Here's a hypothetical question: Should the Japanese automaker Nissan use the fresh Kicks styling as the perfect excuse to remarry the Navara and Frontier mid-size pickup trucks to lower costs and allow the introduction of an efficient hybrid version?
One of the major introductions at the 2024 New York International Auto Show set to be held from March 29 to April 7, alongside models like the Polestar 4, MINI Cooper S, Porsche Macan EV, Hyundai Tucson and Santa Cruz, Kia K4, or the trio of Genesis concepts was also the second-generation Nissan Kicks subcompact crossover SUV.
Developed on the Alliance's CMF-B architecture, the 2025 Nissan Kicks is bigger than before, more powerful thanks to a larger 139-hp 2.0-liter engine, tech-infused inside and out, plus for the first time outside of Japan available with optional all-wheel drive. It's a more compelling choice than ever, but what really elevates the Mexico-produced CUV is Nissan's audacity to revolutionize the styling with an all-new design language.
Naturally, everyone and their mother thinks the Japanese company, which also recently announced it will introduce 30 new vehicles by 2027, including 16 hybrids and EVs and seven all-new models for the North American markets, will trickle up and down (plus sideways) across the entire lineup. We already know the 2025 Nissan Armada will debut this year, and an all-new Murano has been confirmed as well, but some folks are more interested in what happens with the popular mid-size pickup trucks – Navara and Frontier.
The two nameplates used to be twins but were separated when the D41 third-generation Nissan Frontier was introduced to America for the 2022 model year. The company recently teased the fourth-generation Navara, and the rumor mill believes it will simply become a rebadged Mitsubishi Triton (L200). However, maybe the imaginative realm of digital car content creators thinks otherwise – or is it just us dreaming of Nissan remarrying the Navara and Frontier into one compelling mid-size pickup truck, getting the best of both worlds?
Anyway, Dimas Ramadhan, the virtual automotive artist behind the Digimods DESIGN channel on YouTube, has taken up the task of CGI-revealing a fresh Nissan pickup truck in the mid-size class. The pixel master specifically names the Navara as the model in question, but since it fully utilizes the fresh Kicks styling, a model produced in North America, it could also work like a charm for a Frontier redesign.
Plus, the author envisioned this as a hybrid mid-size pickup truck, so a Frontier Hybrid would probably kick(s) the 326-hp 2024 Toyota Tacoma i-Force Max hybrid precisely where the sun doesn't shine. So, would you like to see a reunification of the Navara and Frontier destinies with Kicks design, or not?
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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