Strut Tower problems of the 2002 Nissan Pathfinder

I was driving my 2002 Pathfinder to work on Monday of this week when I started to feel a slight shaking in my steering wheel and chatter in my brake pedal while driving at 55mph on the highway. After I got off the highway I could barely make a right turn as the steering wheel was very stiff. I checked my front end and what I found was frightening. The drivers side strut tower had torn from the frame and body and was now pushing against both the steering shaft and master cylinder which was bent up at an angle. My master brake cylinder is now supporting the right front wheel! thank god the strut did not snap the steering shaft or master cylinder while at highway speed. I might be in a hospital bed or dead. I had the car towed to a Nissan dealership who told me that it received a level 1 repair by the previous owner (I am the second owner) in 2011 and nothing could be done except to call corporate. I did some research and found that the recall has two levels: 1 and 2. Level 1 is a simple inspection, cleaning and coating. Level 2 requires a bolted in metal brace be installed to reinforce the strut tower. Nissan corporate told me the level 1 repair was already completed and nothing further could be done even though the repair did nothing to remedy the problem and now I am in need of a level 2 repair. I cannot believe that Nissan can walk away from this after their level 1 fix fails to remedy the problem. The level 1 repair is a ticking time bomb as the so called "fix" does nothing to stop the tower from failing. I honestly feel that Nissan has not done enough to remedy the issue and there could still be hundreds or thousands of Pathfinders with bogus level 1 repairs on our roads right this minute. Nissan should provide the level 2 recall even if level 1 has already been completed.

Strut tower rust damage, my Pathfinder started having that noise coming from the steering column during motion. After a quick inspection at the dealership we realized there was a big gap under the strut towers in both sides, and that there was already a recall, but the recall does not includes to replace the strut column, just a cheap, glued-bolted strip of metal they call a bracket that does not even covers the gap. The "fix" used in recall nhsta 11v-244 is totally inadecuate for vehicles in which corrosion has take all the base of the strut tower and the tower is already touching the steering column. To elaborate imagine a gap 3 inches high and 12 inches long; two of the 3 inches in heigh were created by material that rusted and fell apart an only one inch if bent displacement. If as the instructions of the recall indicate, the strut tower must be bent back to original position, the gap will be reduced only the one inch that correspond to displacement leavin a 12 by 2 inches gap due to corrosion and it is here, where the recall solution indicates that a trip of steel should be bolted/glued to. The 4-5 inch strip(repair bracket) will be lay in cross position perpendicular to the rusted gap, leaving about 3 inches of the rusted gap exposed to each side. Just like a band aid stick across a big wound. This is not a long term fix, the bracket will fail as well or will detach from the rusted surfaces where it was installed.

There is a active recall for excessive corrosion in the driver side strut tower housing which can cause binding on the steering column. I received a recall in 2011, but never a follow up letter as stated would happen for the remedy process. I took my 2002 vehicle in since it was still eligible for repair. I was told that if it was not repairable ,I would be told so and then it would escalate to Nissan na. After bringing in the vehicle, it is now not drivable at all due to the dealership trying to do the recall and damaging the transmission cross-member that it dropped 8". The whole inside of the tower was badly rusted as was much of the under carriage. In fact they let me drive the vehicle back home (43 miles) on the day I bought it in due to my time schedule was not free for 4 hours to wait and they had no loaner vehicle. A mechanic that was ready to purchase the vehicle looked under the hood and showed to my amazement, the tower was already embracing the steering column in such a way as it was embedded in the steel. We have pictures and documentation. So the vehicle was towed back the following day and they went ahead and did the "repair" on the tower. I was called the next day and told that the vehicle was "all set" and ready to be picked up. To my wifes and my surprise the next am arriving at the dealer ship, was the obvious cross-member hanging down on the drivers side. The gm of serafini had the vehicle towed back to my residence in hopes of this all going away after he was going to check the "paper trail". When we got the vehicle back later on, only then did we receive a invoice (attached) telling us the car was uninspected(false) and not safe to drive. It was given to the tow truck operator and he gave it to us. Their way to settle it was to have a junk yard pick it up for $400. 00.

Email message forwarded from fhwa-wrote regarding the safety recall of his 2002 Nissan Pathfinder the consumer stated there is a recall regarding the strut tower housing and would like to know does he need to make an appointment for his vehicle, even though vehicle is no longer registered in a salt state.

2002 Nissan Pathfinder. Consumer writes in regards to recall notice concerning front driver side strut tower housings for Nissan Pathfinders the consumer stated the strut tower housing became so corroded it broke and made the vehicle unsafe to drive. In April 2011 the vehicle was repaired. The consumer is seeking reimbursement.

I have been hearing noises in the rear passenger side of my 2002 Nissan Pathfinder se, for months. This car was purchased new. I had everything checked recently,which is when we noticed the problem. We discovered a rotted frame rail where the top of the coil spring mounts to a plate built into the frame. The rot is on both sides, but much worse on the passenger rear. The spring is about to come through. This is a safety issue!!! and it'¿¿s our car,and we don'¿¿t have the money to replace it. This must be happening to many others as well. How can this happen to a kept up, beautiful 2002 Pathfinder?? it must have started rotting years ago,probably when the car only had 60,000 miles, and the car is now only 9 yrs old. There is apparently no replacement part for this problem. There is a recall on the front strut housings for rot but not the rears. To keep the car, the obvious, is a costly repair. Nissan has refused to do anything-they inspected the car in 2007 when the corrosion warranty was active on the frame. They should have seen it and I feel they are responsible. They are discriminating against me since I was told "I didn't spend enough money" at the dealer over the years for service. It is 35 miles from my house. Nissan says it's an "environmental issue" how?? there is no rot on the front of the car ,including the recalled front strut towers. The car is rotting away from beneath me. I threatened to sue them and they said they are "not obligated" to repair it. They don't care. This rot of the rear frame should never occur as it has,starting probably when it was only 6 yrs old,and be in this condition in only 9 yrs. The steel must be defected. I will ¿¿never¿� buy a Nissan again. Stay away from Nissan Pathfinders. The car would probably have run well for another 5 yrs and gone to 250k miles but the frame will not last. What a shame. This is ridiculous.