Nissan Frontier

[GTMODawg]

I have been thinking about getting rid of my full size truck for about a year or so but with current gas prices I am really thinking hard about it. I only put about 6-7000 miles a year on a truck, mostly with a boat behind it. I have a decoy trailer that I tow with the current truck but it ain't left the house since I moved back to Georgia and probably never will to any extent. I like the GM mid sizes but have done some research and several sources claim the Frontier is more reliable than a Tacoma! They are far less expensive than the GMs, Ford Rangers or Toyota.....I would buy a Tacoma if I were buying new but the resell value of the Nissan is far better for the buyer...folks are PROUD of used Tacomas. The GMs are almost as bad. I like the new Ranger but I have never owned a Ford truck that was reliable...owned a bunch of them and they have all nickeled and dimed me bad.

Anyone know anything about the Frontier? They haven't changed significantly in about 20 years. I will buy a 4wd crew cab automatic if I buy anything. Most real world gas mileage sites claim somewhere around 19-21 MPG combined, about the same as all of the midsize trucks. The frontier has a higher payload and towing capacity than any but the Ranger but I suspect that is fudging the numbers and not anything real. My boat and trailer weighs about 2000 pounds wet so any of them will pull it fine. Any thoughts?

 

[pjciii]

Shout At NCH i think he has a Nissan truck.

 

[GTMODawg]

the 2022 is a new redesign, read a few owners weren’t pleased. Maybe a low mile 2021 or 2020. bought the Mom a new 2016 and been good one.

I’ve seen the same thing about the new one. I am prone to waiting a while on new designs. Definitely more interested in a low mileage used Nissan….generally speaking the resell value is better for the buyer with Nissans

 

[Waddams]

I have a 2017 Frontier Crew Cab, 4WD. Mileage for me is just a little lower than 19-21 but I drive it constantly in stop and go traffic. I haven't towed anything with it, but it's carried loads of slate chips and mulch home just fine. I'm 6'2", 200 lbs, and it's plenty comfy for long drives for me too. It's got power windows, the blue tooth radio stuff, serius/XM capable, CD player. it's more basic (no back up camera, not as many other bells/whistles) but i really like it. it's got a tow hitch though i don't use it. don't have anything to tow. was thinking about putting a big hitch there anyway just in case someone gets too close, they'll bump the hitch before the truck!

had it for less than a year, traded a 2003 frontier in to get it. cost was around $26k and I got $4k trade in value for the old one. i bought the one for $6k 4 years prior, so $2k difference total for owning it 4 years. not too shabby.

truck trade-in values are crazy right now. if you have a full size that's in good shape, you might be able to get a pretty penny for it and not end up with a big net expenditure on the frontier.

overall, i'm very satisfied with mine. it came with highway tires in great shape. i'm gonna swap 'em with all terrains at some point but it's hard to pull that trigger when the one's i have are plenty good to go. it's handled the dirt roads i've been on fine so far. only had to employ the 4WD twice even. it hauls dead deer well too. not too high of a lift to get 'em the back!

 

[GTMODawg]

I have a 2017 Frontier Crew Cab, 4WD. Mileage for me is just a little lower than 19-21 but I drive it constantly in stop and go traffic. I haven't towed anything with it, but it's carried loads of slate chips and mulch home just fine. I'm 6'2", 200 lbs, and it's plenty comfy for long drives for me too. It's got power windows, the blue tooth radio stuff, serius/XM capable, CD player. it's more basic (no back up camera, not as many other bells/whistles) but i really like it. it's got a tow hitch though i don't use it. don't have anything to tow. was thinking about putting a big hitch there anyway just in case someone gets too close, they'll bump the hitch before the truck!

had it for less than a year, traded a 2003 frontier in to get it. cost was around $26k and I got $4k trade in value for the old one. i bought the one for $6k 4 years prior, so $2k difference total for owning it 4 years. not too shabby.

truck trade-in values are crazy right now. if you have a full size that's in good shape, you might be able to get a pretty penny for it and not end up with a big net expenditure on the frontier.

overall, i'm very satisfied with mine. it came with highway tires in great shape. i'm gonna swap 'em with all terrains at some point but it's hard to pull that trigger when the one's i have are plenty good to go. it's handled the dirt roads i've been on fine so far. only had to employ the 4WD twice even. it hauls dead deer well too. not too high of a lift to get 'em the back!

Thank you! Sounds like you’re satisfied. I am going to look at one Friday.

How’s the back seat? Can a 12 year old ride an hour or so?

