[brickisred]

Is it just me or does the 4cyl. auto seem lacking in the power department? I took one for a spin and I really like the truck, however at highway speeds it just seemed weak. Keeps constant speed pretty good with cruise, but try to hit the gas, pass someone on a hill and it just doesn't want to do it. Or it will downshift alarmingly and take forever to upshift again. I punched it on a hill once and it downshifted a couple gears and hit 5k rpms!

I will say around town it was fine and dandy, seemed peppy enough. But hit a highway on-ramp and try to merge into 65mph traffic and you become very aware that you are not driving a powerhouse.

I have a 4cyl manual hardbody and it's not any faster, but at least when I hit the gas in 5th gear at 70mph, it will move a little bit. I may just not be used to an auto trans. (never had one), but it is kind of turning me off. Sucks because it is a very nice 2010 SE, clean as a whistle and I think I can get a decent deal on it. Not trying to knock anyones Nissan, but just want to get some insight into this. Does this seem normal? Do I need to relearn how to drive to get better performance out of the auto?

 

[LINESKIER45]

i am no expert by any means but it is a 4 cylinder truck, don't expect it to have sports car performance.. i have the v6 and it's pretty quick for a truck to 60 but once it hits there... you can forget about accelerating!!! so it would seem normal to have trouble passing and going up hills... thats just my 2 cents

 

[5speed_Frontier]

yah you definitely are gonna what the manual if you get the new 4 cylinder. Thats what I have. With the stuff I've done to it, it's not that bad but I do have to drop gears a lot to pass people or climb hills. And I take it up to 5k just about everyday hahaha. I still love my truck and the 4 cylinder helps make it unique and I get good gas mileage. However, there are always times where I wish I had the V6

 

[colin123]

at 154hp and like 173tq you can't expect too much from something that weighs about 4 and a half thousand pounds. its good for what it is but it sounds like for your tastes your going to want the v6 frontier but you'll have to decide whats more important to you, the power or the fuel economy

 

[brickisred]

Yeah I guess it's the weight that's doing it. I'm sure my little Nissan weighs half as much. I'm thinking the manual might feel peppier. Not interested in the V6 with all the timing chain issues I've read about. Going to mull it over for a while, it's a nice truck if I could just get used to the auto...

 

[freshprinceofoc]

I constantly kick myself for buying the 4 cylinder auto. When i bought it gas was $4 a gallon so it made sense. The truck gets the job done but that is it. With the gearing so low it seems ok around town but it is slow on highways and to be honest the gas mileage is really not that great. I get 20 mpg regularly but ive seen as low as 17 if I have stuff in the bed or doing alot of spirited driving. If I had to do it over again I would have gotten the 6.

 

[Jordo]

i am no expert by any means but it is a 4 cylinder truck, don't expect it to have sports car performance.. i have the v6 and it's pretty quick for a truck to 60 but once it hits there... you can forget about accelerating!!! so it would seem normal to have trouble passing and going up hills... thats just my 2 cents

WHAT!!!! Your truck is BROKEN!!!! My V6 with 65K miles on it will blow the doors off of any other truck!!!! (minus Ford lightnig or that viper V10 dodge)
And no accel after 60mph!!!!!!! Your nuts!!! My truck doesnt brake a sweet till
85mph! And even then it getting warmed up. I can stomp it at 65 mph, and hit 75mph in less then a few sec, no problem..... all day long.

I have never ever been in any truck that pulls hard all the way to 90 mph, like our V6 frontiers. Its a sport sadan stuck in a truck body.

Check your air box..... might be a rag stuck in there!!! Sorry to bust your balls, but that is just the crazest un-true thing I have ever heard about 05+ frontiers.

Yeah I guess it's the weight that's doing it. I'm sure my little Nissan weighs half as much. I'm thinking the manual might feel peppier. Not interested in the V6 with all the timing chain issues I've read about. Going to mull it over for a while, it's a nice truck if I could just get used to the auto...

