Compare the2025 Land Rover Discovery SportVS 2025 Nissan Pathfinder

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Servicing Ease
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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Both the Discovery Sport and Pathfinder have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The Discovery Sport has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Pathfinder’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the Discovery Sport. But it costs extra on the Pathfinder.

Both the Discovery Sport and Pathfinder have rear cross-traffic warning, but the Discovery Sport has Rear Traffic Braking (automatically applies the brakes) to better prevent a collision when backing near traffic. The Pathfinder’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert doesn’t automatically brake.

Both the Discovery Sport and the Pathfinder have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, 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 and driver alert monitors.

Warranty

The Discovery Sport comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Pathfinder’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

The Discovery Sport’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Pathfinder’s (6 vs. 5 years).

Engine

The Discovery Sport’s 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder produces 10 lbs.-ft. more torque (269 vs. 259) than the Pathfinder’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6.

Fuel Economy and Range

Regenerative brakes improve the Discovery Sport’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Pathfinder doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

The Discovery Sport has a standard locking fuel door which locks and unlocks with the power locks. The fuel filler door is not lockable on the Pathfinder. A locking fuel door helps prevent fuel theft and vandalism, such as sugar in the tank.

Tires and Wheels

The Discovery Sport’s optional tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Pathfinder’s optional 50 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the Discovery Sport offers optional 21-inch wheels. The Pathfinder’s largest wheels are only 20-inches.

The Discovery Sport has a standard full size spare (not available on 7-Passenger) so a flat doesn’t interrupt your trip. A full size spare isn’t available on the Pathfinder; it requires you to depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

Suspension and Handling

The Discovery Sport has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Pathfinder’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

The Discovery Sport offers an optional driver-adjustable suspension system. It allows the driver to choose between an extra-supple ride, reducing fatigue on long trips, or a sport setting, which allows maximum control for tricky roads or off-road. The Pathfinder’s suspension doesn’t offer adjustable shock absorbers.

The Discovery Sport S handles at .82 G’s, while the Pathfinder Platinum pulls only .76 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Discovery Sport S executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1 seconds quicker than the Pathfinder Platinum (27.4 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.4 seconds @ .59 average G’s).

For greater off-road capability the Discovery Sport has a 1.3 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Pathfinder (8.4 vs. 7.1 inches), allowing the Discovery Sport to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Discovery Sport’s minimum ground clearance is .7 inch higher than on the Pathfinder Rock Creek (8.4 vs. 7.7 inches).

Chassis

The Land Rover Discovery Sport may be more efficient, handle and accelerate better because it weighs about 300 to 450 pounds less than the Nissan Pathfinder.

The Discovery Sport is 1 foot, 4.7 inches shorter than the Pathfinder, making the Discovery Sport easier to handle, maneuver and park in tight spaces.

The design of the Land Rover Discovery Sport amounts to more than styling. The Discovery Sport has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .34 Cd. That is lower than the Pathfinder (.34 to .355). A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the Discovery Sport get better fuel mileage.

Cargo Capacity

A control in the cargo area automatically lowers the Discovery Sport’s optional second row seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Pathfinder doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

Towing

The Discovery Sport’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Pathfinder’s (4409 vs. 3500 pounds).

Servicing Ease

The Discovery Sport uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Pathfinder uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

Ergonomics

The Discovery Sport’s standard Keyless Entry allow you to unlock the doors from any outside door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Intelligent Key standard on the Pathfinder doesn’t offer a sensor on the rear doors, so you’ll have to reach a front handle to unlock the rear door. Intelligent Key is not available on the Pathfinder SL/Platinum.

The Discovery Sport’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Pathfinder’s standard intermittent wipers change speed with vehicle speed, but can’t turn on and off or change speed based on changing rainfall.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The Discovery Sport offers available headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Pathfinder doesn’t offer headlight washers.

To better shield the driver and front passenger’s vision, the Discovery Sport has standard dual-element sun visors that can block glare from two directions simultaneously. The Pathfinder doesn’t offer secondary sun visors.

The Discovery Sport’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Nissan only offers heated mirrors on the Pathfinder SV/Rock Creek/SL/Platinum.

The Discovery Sport’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Pathfinder offers an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport has power folding mirrors that offer unparalleled convenience while maneuvering in tight places or parked. With the mirrors folded it’s easier to walk past and help prevent parking damage. The mirrors can be quickly unfolded when the driver is ready to leave. Power folding mirrors are only offered on the Pathfinder Platinum.

The Discovery Sport has a standard heated steering wheel to take the chill out of steering on extremely cold winter days before the vehicle heater warms up. A heated steering wheel is only available on the Pathfinder SL/Platinum.

The Land Rover Discovery Sport has a standard Homelink wireless remote control system for garage door operation and device management, conveniently located on the rear view mirror. Homelink® eliminates the need for separate garage door openers and associated risks of losing, breaking, or having dead batteries. Nissan charges extra for Homelink® on the Pathfinder.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Land Rover Discovery Sport has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. Only the Pathfinder SL/Platinum offers wireless charging.

Economic Advantages

The Discovery Sport will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The IntelliChoice estimates that the Discovery Sport will retain 50.87% to 51.79% of its original price after five years, while the Pathfinder only retains 47.85% to 49.39%.

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