Known as the Navara in most parts of the world, the Frontier for South America has been redesigned for the 2021 model year inside and out. During the reveal event, the Japanese company has also given us a sneak peek at the Frontier for the United States and Canadian markets, which is pretty different under the skin.
First and foremost, skip the following video from Nissan Mexico to the 11-minute and 45-second mark. Right there on the wall, yeah, that’s the mid-size pickup truck with a free-breathing V6 instead of a four-cylinder turbo diesel. The chassis is a bit different as well, and the same can be said about the design of the grille and front bumper.
Flanked by the South American model and Titan, the newcomer is a combination of the two trucks that – dare I say it – looks better than both of them. The signature lighting and sculpted hood add to the visual drama, and zooming in reveals a set of mud-terrain rubber shoes instead of all-season or summer-only tires. Even in this boring shade of silverish gray, the all-new Frontier for the U.S. definitely looks good.
The engine compartment is where you’ll find a 3.8-liter mill instead of the 4.0-liter blunderbuss that ran until the 2019 model year. With 310 horsepower and 281 pound-feet of torque on tap, it’s a pretty adequate engine for this application by all accounts. Only a torque-converter automatic is offered at the time of writing, now featuring nine forward ratios instead of five. Nissan doesn’t offer a stick shift in the 2020 model, and a manual is not planned because the take-up rate would be abysmal.
Nissan still hasn’t confirmed when the Frontier for North America will be revealed to the public, but given the introduction of the South American/global truck, the V6-engined pickup may be unleashed in a matter of weeks or months. We do know that it’s going on sale early next year, and as a result, the waiting game will be over soon.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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