2005 Nissan Frontier Review

Specifications

Real Women Drive Trucks!

Im very fond of reading bumper stickers. They are just so clever, well at least some of them are. As I was driving one day, I spotted a sticker that particularly stood out. It read, “Real Women Drive Trucks.” I laughed for a couple of reasons. One, because the bumper sticker was stuck onto a beat up old Ford truck with half its parts falling off (this is not a slander at Ford) which was being driven by a man, and two, I just happened to be testing out the 2005 Nissan Frontier 4X4. I guess Im a real woman after all, or at least for that week I was!

Now that Im on the topic of being real, I recall a couple of years ago (2003) when the Titan was introduced, Nissan claimed that it was the first “true” truck to enter the automotive market from a Japanese manufacturer; “true” meaning full-size in comparison to its only other Japanese competitor the Toyota Tundra which measures in at about 7/8ths full-size. While the Frontier does not have the same length and heft as the Titan, it still shares some DNA with its bigger and brawnier younger brother. Included in their common characteristics are the following attributes: a rugged suspension design, an innovative spray-in bedliner, the Utilitrack bed channel tie-down system, and a fully boxed, all-steel frame based on the Titan F-Alpha architecture.

The adopted rugged foundation increases the Frontiers wheelbase by 9.9 inches over the 2004 model. The longer wheelbase, in turn, enhances stability and comfort but doesnt make the truck too large for those who want an “activity size” vehicle rather than a “true” full-size pickup. In addition, the new design increases the Frontiers height and width.

Furthermore, the suspension layout echoes that of the Titan with its all-steel compact and rigid double wishbone front and a rigid leaf rear suspension with overslung leaf springs and a long suspension stroke for favorable off-road driving. While I only drove the Frontier on city streets, I noticed that it was fairly smooth. It also impressed one of my hardest critics, Bella, an aged golden retriever who I was dog sitting for over the weekend. She hates going on car rides and whines continually when placed in the rear, but not in the Frontier. She excitedly stuck her head out the window, and didnt fly from corner to corner while I took to the curves, enabling her to drool away happily as we cruised down to the dog beach. The phrase “smooth-riding truck” almost sounds like an oxymoron. It felt more like driving an SUV than a pickup, like driving the X-Terra; which it should because it too shares similar frame and suspension components with the Titan.

As for an “activity sized” truck, it fits a whole lot of gear in the cab and the bed. An acquaintance and her friend were coming back into town and needed to be picked up at the airport in a relatively large automobile, or at least one that would fit her surfboards and gear from traveling around Asia. Sure enough, I volunteered to pick her up since the Frontier is designed for a plethora of sports equipment and more. Plus it makes for a good story and puts its cargo capacity to use.

Even with the bed loaded with gear, and the cabin filled with people, the Frontier has quite a bit of get-up-and-go power due to its increased engine size. With a new VQ40DE, 4.0L, 24-valve, DOHC V6 engine under the hood, it produces 265-horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 284 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm, an increase of 85-horsepower and 82 lb-ft of torque, making it the most powerful V6 not only in its class, but on the light truck market today. The new engine is based on the award-winning VQ engine series that powers everything from the Altima sedan to Infinitis M35 sport sedan, although it was specifically modified to meet the demands of truck use with a longer stroke, reinforced block and revised camshaft profile for notable torque response.

Attached to the powerful 4.0-liter engine is a 5-speed automatic transmission, standard with the NISMO (meaning Nissan Motorsport) equipped 4X4 pickup. Also unique to this trim level are a few off-roading accessories, such as locking rear differentials, skid plates, a roof rack with cross bars, P265/75R16 BF Goodrich rugged trail tires with 16-inch alloy wheels and NISMO-spec Bilstein high performance off-road shocks. Its a fully-loaded and fully capable off-roading machine, too bad Im not a fully capable off-road driver. Maybe one day.

But as much as I like being on the trails, I prefer the concrete jungle. Besides, many truck owners never step a wheel off the pavement. It is, however nice to know that the Frontier can tackle the trails with the flick of a switch, literally. In NISMO trim the Frontier comes with a switch-operated 2-speed transfer case, which takes all of half a second to shift into 4-wheel mode.

When the part-time 4WD system isnt engaged, the Frontier is a rear-wheel drive truck that benefits from 4-wheel disc brakes, featuring larger discs on the front combined with ABS and EBD. Being in two-wheel drive optimizes fuel economy and is, like I mentioned earlier, quite a smooth and comfortable experience.

Not only is the newly designed Frontier comfortable to drive, but its nice to look at outside and in. The cabin echoes that of an X-Terra I recently tested, with sturdy but soft cloth upholstered seating surfaces, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and a long list of functional features such as air conditioning, fog lights, and steering wheel-mounted audio controls for its kickin Rockford Fosgate stereo system boasting an AM/FM/in-dash 6-CD changer with 10 speakers and a subwoofer. Im always impressed with what Nissan and Rockford Fosgate cooperatively produce, and this sound system is no different. Its darn good!

Since my NISMO tester came in the Crew Cab configuration (also available in King Cab trim), the rear seats were easily accessible and probably more comfortable than that of the smaller iteration. The rear doors allow easy access for all passengers, especially Bella my temporary dog, and the seating position isnt bench-like, but rather quite upright. Generally I dont spend much time in the back seats of any of my test vehicles, but occasionally I sit back there and read for a while just to get a feel for the seats and roominess of the interior. After some time in the rear of the Frontier, my verdict is that there are more comfortable vehicles available. Mind you, there are a lot worse too.

In general, the Frontier is an extremely capable vehicle. It embodies all the ying and yang a midsize truck should; comfort mixed with versatile ruggedness. Of course, it has its drawbacks, such as fuel economy which is estimated at 19 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the highway, and its overall length of 205.5 inches makes parking difficult at times. Before the week was out I ended up putting quite a few kilometers on the Frontier, around 800 plus if you want to know the details, and as expected my gas bill was higher than average. It was worth it though. After all, it costs money to live up to my “real” woman status, right?! I wouldnt have it any other way.