2019 NISSAN PATHFINDER SV Owners Manual

∙ Always secure items in the trailer to pre-vent load shif t while driving.
∙ Keep the cargo load as low as possible in the trailer to keep the trailer center of
gravity low.
∙ Load the trailer so approximately 60% of the trailer load is in the front half and
40% is in the back half. Also make sure
the load is balanced side to side.
∙ Check your hitch, trailer tire pressure, vehicle tire pressure, trailer light opera-
tion, and trailer wheel lug nuts every
time you attach a trailer to the vehicle.
∙ Be certain your rearview mirrors con- form to all federal, state or local regula-
tions. If not, install any mirrors required
for towing before driving the vehicle.
∙ Determine the overall height of the ve- hicle and trailer so the required clear-
ance is known.
Trailer towing tips
In order to gain skill and an understanding
of the vehicle’s behavior, you should prac-
tice turning, stopping and backing up in an
area which is free from traffic. Steering sta- bility and braking performance will be
somewhat different than under normal
driving conditions.
∙ Always secure items in the trailer to pre- vent load shif t while driving.
∙ Lock the trailer hitch coupler with a pin or lock to prevent the coupler from in-
advertently becoming unlatched.
∙ Avoid abrupt starts, acceleration or stops.
∙ Avoid sharp turns or lane changes.
∙ Always drive your vehicle at a moderate speed.
∙ When backing up, hold the bottom of the steering wheel with one hand. Move
your hand in the direction in which you
want the trailer to go. Make small cor-
rections and back up slowly. If possible,
have someone guide you when you are
backing up.
Always block the wheels on both vehicle
and trailer when parking. Parking on a
slope is not recommended; however, if you
must do so:

∙ NISSAN recommends that the cruisecontrol not be used while towing a
trailer.
∙ Some states or provinces have specific regulations and speed limits for ve-
hicles that are towing trailers. Obey the
local speed limits.
∙ Check your hitch, trailer wiring harness connections, and trailer wheel lug nuts
af ter 50 miles (80 km) of travel and at
every break.
∙ When launching a boat, don’t allow the water level to go over the exhaust tail
pipe or rear bumper.
∙ Make sure you disconnect the trailer lights before backing the trailer into the
water or the trailer lights may burn out.
When towing a trailer, final drive gear oil
should be replaced and transmission
oil/fluid should be changed more fre-
quently. For additional information, refer
to the “Do-it-yourself ” section in this
manual.
Tow mode
Using tow mode is recommended when
pulling a heavy trailer or hauling a heavy
load. Press the TOW MODE switch to acti- vate tow mode. The indicator light on the
TOW MODE switch illuminates when tow
mode is selected. Press the TOW MODE
switch again to turn tow mode off. Tow
mode is automatically canceled when the
ignition switch is turned off.
Tow mode includes the following features:
∙ Grade logic — Adjusts transmission shif ts when pulling a trailer or hauling a
load up a grade.
∙ Downhill Speed Control (DSC) — auto- matically downshif ts when driving
down a grade with a trailer or heavy
load to help control vehicle speed.
Driving the vehicle in the tow mode with no
trailer/load or light trailer/light load will not
cause any damage. However, fuel
economy may be reduced and the
transmission/engine driving characteris-
tics may feel unusual.
When towing a trailer, final drive gear oil
should be replaced and transmission
oil/fluid should be changed more fre-
quently. For additional information, refer
to the “Do-it-yourself ” section of this
manual.
FLAT TOWING FOR 4–WHEEL DRIVE
VEHICLE (if so equipped)
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on
the ground is sometimes called flat towing.
This method is sometimes used when
towing a vehicle behind a recreational ve-
hicle, such as a motor home.

FLAT TOWING FOR FRONT WHEEL
DRIVE VEHICLE (if so equipped)
Towing your vehicle with all four wheels on
the ground is sometimes called flat towing.
This method is sometimes used when
towing a vehicle behind a recreational ve-
hicle, such as a motor home.

Traction AA, A, B and C
The traction grades, from highest to low-
est, are AA, A, B, and C. Those grades repre-
sent the tire’s ability to stop on wet pave-
ment as measured under controlled
conditions on specified government test
surfaces of asphalt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction perfor-
mance.

WARNING
A vehicle equipped with Four-Wheel
Drive (4WD) should never be tested us-
ing a two wheel dynamometer (such as
the dynamometers used by some
states for emissions testing), or similar
equipment. Make sure you inform the
test facility personnel that your vehicle
is equipped with 4WD before it is placed
on a dynamometer. Using the wrong
test equipment may result in transmis-
sion damage or unexpected vehicle
movement which could result in serious
vehicle damage or personal injury.
Due to legal requirements in some states
and Canadian Provinces, your vehicle may
be required to be in what is called the
“ready condition” for an
Inspection/Maintenance (I/M) test of the
emission control system.
The vehicle is set to the “ready condition”
when it is driven through certain driving
patterns. Usually, the ready condition can
be obtained by ordinary usage of the ve-
hicle. If a powertrain system component is re-
paired or the battery is disconnected, the
vehicle may be reset to a “not ready” condi-
tion. Before taking the I/M test, check the
vehicle’s inspection/maintenance test
readiness condition. Place the ignition
switch in the ON position without starting
the engine. If the Malfunction Indicator
Light (MIL) comes on steady for 20 seconds
and then blinks for 10 seconds, the I/M test
condition is “not ready”. If the MIL does not
blink af ter 20 seconds, the I/M test condi-
tion is “ready”. It is recommended that you
visit a NISSAN dealer to set the “ready con-
dition” or to prepare the vehicle for testing.
This vehicle is equipped with an Event Data
Recorder (EDR). The main purpose of an
EDR is to record, in certain crash or near
crash-like situations, such as an air bag
deployment or hitting a road obstacle, data
that will assist in understanding how a ve-
hicle’s systems performed. The EDR is de-
signed to record data related to vehicle dy-
namics and safety systems for a short
period of time, typically 30 seconds or less.
The EDR in this vehicle is designed to re-
cord such data as:
∙ How various systems in your vehicle were operating;
∙ Whether or not the driver and passen- ger safety belts were buckled/fastened;
∙ How far (if at all) the driver was depress- ing the accelerator and/or brake pedal;
and,
∙ How fast the vehicle was traveling.
∙ Sounds are not recorded.
READINESS FOR INSPECTION/
MAINTENANCE (I/M) TEST EVENT DATA RECORDERS (EDR)
10-34Technical and consumer information