Nissan Frontier SV 4x4 (Almost) Yearlong Verdict: It's Truckin' Capable
Go ahead, Nissan, say it. You told us so.
When the redesigned Nissan Frontier midsize pickup made its debut in 2022, we criticized its lack of innovation but thought we saw signs of a good work ethic. We set out to prove that by adding a long-wheelbase 2023 Frontier SV to our yearlong review fleet and assigning it to yours truly, with the hopes that it could replace both my old Chevy pickup and my Jeep Liberty for equine chores and daily driving. Now our loan is at an end, and it’s time to assess.
0:00 / 0:00
So How’d the Nissan Do?
As far as truck chores go, the Frontier did an exemplary job. Over its tenure we hauled nearly three tons of hay, feed, and supplies in the Frontier’s bed, with each trip ranging from 500 to 1,100 pounds. The payload capacity of our particular Frontier was 1,160 pounds, including occupants, and yes, a couple of times we inadvertently overloaded the truck—not that you’d know it from the way the Frontier drove. The suspension never felt overburdened, even if it was, and the 310-hp 3.8-liter V-6 shrugged off the weight like a diesel.
Of course, the Frontier’s 6-foot bed did mean more frequent trips to the feed store. While our old Chevrolet three-quarter ton’s 8-foot bed will easily accommodate 10 bales of hay, eight is a more comfortable limit for the Frontier without getting too creative. (The hay loaders at our favorite feed store are champs; they’ve stacked as many as 24 bales in the Chevy.) We did a little back-of-the-envelope math: What took 14 trips in the Frontier would have taken 10 in the Chevy. Fourteen hay runs burned 22.2 gallons of fuel in the Frontier; the Chevy, would have used 21.6 gallons.
We expected the math to be a little better, and had the Frontier hit its 19-mpg EPA-rated average, it would have. But our observed fuel economy came up short: 16.4 mpg. We were thinking this was full-size-truck territory, but then we looked back at our 2019 Ram 1500 Laramie and saw that it, too, came up short of its EPA numbers, averaging just 14.6 mpg. But the last midsizer we ran, our 2015 Chevrolet Colorado Z71, averaged 19.5 mpg—also below its EPA estimate but quite a bit better than the Frontier.
No complaints about service costs, though. Nissan doesn’t offer complimentary maintenance like some brands, but the $47.98 cost of our 7,500-mile oil change and tire rotation seemed reasonable to us, comparable with similar servicing for our 2019 Ram. The same service cost over $90 on our long-term Ford Maverick Hybrid, but the Mav, which calculates its service intervals based on usage patterns, didn’t have to visit the dealer until 11,500 miles.
Our Gas Is Gone
Another disappointment was the trouble of keeping fuel in the truck. We wrote about the time gas thieves cut a hole in a low-hanging rubber hose and stole our fuel. What we didn’t tell you is that a month later, the thieves struck again—same location, same M.O. (except this time, the truck only had a quarter tank). Same repair bill covered by insurance, and this time two weeks out of service. We never thought such a thing could happen again, but as the old saying goes, fool us twice, shame on us. We arranged to park the Frontier in an underground garage for the rest of its stay, and the problem never recurred—but clearly this is a vulnerability unique to the Frontier (the Tacoma on our block didn’t get hit) that Nissan needs to address.
While we’re talking about irritants, we must mention the Frontier’s turning circle: It’s about two and a half feet wider than previous-gen long-wheelbase Tacoma. Worse news for long-bed buyers: The new 2024 long-wheelbase Tacoma’s turning circle is even wider than our Frontier’s. Competitive advantage to Nissan, then, but we still found it a pain; first-time drivers would try to turn into parking spaces then have to back-and-fill when they realized they weren’t going to make it. We got used to the Frontier’s wide turns, but they were still irksome, especially as convenience and its city-friendly size was one of our reasons for choosing a midsize truck.
Daily Driving a Pickup Ain’t So Bad After All
Other than that—and the fact that it needed Suburban-size curbside spots, a worth trade-off for the extra bed space—the Frontier’s format really was as convenient as we’d hoped. The Frontier is 9 inches narrower than a Ram 1500 (just to pick one full-size pickup at random), so it fits easily into parking stalls and narrow lanes. The floor height isn’t a whole lot greater than some SUVs, and good sightlines and big mirrors make it easy to drive. Comfortable, too, at least for front-seaters. Our fears that we’d missed out by not springing for the optional Fender stereo proved unfounded; the basic six-speaker unit sounded great and spoiled us for the lesser systems in other vehicles. Overall, the Frontier provided the almost-carlike driving experience we wanted.
But the Frontier isn’t a car. It’s a truck, and we used it like one. So how did it hold up to the abuse?