 

[NCHillbilly]

I have been thinking about getting rid of my full size truck for about a year or so but with current gas prices I am really thinking hard about it. I only put about 6-7000 miles a year on a truck, mostly with a boat behind it. I have a decoy trailer that I tow with the current truck but it ain't left the house since I moved back to Georgia and probably never will to any extent. I like the GM mid sizes but have done some research and several sources claim the Frontier is more reliable than a Tacoma! They are far less expensive than the GMs, Ford Rangers or Toyota.....I would buy a Tacoma if I were buying new but the resell value of the Nissan is far better for the buyer...folks are PROUD of used Tacomas. The GMs are almost as bad. I like the new Ranger but I have never owned a Ford truck that was reliable...owned a bunch of them and they have all nickeled and dimed me bad.

Anyone know anything about the Frontier? They haven't changed significantly in about 20 years. I will buy a 4wd crew cab automatic if I buy anything. Most real world gas mileage sites claim somewhere around 19-21 MPG combined, about the same as all of the midsize trucks. The frontier has a higher payload and towing capacity than any but the Ranger but I suspect that is fudging the numbers and not anything real. My boat and trailer weighs about 2000 pounds wet so any of them will pull it fine. Any thoughts?

They're all I've driven since 2001. My first one was at 300k when I traded it and still even had the original alternator, starter, and such. By FAR the most reliable trucks I've ever owned, and I've had about all of them over the years. I'm driving a 2018 4x4 crew cab Frontier at the moment.

 

[GTMODawg]

You ain’t wrong. Truck prices are CRAZY. That’s another reason I’m thinking about getting rid of mine. Downsizing I think I can get out for around $10k total and be shed of long bed crew cab 3500 gas guzzler. I have no use for that much truck here. I bought it to haul my decoy trailer in New Mexico and Washington. It did it well but I probably am done goose hunting since I came home.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Thank you! Sounds like you’re satisfied. I am going to look at one Friday.

How’s the back seat? Can a 12 year old ride an hour or so?

In my crew cab, an adult man can and has ridden 12 hours or so in the backseat. Just like the backseat in a car. Folds up with storage bins underneath it, too.

 

[Ruger#3]

I have a 2016 4x4 crew cab, 75,000 trouble free miles. One set of tires and a battery so far. I pull small utility trailers and an aluminum kayak trailer with it regularly. I’ve had 25 bags of mulch in the bed and it does just fine.

 

[NCHillbilly]

Good payload capacity. I've spent thousands of miles towing boats, utility trailers, and such with them, too. Goes good offroad with good tires, goes excellent in snow. I make an 80-mile round trip winter commute in mine on snow covered mountain roads.

 

[GTMODawg]

They're all I've driven since 2001. My first one was at 300k when I traded it and still even had the original alternator, starter, and such. By FAR the most reliable trucks I've ever owned, and I've had about all of them over the years. I'm driving a 2018 Frontier at the moment.

So I saw a YouTube video a few years ago and the guy was one I would watch when working on my vehicle….lots of good info there. This video was comparing Frontiers and Tacomas and based on the number for sell with more than 250k miles on them. They were almost identical except of course the Tacomas were much higher. I kind of dismissed this but I have been reading and the Frontier seems to match or beat the Tacoma on most sites that rate reliability. My hesitancy is based on a friend buying a Versa for his daughter and that thing was nothing but trouble. There is nothing I am aware of shared between the two but still hesitant. Thanks for the info

 

[Waddams]

Thank you! Sounds like you’re satisfied. I am going to look at one Friday.

How’s the back seat? Can a 12 year old ride an hour or so?

My son is 17 and he fits back there comfortably. He's about 5'11" but very skinny. He turns sideways when he's back there, though. I'd think a 12 year old could fit just fine.

And like NCHillbilly said, back seat folds down for storage behind the seats and there's cubbies under the seats. I've got a 4 way lug wrench, the lug wrench and jack it came with, long handled ice scrapper/brush, battery jump box, jumper cables, and the rubber floor mats behind the seats. Wratchet straps and a little ball of twine under one seat. I've had to occasionally shift stuff around so nothing vibrates and makes noise, but it all fits.

I think since it's lighter, with a few sandbags over the back axle especially, it goes through muck easier that a heavier truck might bog down in. There's one dirt road in Elbert Co. that I hunt off of on Corp Land. My son calls that road a slip and slide for trucks, and I've talked to guys that had to get pulled out of the mud holes before. My Frontier goes right through while slowly moving so I don't rut out the bad spots worse than they are.