If you got a manual V6 with no mods..... and drive it like a granny, you can get 20mpg. Just FYI

 

[eckemoff]

I test drove the v4. Yes... it VERY much lacks power before cruise speed. Once you get to 60, it can cruise okay and have nice MPG, but otherwise, it is just plain weak for this heavy truck. You can get about 25 MPG on a v4 though (4x2 and king cab) and it IS sufficient for normal driving, though you really feel the weakness.

On a v6, it is definitely extremely powerful, but also extremely gas thirsty. I have NO problems passing anyone going 60-65... the truck gets to 85 pretty quick. If I floor the gas pedal and am not going up a steep hill, the truck simply storms ahead with ease. IMO, it is almost a little too powerful for this size truck and it hurts at the pump because of that. You really don't need that extra HP normally unless you are passing a lot or need to tow. At the same time, the extra power allows the heavy truck to accelerate similarly to a sports sedan...but the extra weight creates a lot of momentum that does not give the truck a swift feel like a sports sedan and also it takes more power to maintain the extra weight, so you'll get less MPG if you go faster than 55-60 (this is normal for all cars of course).

Basically with the frontier you have the choice of little power or a lot of power. There should be a middle ground IMO or the v6 should be more advanced and efficient at cruise speed by acting like a v4, but still have the torque at lower speeds/gears. I guess it already is like that.

The frontier V6 is an award winning engine also used in the Z sports coupe. It is one of the main reasons I got the frontier over the tacoma... along with the tacoma boat ride and wacky looks.

 

[colin123]

Yeah I guess it's the weight that's doing it. I'm sure my little Nissan weighs half as much. I'm thinking the manual might feel peppier. Not interested in the V6 with all the timing chain issues I've read about. Going to mull it over for a while, it's a nice truck if I could just get used to the auto...

well if your looking at getting a 2010 then the timing chain issue wont be a problem for you since they put a bulletin out about it they have also eliminated the problem of small amounts of poorly finished timing chains getting put into motors. so its a non issue for a newer one not to mention in reality the problem effects less than 5% of total owners. it seems like it happens to alot more people cause you'll read about it alot here but you have to consider a major reason people come onto a forum is to have a question answered about a problem, and also bad news is more exciting than good news. i wouldn't let the bad news that effects a very small percentage turn you off from a very good motor based off of an award winning motor (the vq35 from the z). the motor from the z and maxima has been on wards top 10 motors list since the first year it came out and every year since then and the vq40 (v6 in the frontier) is almost the same motor. a 4cyl in a truck isn't bad but our trucks are a bit heavier than most trucks you'll find with 4cyl so you really can't expect much amazing from it. maybe put some more research into the v6 and see if you change your mind cause it really doesn't sound like the 4cyl is going to ever be to your liking.

 

[eckemoff]

What is the timing issue on the v6?

 

[Jordo]

What is the timing issue on the v6?

The plastic timimg chain guides wore out, so the timing chain was riding on the metal backing of the guide. Think of it like a worn out brake pad, grinding on the rotor.

But like others said, it has been fixed.

 

[colin123]

What is the timing issue on the v6?

like jordo said the plastic guides of the secondary timing chain tensioners would prematurely wear out due to a slight quality control issue with the company here in the usa that made the chains that went into the usa built motors. a small amount of chains with slightly rough edges instead of perfectly smooth were being put into motors and they would eat through the tensioner guilds much faster than they should have.

 

[mrgrayaz]

WHAT!!!! Your truck is BROKEN!!!! My V6 with 65K miles on it will blow the doors off of any other truck!!!! (minus Ford lightnig or that viper V10 dodge)
And no accel after 60mph!!!!!!! Your nuts!!! My truck doesnt brake a sweet till
85mph! And even then it getting warmed up. I can stomp it at 65 mph, and hit 75mph in less then a few sec, no problem..... all day long.

I have never ever been in any truck that pulls hard all the way to 90 mph, like our V6 frontiers. Its a sport sadan stuck in a truck body.

Check your air box..... might be a rag stuck in there!!! Sorry to bust your balls, but that is just the crazest un-true thing I have ever heard about 05+ frontiers.



If you got a manual V6 with no mods..... and drive it like a granny, you can get 20mpg. Just FYI

rofl... they really aren't that fast.

 

[Jordo]

rofl... they really aren't that fast.

hahah damn close tho! I have never been in any stock mid size or full size truck that has a motor that is a healthy as ours.

Dude said after 60MPH its hard to accel???? That right there is ROFL!!!:laugh:

 

[devious1]

hahah damn close tho! I have never been in any stock mid size or full size truck that has a motor that is a healthy as ours.

Dude said after 60MPH its hard to accel???? That right there is ROFL!!!:laugh:

If you don't do it right it will be slow. I found this out a while back that if I punch in before 40 mph it takes for but punching it at 60 doesn't alway give the same effect. Something to do with the electronic but at 40 roll is how to fool it.

My first 2nd gen that I totaled out was a 4 banger and no, it wasn't going to win at the drag strip, ever but it did what i needed it to. It had ok power but everyone's opinion is different. I like fast stuff...I just got two tickets in one month for speeding in the Frontier.

I guess I had lower expectations for the 4 cylinder and it surprised me that it wasn't that bad.

 

[freshprinceofoc]

I drove a v6 same truck king cab LE and I wasnt that impressed with that either. After reading on here how fast the v6 is I was suprised it wasnt all that. A full size chevy with a v8 feels faster.

 

[mrgrayaz]

LE of course has the tallest gear ratios.

 

[colin123]

I drove a v6 same truck king cab LE and I wasnt that impressed with that either. After reading on here how fast the v6 is I was suprised it wasnt all that. A full size chevy with a v8 feels faster.

driving a stock mustang gt felt faster than my 400+ whp 350z did but it wasn't faster than my z by far of course, its all about how much tq there is and how it is applied weather smooth curve or peaky curve and as mentioned gearing changes things as well. i can say for a fact that no full size chevy, ford, or dodge v8 has ever beaten my se frontier

 

[Alec]

I test drove the v4. Yes... it VERY much lacks power before cruise speed. Once you get to 60, it can cruise okay and have nice MPG, but otherwise, it is just plain weak for this heavy truck. You can get about 25 MPG on a v4 though (4x2 and king cab) and it IS sufficient for normal driving, though you really feel the weakness.

On a v6, it is definitely extremely powerful, but also extremely gas thirsty. I have NO problems passing anyone going 60-65... the truck gets to 85 pretty quick. If I floor the gas pedal and am not going up a steep hill, the truck simply storms ahead with ease. IMO, it is almost a little too powerful for this size truck and it hurts at the pump because of that. You really don't need that extra HP normally unless you are passing a lot or need to tow. At the same time, the extra power allows the heavy truck to accelerate similarly to a sports sedan...but the extra weight creates a lot of momentum that does not give the truck a swift feel like a sports sedan and also it takes more power to maintain the extra weight, so you'll get less MPG if you go faster than 55-60 (this is normal for all cars of course).

Basically with the frontier you have the choice of little power or a lot of power. There should be a middle ground IMO or the v6 should be more advanced and efficient at cruise speed by acting like a v4, but still have the torque at lower speeds/gears. I guess it already is like that.

The frontier V6 is an award winning engine also used in the Z sports coupe. It is one of the main reasons I got the frontier over the tacoma... along with the tacoma boat ride and wacky looks.

first I'd like to make you aware of the fact that it is not a v4, also the frontier and z use different engines (4.0l V6 in the Frontier 3.7L V6 in 370z), finally there is no such thing as a truck that is too powerful.

 

[Zero Six LE]

I had a 95 XE Kingcab. It was a 5 speed. The gas mileage was sometimes less than what I get with my LE. It never had any power and I never expected it to. If you want power in a Frontier, you will need a V6. My two pennies.