2020 Frontier - Same body, new guts

[docwatson]

2020 Nissan Frontier: New 3.8-Liter V6 And Transmission, Same Old Everything Else

It's got more horsepower than any other mid-size pickup.

www.thedrive.com

All new (well 93% new) 3.8l V6 with a 9 speed auto. 310hp (class leading) and 281 ft-lbs. I couldn't find any MPG estimates. I am interested to read some reviews on the new powertrain once they come out.

No more 4 cylinder and no more manual transmission.

Edit: TFL says they were told 10% more fuel efficient so 18 or 19 combined for the 4wd with maybe 25+ hwy for the 2wd.

 

[Bob Boyer]

Hmmm... I like.

Glad to see things are still basic. I'll probably pull the trigger on one of these next fall or winter as the tech in the Rangers and Colorados just looks like it's going to be in the way. I know it is on the wife's new Subaru Forester. Been to one tech school just to learn how to drive the damn thing; that's more than enough for a lifetime. Nor do I want the added maintenance worry with all the newfangled gadgets - whether real or imagined.

 

[Airmapper]

Frankly my only complaint on the current Frontier is the transmission, maybe this addresses that or makes it worse?

The 5-speed auto hunts for a gear to a noticeable degree. Always feels like it's in one higher gear than it should be. Sometimes it makes the truck feel sluggish until you get a delayed downshift and a surge of power that the 4.0 has in spades. You have to consciously coax a downshift from it yourself with the pedal, it doesn't seem to want to just drop a gear on it's own as you slow down.

 

[Rbertalotto]

Be sure to check payload for intended purpose. My friend bought one to tow a small toy hauler trailer. The payload on the hitch was far exceeded well before the tow rating was reached. This has been an issue with Nissan pickup trucks for years.

 

[docwatson]

Frankly my only complaint on the current Frontier is the transmission, maybe this addresses that or makes it worse?

The 5-speed auto hunts for a gear to a noticeable degree. Always feels like it's in one higher gear than it should be. Sometimes it makes the truck feel sluggish until you get a delayed downshift and a surge of power that the 4.0 has in spades. You have to consciously coax a downshift from it yourself with the pedal, it doesn't seem to want to just drop a gear on it's own as you slow down.

I agree. I've always liked my VQ40 but that 5 speed.

I'm keenly interested in reading the reviews about the new combination. Comments about the Titan 9 speed I've seen have been very positive. This one I think has different ratios that I'm sure pair well with the 3.8l.

 

[Bob Boyer]

Be sure to check payload for intended purpose. My friend bought one to tow a small toy hauler trailer. The payload on the hitch was far exceeded well before the tow rating was reached. This has been an issue with Nissan pickup trucks for years.

Is this an issue with the Nissan hitch itself that could be corrected by foregoing the factory hitch and installing a proper aftermarket hitch? Or are there other issues? Thanks for any advice.

 

[docwatson]

TFL has a review of the 2020.

GVW 6012 and payload of 1047 lbs. He remarks how smooth and quiet the engine/trans combo is. MPG and towing numbers not out yet. 16.1 MPG driving it hard though. My Pathfinder is lucky to see that on average commute driving. I'll be interested to see what else he has to say after some more time with it.

First Ever Real World Review: We Drive the 2020 Nissan Frontier and Its Brand New 3.8L V6 Engine! (Video)

Real world testing with the 2020 Nissan Frontier's 3.8 V6 The 2020 Nissan Frontier is an in between model leading up to an all-new Frontier coming next year.

www.tfltruck.com

 

[csclifford]

TFL has a review of the 2020.

GVW 6012 and payload of 1047 lbs. He remarks how smooth and quiet the engine/trans combo is. MPG and towing numbers not out yet. 16.1 MPG driving it hard though. My Pathfinder is lucky to see that on average commute driving. I'll be interested to see what else he has to say after some more time with it.

First Ever Real World Review: We Drive the 2020 Nissan Frontier and Its Brand New 3.8L V6 Engine! (Video)

Real world testing with the 2020 Nissan Frontier's 3.8 V6 The 2020 Nissan Frontier is an in between model leading up to an all-new Frontier coming next year.

www.tfltruck.com

New TFL Video
TFL just posted another video which includes some 0-60 runs, mpg, and truck weight. The 2020 returned around 22.5mpg in a 66 mile mpg loop at 70mph and weighted in at close to 4,700lbs empty, with a full tank of gas.

TFL said they'd reach out to Nissan regarding the payload, because the sticker on their truck showed payload of 1,047 but the diff. between the GVWR and the weight while empty was over 1,300lbs.

 

[kootenay]

New TFL Video
TFL just posted another video which includes some 0-60 runs, mpg, and truck weight. The 2020 returned around 22.5mpg in a 66 mile mpg loop at 70mph and weighted in at close to 4,700lbs empty, with a full tank of gas.

TFL said they'd reach out to Nissan regarding the payload, because the sticker on their truck showed payload of 1,047 but the diff. between the GVWR and the weight while empty was over 1,300lbs.

I have found that issue in the past with Nissan. My truck in 2015 in Canada had a payload 1049lbs, but the difference between empty and GVW was more like 1250lbs. But with the stock suspension more than 800lbs had her squatting pretty low. Now that I have sliders, winch canopy etc I still feel my payload capacity is about 1000lbs, but I know that would put me over the GVW.

The new guts in the old truck has me interested. Would love to find out if the gears are similar to what we have now with just more in the top end, or if they included a low 1st for crawling, that to me would be ideal. A lower first then the 5spd has would be awesome.

 

[docwatson]

I am not entirely sure on the transmission specs but Nissan is licensed to produce Daimler's 9 speed. If that's the 9 speed being used, these are its gear ratios

1st 5.3545

2nd 3.2432

3rd 2.2523

4th 1.6356

5th 1.2106

6th 1.00

7th 0.865

8th 0.7167

9th 0.6015

vs the RE5R05A

1st 3.842

2nd 2.353

3rd 1.529

4th 1.00

5th 0.839

He did say in that video the Pro 4x rear end is now a 3.69 ratio as opposed to the 3.36 in the 2019 an older. Those two changes would make the crawl ratio ~52

 

[colodak]

Be sure to check payload for intended purpose. My friend bought one to tow a small toy hauler trailer. The payload on the hitch was far exceeded well before the tow rating was reached. This has been an issue with Nissan pickup trucks for years.

Might not have been a factory hitch. The hitch that came from the factory on my '15 Frontier is a class IV rated receiver hitch.

 

[docwatson]

Gladiator vs 2020 Frontier by TFL. TFL must have the only 2020 Frontier in existence.

They make a couple comments about the crawl ratio although no specifics. Final comment "90% of the Gladiator for 60% of the cost."

 

[andytruck]

What I hate about these reviews is that you are not comparing reality. Reality the new owner will put bigger tires on. Put the same tires on both trucks then do a test. You have tested the tires as much as tested the trucks. Tires will be the first thing replaced other than the oil filter. Tires are not the truck. Smaller tires are stocked for the EPA fuel mileage numbers.... Put street tires on the Jeep and then do the test and tell us how poor the Jeep did.