• News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
  • News
  • Guides
  • Reviews
  • Media
  • About
Sign up Now (For Free)

Sign up for our newsletter and receive the latest automotive news in your inbox!

Invalid email address
We promise not to spam you. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Thanks for subscribing!
News
Read Now
  • All News
  • Automakers
  • Automobiles
  • Auto Shows
  • Business
  • EVs & Environment
  • Guides
  • Lawsuits/Legal
  • Regulatory
  • Ride-Sharing
  • Safety & Recalls
  • Technology
Recent
  • GMC Launches Production of Hummer SUV; Needs Until 2024 to Fill Outstanding Orders
  • Vehicle Sales Up for January Despite Ongoing Challenges
  • Bidding Adieu to Bugatti’s W16 Engine
  • Ford “Significantly” Raising Production of Mustang Mach-E While Reducing Prices “Across the Board”
  • Week Ahead: Numbers, Numbers and More Numbers
  • The Rearview Mirror: All That the Name Implies
  • Top Tips for Improving EV Range in Cold Weather
  • Mercedes is First Automaker to Offer True Level 3 Hands-Free Driving System in the U.S.
  • Audi Introduces Fourth “Sphere” Concept: Activesphere
  • Jaguar Land Rover Posts First Profitable Quarter in Two Years
Editor’s Choice
    Reviews
    Read Now
    • All Reviews
      • Feeder
    • Classic Cars
    • Concept Cars
    • Convertibles
    • Coupes
    • Crossovers/CUVs
    • Diesel
    • Hot hatches
    • Hybrids
    • Luxury Vehicles
    • Minivans
    • Muscle Cars
    • Pickups
    • Sedans
    • Sports Cars
    • Super Cars
    • SUVs
    Recent Reviews
    • A Week With: 2023 Ford F-150 Raptor R 4x4 Super Crew
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis Electrified G80 AWD
    • A Week With: 2023 Land Rover Defender 110 V-8
    • First Drive: 2023 Honda Pilot TrailSport
    • A Week With: 2023 Jaguar F-Type R Coupe
    • A Week With: 2023 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate
    • A Week With: 2023 Genesis GV60 Performance
    • A Week With: 2023 Chevrolet Suburban Z71
    • A Week With: 2023 Lexus UX 250h F Sport
    • A Week With: 2023 Mercedes-Benz EQB 300 4Matic
    Editor’s Choice
      Guides
      Car Warranty
      • Endurance Warranty Reviews
      • BMW Extended Warranty
      • Extended Warranty For Cars Over 100k Miles
      • Extended Car Warranty Cost
      • Subaru Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Reviews
      • CarShield Cost
      • Aftermarket Car Warranty
      • CARCHEX Warranty Reviews
      • Reputable Extended Car Warranty Companies
      • Used Car Warranty Companies
      • Best Car Warranty
      • Is CarShield A Scam?
      • Mercedes Extended Warranty
      • CarShield Plans
      Insurance
      • How To Identify A Car Insurance Company
      • Geico Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • How Far Back Does A Car Insurance Company Look
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance For Used Cars
      • State Farm Mechanical Breakdown Insurance
      • Mechanical Breakdown Insurance From Progressive
      • Dollar A Day Insurance
      • Auto Insurance For SSI Recipients
      • Car Insurance Rates After A Suspended License
      • Auto Insurance For Salvage Vehicles
      • Average Cost of Dodge Ram 1500 Car Insurance
      • Car Insurance Florida
      • Full Coverage Auto Insurance
      • GrubHub Insurance
      • Amazon Delivery Auto Insurance
      Shipping
      • Car Shipping Companies
      • uShip Reviews
      • Auto Shipping From California To Hawaii
      • Montway Auto Transport Reviews
      • Cheap Car Shipping
      • Easy Auto Ship Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Miami
      • Auto Shipping To Alaska
      • Car Shipping Cost
      • Auto Shipping Hawaii
      • Auto Shipping Puerto Rico
      • Sherpa Auto Transport Reviews
      • Auto Shipping Atlanta
      • Auto Shipping Boston
      • Auto Shipping. Chicago
      About
      • About Us
      • Contact Us
      • Terms of Use
      • Privacy Policy
      • Affiliate Disclosure
      • Sitemap
      TheDetroitBureau.com

      More than just “another” place to find news, reviews, spy shots, commentary, features, and guides about the auto industry. TheDetroitBureau doesn’t stop with the press releases or confuse a few lines of opinion with insightful, in-depth reporting.

      Contact Us

      Like what you see? Have some ideas for making The Detroit Bureau.com even better? Let us know, we’d love to hear your voice.

        Media
        Listen Now
        • Headlight News: All Episodes
        More from TheDetroitBureau
        • Guides
        • Latest News
        • Auto Reviews
        • Podcasts
        Headlight News

        TheDetroitBureau.com’s Headlight News offers a look at the past week’s top automotive news stories, as well as what’s coming up in the week ahead. Check out the week’s top story and our latest review…along with a dive into the past with this week in automotive history.

        home > news > Auto Shows > Nissan Reveals 2020 Frontier in Chicago – But it Only Hints at the Completer Makeover Coming

        Nissan Reveals 2020 Frontier in Chicago – But it Only Hints at the Completer Makeover Coming

        Key update: 3.8-liter V-6 set to be the “heart of the next Frontier.”

