Transmission fluid

Summary

Source: owner's manual / last verified 2026-10-16 (2017 Nissan Pathfinder owner's manual, CVT fluid (opens in a new tab)).

Safety

• Do not put engine oil, ATF, or manual-transmission fluid in this CVT.
• The capacity is not printed. Do not invent a fill and pour it in.
• Fluid other than NS-3 or equivalent can damage the unit, and the book says that damage is not warranty work.

Symptoms

• The capacity cells for CVT fluid are dashes. A quart is not printed.
• Using ATF or manual-transmission fluid in this CVT may damage it, and that damage is not covered by the new-vehicle limited warranty.

Diagnosis

1. Genuine NISSAN CVT Fluid NS-3, or equivalent, only. Do not mix it with other fluids.
2. When a check or a replacement is required, the do-it-yourself section says to visit a Nissan dealer.
3. A mileage for a normal CVT drain was not an explicit sentence in the 2017–2019 pages used here. The severe-service table was not copied onto a year that did not print the same line.

Tools

• Funnel

  Only if a dealer procedure later names a fill. This owner's manual does not print a home fill.

Specifications

Steps

1. 01Name the fluid before you buy anything

   Genuine NISSAN CVT Fluid NS-3 or equivalent, only. The caution says not to mix it and not to use ATF or manual-transmission fluid.

2. 02Do not invent the missing quarts

   The capacity table prints dashes for CVT fluid. This page does not fill that blank.

3. 03Have a dealer do the check or the change

   The do-it-yourself section says to visit a Nissan dealer when checking or replacement is required.

Common mistakes

• Filling a CVT with DEXRON or another ATF because a different truck on this site uses that fluid.
• Guessing a quart from a Rogue or a later Pathfinder.
• Draining the pan at home because the engine-oil page has a drain plug. That plug is the engine.

Parts and tools

Outbound links only. BaySheet does not sell parts. Confirm fitment on the retailer page. Amazon links are searches for a real part name plus this vehicle. Tool rows do not get a product search. The search is not a part number.

• Part

  Genuine NISSAN CVT Fluid NS-3

  Or equivalent. The manual says to use NS-3 only in Nissan CVTs and not to mix it with other fluids.

  2017 Pathfinder CVT fluid specification (opens in a new tab)Search Amazon.com (affiliate link) (opens in a new tab)As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

• Tool

  Funnel

  Only if a dealer procedure later names a fill. This owner's manual does not print a home fill.

  McMaster-Carr funnels (opens in a new tab)

Questions

Sources

• 2017 Nissan Pathfinder owner's manual, CVT fluid (opens in a new tab). Nissan North America, Inc.. Published 2017-03-01. Read 2026-10-16.

Checklist and email notes

The maintenance checklist is on the site now. The email list is not sending yet, so this box will not store an address.

Other repairs on this 2017 Pathfinder

All Nissan Pathfinder repairs

Other years of this Nissan Pathfinder

Same repair, different model year. Use the page that matches the truck or car in the driveway. A figure on one year is not a figure for the next.

This repair on other vehicles

These guides cover the same kind of work. Their numbers belong to those vehicles, not to this one.