2011 Nissan Frontier Review and Prices

Styling: The 2011 Nissan Frontier’s styling doesn’t change. This remains arguably the brawniest-looking compact pickup thanks to a body inspired by the unabashedly muscular full-size Nissan Titan pickup. Frontier’s “Baby Titan” cues include Nissan’s “angled strut” grille plus big bumpers, short sheetmetal overhangs, and large, stamped-steel geometric fender flares.

Frontier is built on the same stout, solid-rear-axle platform that underpins the Nissan Pathfinder and Xterra SUVs. Nissan also for a brief time supplied Frontiers to Suzuki, which re-trimmed them for sale as the Equator pickup.

Frontier gets lots of mileage out of just one chassis length and two body styles. Key rivals offer two or three of each. Frontier features an extended cab, which Nissan calls the King Cab, and an eponymous Crew Cab. Both ride a 125.9-inch wheelbase. Wheelbase is the distance between the front and rear axles and Frontier’s is on par with that of most other extended- and crew-cab compact pickups. Frontier also falls in step by equipping its King Cab with two small, rear-hinged back doors that don’t open independently of the front doors. It fits its Crew Cab with four conventional side doors. Kings have a pair of small rear-seat cushions. Crews get a full-width rear bench. Both rear compartments are undersized even in a class where back-seat room is almost always tight. Nissan provides a class-competitive 6.1-foot-long box as the sole King Cab cargo bed. The Crew Cab comes standard with a 4.9-foot bed -- among the shortest in the category – but is also available with the 6.1-foot box.

The 2011 Frontier lineup again consists of four models, though their labels change slightly. The 2011 Nissan Frontier S is still the entry-level model. Onto the next rung in place of the SE model slips the newly introduced 2011 Frontier SV model. The off-road-styled Frontier PRO-4X model returns. But the fanciest 2011 Frontier is renamed the SL model instead of the LE and is now available only in the Crew Cab body style.

Mechanical: In combination with the model relabeling, the 2011 Nissan Frontier loses its former LE King Cab and will not offer an SV Crew Cab with the long-bed and manual transmission. However, the 2011 Frontier roster gains an S Crew Cab short-bed and a PRO-4X Crew Cab short-bed with manual transmission.

In any configuration, the 2011 Frontier continues to follow compact-pickup convention with a choice of four- and six-cylinder engines and rear-wheel drive (2wd) or four-wheel drive (4wd). Frontier’s four-cylinder is a dual-overhead-cam 2.5-liter with 152 horsepower and 171 pound-feet of torque. A few key competitors make 4wd available on their four-cylinder models, but Frontier’s four-cylinder is confined to 2wd models. Some rivals also offer V-8 engines, but Frontier compensates with the most powerful six-cylinder in the class, a dual-overhead-cam 4.0-liter with 261 horsepower and 281 pound-feet of torque. The V-6 is available on both Frontier cab styles and with 2wd and 4wd. Both engines come with a manual transmission – a five-speed with the four-cylinder, a six-speed with the V-6 – or with a five-speed automatic transmission.

Frontier’s 4wd system is a pickup-traditional “part-time” unit that has low-range gearing for off-road use but is not intended to be left engaged on dry pavement. All Frontiers have four-wheel disc brakes with antilock technology for better control in emergency stops. V-6 versions add an antiskid system to combat sideways slides. PRO-4X models come only with the V-6 but are available in both cab styles and with 2wd and 4wd. They include off-road tuned Bilstein-brand shock absorbers, additional skid plates, and a limited-slip rear differential with electronic locking.

Four-cylinder Frontiers are only adequate performers. And acceleration is unexceptional even with the V-6. Steering and handling are near the top of the class, though like any compact pickup, Frontier’s rear end is prone to sideways skittering in bumpy turns, especially if the cargo bed is empty or lightly loaded. The 4wd Frontiers are formidable off-road, aided by available four-wheel limited slip technology plus Hill Descent Control and Hill Start Assist. Frontier’s towing capacity is a competitive 3,500 pounds with the four-cylinder and 6,500 with the V-6. So is its payload ceiling of some 1,500 pounds.

Features: Changes to 2011 Nissan Frontier features run mostly to reconstituted and renamed options packages. Newly available is an SV Premium Utility Package that includes an upgraded audio system and Bluetooth cell-phone connectivity with steering-wheel controls for both. It adds an overhead console and automatic-dimming inside mirror with compass, as well. The SV Premium Package also enhances the cargo bed with Nissan’s factory-applied spray-in liner and its Utili-track adjustable aluminum tie-down cleats and accessory dividers.

The 2011 Frontier PRO-4X models are newly available with a Luxury Package that includes a power tilt/slide moonroof, leather upholstery, and heated front seats. Every 2011 Frontier continues with head-protecting curtain side airbags for both seating rows. Air conditioning and a tilt steering wheel are optional on the entry-level 2wd King Cab S model and standard on all other 2011 Frontiers. Four-cylinder S models also make due with roll-up windows and manual door locks.

Otherwise, the 2011 Frontier features landscape continues to be a pretty broad one. Crew Cabs are again available with a tube-style roof rack, the spray-in bed liner, Utili-track, and the power moonroof. SLs are available with a power driver’s seat, heated front seats, and leather upholstery. Available audio systems include a Rockford Fosgate unit and an optional subwoofer. Bluetooth phone connectivity and an auxiliary MP3 jack are also among the options. However, lack of a USB iPod interface is an obvious omission from the 2011 Frontier’s features list. Both cab styles again have flip-up rear seat cushions and a fold-flat front passenger seat. SLs come with 18-inch alloys wheels. Standard wheel size on the other models is 16 inches, with alloys standard on SV Crew Cabs and on PRO-4X models; the wheels and tire tread on PRO-4X models are suited to off-pavement work.