Let’s Assess the Damage
Excellent, as far as the bed is concerned. We did no damage to the factory spray-in bedliner (and we didn’t just carry soft stuff like hay; other big hauls included a couple of motorcycles and the contents of a friend’s storage unit), but the plastic that lines the inside of the tailgate and tops the bed sides picked up some nicks and dings.
More impressive was interior durability. We didn’t just haul cargo in the Frontier; we also hauled dogs. Several of them, ours and our friend’s, including two puppies that had each grown to 100 pounds by the time the Frontier went back to Nissan. We expected their impatient claws to tear up the interior, particularly the door panels, but to our amazement they still looked brand-new at the end of our tenure. When the Frontier went back, only the lingering perfume of pooch (sorry, Nissan) indicated it was a dog taxi.
The only unexpected wear we found was in the plastic tray under the rear seats, which we stored the utility track cleats; the plastic was badly scuffed. At least the damage was hidden under the seats, but Nissan ought to consider some durable rubber padding.
The Right Accessories Make All the Difference
Our long-wheelbase Frontier SV 4x4 came with a $40,455 base price, to which we added a single option bundle, the $990 Technology package. Comprising adaptive cruise, lane departure and blind-spot warning, rear parking beepers, and collision avoidance braking, it was a good investment.
We also dived deep into dealer-installed accessories, to the tune of $1,796. Best investment? It’s a tie between the $160 rubber floormats and the $305 bed step. Personally, I wouldn’t own a truck without either. The $37 spare tire lock seemed to work, assuming our gas thieves would have gone for the tire, as well. The $14 rubber hitch receiver cover kept out the dirt, and the hitch slid easily home each time. We still resent paying $335 to tie the tailgate into the central locking system; the truck should come that way from the factory. But we stand by the $375 hood graphic—an extravagance, perhaps, but during our interview with Hiren Patel, who led the Frontier’s design team, he told us he approves. In retrospect, we could take or leave the $210 splash guards; we can’t tell if they had any positive effect, but they didn’t catch on anything when we were off-roading, which was our concern.
And what about that lack of cutting-edge tech? Well, sure, we would have liked to have a lane centering system, and we’re sure a high-tech turbo-four, as used in the new Coloradoand Tacoma, would have delivered the fuel economy the big VQ-series V-6 could not. As for cabin tech—well, frankly, since we first experienced this generation of Frontier in late ’21, touchscreen fatigue has set in, and we’ve come to respect a vehicle with knobs for the stereo and climate controls.
Lousy Timing
I had hoped to assess whether the Frontier could replace my aging Jeep Liberty for some 4x4 action; unfortunately, Mother Nature conspired to put the kibosh on that plan, alternately hitting us with scorching sun and torrential rains that caused us to cancel several camping trips. Shame—we had a brand-new Roofnest Condor 2 tent, secured with a Rhino Rack that bolted into the utility tracks in minutes, and a set of off-road wheels and tires. By the time Mother Nature eased her wrath, the truck had to go back. Ditto for towing the horse trailer; it never quite worked out. Maybe next lifetime, Frontier.
In terms of the rest of the MT staff, the Frontier was not exactly in high demand. It drew a few complaints for its heavy hydraulic steering (something that really didn’t bother us in day-to-day use) and its tight, upright back seat. Staffers who valued trucks, though, found the Frontier useful, especially its 6-foot bed, which was enough for many of the loads we’d normally use a full-size pickup for.
Point Proven
We set out to see if a midsize pickup could replace two vehicles, and the answer is a qualified yes—qualified because it’s important to pick out the right truck. The Frontier’s long bed and all-business SV spec provided the right mix of capability and comfort for our needs—and now that Chevrolet and GMC have dropped the long-wheelbase versions of their midsize pickups, the Frontier is one of only two midsizers that could have done the job. No, it’s not the highest-tech vehicle out there, but Nissan’s focus on the Frontier’s work ethic made it the right truck for the job.
For More On Our Long-Term 2023 Nissan Frontier SV 4x4 Long Bed:
- Update 1: Daily Driving a Pickup—Stupendous or Stupid?
- Update 2: The Super Secret Nissan Frontier Fan Club
- Update 3: What Do Off-Road Tires Do to Performance?
- Update 4: Four Pickup Features We Can't Live Without
- Update 5: Dude, Where’s My Gas?
- Update 6: So What About Towing?
- Update 7: How to Make a Good-Looking Pickup Truck
After a two-decade career as a freelance writer, Aaron Gold joined MotorTrend’s sister publication Automobile in 2018 before moving to the MT staff in 2021. Aaron is a native New Yorker who now lives in Los Angeles with his spouse, too many pets, and a cantankerous 1983 GMC Suburban.
Read More
