Nissan Reimagines the Pathfinder as a 7-Seater SUV Based on a Unibody Platform [Updated]

Nissan may be calling the Pathfinder a concept but we all know that the study exhibited at this week’s 2012 Detroit Motor Show is as close as it gets to the production model that will follow in fall this year.

The first thing you’ll need to know about the 2013 Pathfinder is that Nissan has abandoned the current, third-generation model’s body-on frame architecture and returned to a unibody construction. We say returned because the first generation of the SUV utilized a ladder-type frame with the second generation making use of a unibody construction.

The fourth generation of the Pathfinder also brings less rugged and more crossoverish looks and the promise for a more luxurious interior and a plethora of technological goods. Nissan also says that the SUV will offer excellent legroom in all three rows and ample cargo room behind the 3rd row of seats.

Powering the new Pathfinder will be a V6 engine and next-generation Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT), which Nissan says will make it “one of the most fuel-efficient 7-passenger vehicles on the market”.

According to the Japanese automaker, the V6 is projected to deliver an expected 25 percent increase in combined City/Highway fuel economy over the outgoing V6-equipped model.

The Pathfinder is one of 20 new or redesigned products Nissan plans to introduce in this market within the next two years.

“This new Pathfinder Concept is just the beginning of a far-reaching wave of new products on the horizon for Nissan. By the end of 2012, more than 70 percent of our sales volume will be all-new or redesigned,” said Al Castignetti, vice president of Nissan North America.

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