 

[NCHillbilly]

So I saw a YouTube video a few years ago and the guy was one I would watch when working on my vehicle….lots of good info there. This video was comparing Frontiers and Tacomas and based on the number for sell with more than 250k miles on them. They were almost identical except of course the Tacomas were much higher. I kind of dismissed this but I have been reading and the Frontier seems to match or beat the Tacoma on most sites that rate reliability. My hesitancy is based on a friend buying a Versa for his daughter and that thing was nothing but trouble. There is nothing I am aware of shared between the two but still hesitant. Thanks for the info

I have owned three Frontiers over a period of 22 years. I have never had a single problem from either of them so far. I put about 2000 miles a month on them, too. The only part (besides brakes and batteries,) that I have replaced on the three in total was a valve cover gasket on the first one at about 285k. I can't say that for any other vehicle I have owned in half a century.

My wife has owned two Nissan vehicles since 2000, a Sentra and a Rogue. They both have been very reliable vehicles. She drove the Sentra 16 years and changed one starter.

 

[transfixer]

I have owned three Frontiers over a period of 22 years. I have never had a single problem from either of them so far. I put about 2000 miles a month on them, too. I can't say that for any other vehicle I have owned in half a century. My wife has owned two Nissan vehicles since 2000, a Sentra and a Rogue. They both have been very reliable vehicles. She drove the Sentra 16 years.

Not to jinx you, but I doubt seriously she'll get that kind of service out of the Rogue, having one of their CVT transmissions, its not a matter of if it will fail,, its a matter of when ,,,, we swap out an average of 3 to 5 Nissan CVT's every week at our shop, absolute worst transmission Nissan has ever used, and the worst CVT of any of the current car manufacturers

 

[NCHillbilly]

Not to jinx you, but I doubt seriously she'll get that kind of service out of the Rogue, having one of their CVT transmissions, its not a matter of if it will fail,, its a matter of when ,,,, we swap out an average of 3 to 5 Nissan CVT's every week at our shop, absolute worst transmission Nissan has ever used, and the worst CVT of any of the current car manufacturers

We'll just have to wait and see. She's had it about four years, drives over a steep mountain road every day to work, about 50k so far and no issues.

 

[paulito]

I jus bought a 2016 2WD for my son's first car. Bought it from work as we no longer needed it. It has been a very reliable car for work and i suspect the same for my son. We have hauled boat trailers and even a small landscape trailer with that thing at work from time to time. It definitely has plenty of power for that size truck. The crew cab has plenty of room as well. I'm 6'3" and have no issues driving it. I would doubt it getting 21 MPG but have no data on that. I just call ** on all manufacturer quoted stuff. I have gotten 16-17 MPG average on basically every truck I have owned since i was a kid.

 

[NCHillbilly]

I jus bought a 2016 2WD for my son's first car. Bought it from work as we no longer needed it. It has been a very reliable car for work and i suspect the same for my son. We have hauled boat trailers and even a small landscape trailer with that thing at work from time to time. It definitely has plenty of power for that size truck. The crew cab has plenty of room as well. I'm 6'3" and have no issues driving it. I would doubt it getting 21 MPG but have no data on that. I just call ** on all manufacturer quoted stuff. I have gotten 16-17 MPG average on basically every truck I have owned since i was a kid.

I get about 21-22 average in my 4wd on the interstate. A good bit less on backroads or in town.

 

[GTMODawg]

I get about 21-22 average in my 4wd on the interstate. A good bit less on backroads or in town.

Most of my driving a truck is highway or going to HD to get a sheet of plywood. If I got 18 I’d be happy….my current truck gets 10….

 

[RamblinWreck88]

I have a 2012 Pro-4x 4-door with all the bells & whistles. Got about 86k on it right now; it had 8.5k on it when I got it in 2017. Been on many adventures in the mountains and down south with it, but nothing too wild. Got around with it just fine it Atlanta when I lived there. No real problems with it so far. Tire pressure sensor has been screwed up ever since I got it, but I'm used to checking it the old fashioned way. It's taken myself and 3 buddies on several camping trips in relative comfort, pulled a 4-door Mercedes on a trailer, pulled up a few stumps, etc. No real complaints from me.

There are a few limitations inherent to the platform which may or may not affect you... There's not a whole lot of aftermarket support if you're wanting to get into anything crazy... No way that I know of to re-gear the front differential outside of putting a Titan front end on (this doesn't concern me). The turn radius SUCKS, but you get used to it. The overhang in the back is pretty significant... I used to scrape it all the time going through dip on the way to a camping spot so my trailer hookup is busted.

 

[ol bob]

Tougher than woodpecker lips, says it all.