Compare the2023 Nissan PathfinderVS 2023 Hyundai Palisade

For enhanced safety, the front and second-row seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Pathfinder have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Hyundai Palisade doesn’t offer pretensioners for its second-row seat belts.

The Nissan Pathfinder has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Palisade doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Pathfinder Platinum has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The Palisade doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Pathfinder and the Palisade have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front and rear side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Nissan Pathfinder is safer than the Palisade:

There are over 30 percent more Nissan dealers than there are Hyundai dealers, which makes it easier should you ever need service under the Pathfinder’s warranty.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Nissan vehicles are better in initial quality than Hyundai vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Nissan above average in initial quality. With 18 more problems per 100 vehicles, Hyundai is rated below average.

The Pathfinder Rock Creek’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6 produces 4 more horsepower (295 vs. 291) and 8 lbs.-ft. more torque (270 vs. 262) than the Palisade’s 3.8 DOHC V6.

As tested in Car and Driver the Nissan Pathfinder (base engine) is faster than the Hyundai Palisade:

On the EPA test cycle the Pathfinder gets better mileage than the Palisade:

Both the Pathfinder and the Palisade have a standard automatic start/stop engine feature to stop unnecessary fuel waste and pollution at stoplights and heavy traffic. All Pathfinders have a standard disable switch for the system, so a driver can keep the engine from shutting off when the vehicle stops temporarily. A disable switch costs extra on the Palisade.

The Pathfinder has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The Palisade doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Nissan Pathfinder, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the Palisade.

For better stopping power the Pathfinder’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Palisade:

The Pathfinder’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Palisade are solid, not vented.

The Pathfinder stops shorter than the Palisade:

For better traction, the Pathfinder has larger tires than the Palisade (255/60R18 vs. 245/60R18).

The Pathfinder has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Palisade doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Pathfinder has vehicle speed sensitive variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Palisade doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

The Pathfinder Platinum handles at .76 G’s, while the Palisade Limited AWD pulls only .74 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Pathfinder has 1.6 inches more front headroom, .2 inches more front legroom, .2 inches more front hip room, 3 inches more third row hip room and 3.2 inches more third row shoulder room than the Palisade.

The Pathfinder has a standard third row seat which folds flat into the floor. This completely clears a very large cargo area quickly. The Palisade doesn’t offer seats that fold into the floor.

A standard locking glovebox (which can’t be accessed with the valet key) keeps your small valuables safer in the Pathfinder. The Palisade doesn’t offer locking storage for small valuables.

Maximum trailer towing in the Hyundai Palisade is limited to 5000 pounds. The Pathfinder offers up to a 6000 lbs. towing capacity.

The Pathfinder’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Palisade’s standard rear power window switches have to be held the entire time to open or close them fully.

On a hot day the Pathfinder’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Palisade can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The Pathfinder’s standard speed-sensitive wipers speed up when the vehicle does, so that the driver doesn’t have to continually adjust the speed of the wipers. The Palisade SE/SEL/XRT’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

The Pathfinder has a standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. Dual zone air conditioning is only available on the Palisade SEL/Limited/Calligraphy.