        Paul A. Eisenstein
        Paul A. Eisenstein , Publisher & Editor-in-Chief
        Feb. 05, 2020
        Nissan rolled out its new 2020 Frontier midsize pickup truck. The truck gets a new powerplant for the model year.

        Nissan is making some big news at the Chicago Auto Show – though how big is a matter of how you define it.

        The automaker is focusing its attention on the 2020 Frontier pickup. But that doesn’t mean the Windy City preview is just more of the same.

        The real news is that the 2020 Nissan Frontier gets an all-new 3.8-liter direct-injection V-6, an engine the automaker promises will be the “heart of the next Frontier.” Paired with an also-new nine-speed automatic gearbox, the engine will punch out a solid 310 horsepower and 281 pound-feet of torque.

        (Nissan prepares to offer U.S. employees buyouts)

        The new V-6 replaces the two powertrains currently offered with the midsize truck, an anemic 152-horsepower inline-4 and the upgraded option, a 261-horsepower 4.0-liter V-6. Those two were offered with a choice of a five-speed automatic or five-speed manual.

        “The new engine is expected to have lower emissions and about 9% better fuel economy,” Tiago Castro, Nissan’s director of Commercial Vehicles, told TheDetroitBureau.com. He said the numbers on both would be released soon.

        The new Frontier doesn’t exactly break any new boundaries with its design, but it remains a popular seller in the U.S.

        And the outgoing powertrain pair underscored just how long-in-the-tooth the Nissan Frontier has become.

        Known in many parts of the world as the Nissan Navara, the truck has been available in the U.S. market with only the most modest updates since late 2004 as an ’05 model-year truck. Conceivably, someone born the same time the current-generation Frontier came to market will be old enough to drive in most states this year.

        By far the oldest pickup on the U.S. market, whether midsize or full-size, the Frontier has shown surprising vitality, especially considering the flood of new midsized models since the midsize segment started to rebound mid-decade, buoyed by new offerings like the Chevrolet Colorado, Ford Ranger and Jeep Gladiator.

        In fact, the Frontier sold more than 72,000 units in the U.S. last year, Castro noted.

        A key to Frontier’s longevity is its basic ruggedness – as well as its low cost of entry. We’ll have to wait for details on the 2020 model’s pricing but the current version starts at just $19,290. That’s about $2,000 less than the Chevy Colorado and a full $7,000 under the Toyota Tacoma, the best-selling of the midsize pickups.

        The 2020 Frontier does get a new powerplant: a 3.8-liter V6 putting out 310 horsepower.

        (Nissan’s turnaround chief latest to leave, dealing automaker another blow)

        “It’s going to be a value-based” truck that competes fiercely in the midsize truck segment, Castro noted.

        The 2020 version of the Frontier may be dropping its manual gearbox option, but it will continue to be offered in both rear- and four-wheel-drive configurations.

        Additional updates for 2020, notes Nissan, include “standard push button start. In addition, a number of features are now standard for all grades: leather shift knob, manual tilt steering, power door locks and power windows with driver side auto-down.”

        As for other updates, Nissan is actually remaining mum on a couple of details, including indications the underlying frame is being updated along the lines of what we can expect when the complete 2021 makeover finally lands on our shores.

        That model is expected to pick up new styling cues that will be more in line with Nissan’s current full-size model, the Titan.

        Brian Murphy, a Chicagoland delivery driver, put 1 million miles on his 2007 Frontier — his stated goal.

        Along with the new 3.8-liter V-6, there has been widespread speculation that the all-new Nissan Frontier will be offered with a hybrid powertrain option. It’s not clear if it would be available right from the get-go, however.

        One of the other questions is when the next-generation Frontier will actually make its debut. The truck has been delayed several times, according to insiders. And Nissan has been struggling with a series of financial problems that have led it to cut back on its product line-up while also cutting global employment by more than 12,000.

        (Nissan shutting down some U.S. operations for two days in January)

        But, clearly, it can use an upgrade of the Frontier. The midsize market is more vital than it’s been in decades but there are plenty of new competitors that would like to continue nibbling away at the Nissan truck’s once solid market share.

        How to Care for Your Car

        Cheap Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice

        Best Extended Car Warranty

        Editor's Choice
        Recently Published
        GMC chief Duncan Aldred 2023

        GMC Launches Production of Hummer SUV; Needs Until 2024 to Fill Outstanding Orders

        Yesterday
        Closeup of front side of red car with other cars parking in parking area.

        Vehicle Sales Up for January Despite Ongoing Challenges

        Yesterday

        Bidding Adieu to Bugatti’s W16 Engine

        Yesterday

        Leave a Reply Cancel reply

        Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

        Share this article:
        © The Detroit Bureau 2023
        • Guides
        • Privacy Policy
        • Terms of Use
        • Affiliate Disclosure
        • Contact Us
        • Sitemap
        Follow Us: