passengers as well as an extra one for the people up front. The seats are VERY firm, and yet I never once thought they were uncomfortable. All controls are easy to read and are arranged in a thoughtful, logical manner. The notable exception would be the cruise control ON switch which is hidden by the steering wheel to the drivers left. Nissan seems to always struggle with this one, I had the same complaint about the old Stanza and Maxima. The Toyota solution seems to be a good one, the cruise control on/off/ - set/resume/accel/ function is all carried out via one simple lever. The Pathfinder stereo sounds excellent, about the same quality as the one in my '99 Camry. Opt for the perforated suede seats, they are so much better than traditional leather. You get comfort and durability. Your passengers may not be impressed, at first, because the seats lack the usual leather feel, but if you care that much about what others think, you've got bigger problems. Overall the interior is close to the best in it's class. I simply love Nissan's backlit, black on white gauges.

Under the hood Nissan's 3.3L V-6 seems a little strained at times. Frankly it is downright underpowered. The press kit claims 170hp, but feels like less. There is power there if you need it, but you really have to stomp on the gas to get it. Stepping hard on the accelerator will give you power, but it also gives you quite a bit of noise. Nissan's V-6 is getting better, but it is still not on par with Honda or Toyota in terms of smoothness or refinement. The automatic transmission shifted smoothly and easily, a nice addition would be a shift indicator somewhere in the instrument cluster. The press fleet Pathfinder I drove showed only 1200 miles on the odometer and yet the ABS light stayed on. The brakes worked fine. Most likely a bad light, but still worth mentioning. As a buyer that is one extra trip to the dealer you'd have to make.

On the road the Pathfinder feels like a truck. The good part is that it rides nice and high, and gives you a commanding view of the road. This is true even in the 4x2 models. In a word, it feels safe. The bad part is that many people will use the Pathfinder as a car, or as their only car. It simply is not a car. The ride is somewhat bouncy and very truck-like. On smooth roads the Pathfinder feels great, but once the road becomes uneven, its truck roots start to show. It reminded me of the old S-10 blazers. The Toyota T-100 feels less like a truck than the Pathfinder. To Nissan's credit there were virtually no squeaks or rattles, even on rough roads. Build quality is very good. There is also quite a bit of wind noise over 60mph.

Overall the Pathfinder is a competent SUV. It's not remarkable, but it will get the job done. Around town, and on short trips to the supermarket is where it does it's best work. Nissan has a handy cost calculator on their web site that lets you know exactly how much you can expect to spend with the options you want. Expect to pay close to 30K for a loaded 4x4. That seems like a lot to me, maybe a little too much for a small truck.