Reviewing my Frontier

Likes

i love most things about my frontier, really too much to name and i really wouldn't rather have any other mid sized truck out there. to hit on a couple things i love knowing i have a solid fully boxed titan frame under it, it has never made me wonder if it was going to be able to pull a boat out of the water or a load up a hill even when reaching out to its rated limits which is a bit a testament to the amazing power plant. vq series motors have been on wards top ten motors for over 10 years in a row and you can understand why everyday when you drive this truck. not to make this a toyota nissan thing but when i test drove the tacoma i took a good look at the interior and said 1) this is nice... but would i want to get it dirty? no. 2) would i be afraid to mess it up? yes. i got in my frontier and asked the same things 1) this interior looks tough and rugged and functional and i wouldn't mind getting it dirty, i almost felt like its begging to have some rocks and mud on the floor and a dirty tow strap under the back seat (its easy to clean too) 2)would i be afraid to mess it up, not really cause i wasn't afraid to use the frontier like a truck should be.

Dislikes


i'm with you guys on the stereo, its just weak all around. i think the suspension could use a slight bit of improvement stock mainly i wish the ride height was about an inch higher with a bit more travel (i know easily changed with aftermarket parts) and that the rear leafs had more arch to them with maybe a slightly stiffer spring rate.

i think both the front and rear diffs (both c200k and m226) offered in my package SE could have been better and we all know this. the c200k i think is a good match for the 4cyl frontiers but i feel kind of cheated that my auto SE had one too. i really think all the V6s should have the M226 and that it should have a proper LSD with the locker still gong to the nismo or pro4x. i know what your thinking, learn how to drive a stick, well i can but at the time of going to order a 6speed nismo i saw my SE on the lot about a year old and with less than 18k miles the color i wanted and got it for a steal, couldn't pass it up. the ABLS (active brake limited slip) is a pretty good system but isn't aggressive enough to get the power away from a wheel in the air and give it to the one on the ground, i understand why they didn't make it more aggressive cause thats alot of brake wear and its really a trade off type situation. good system works great most of the time but it just doesn't fully get the job done.

all and all i love the truck and even with the said dislikes if i had to do it all over again i would in a heartbeat.

02 cc xe v6 auto

likes-
solid truck, very relyable.
interior and upholstery is holding up very well. other then being really dirty, it is not showing any wear at all.

dislikes-
low power
radio and sound system sucks. (cd player is broken and only gets one radio station- and oldies station)

i think the sound system quality is objective as to what you think quality sound is. for example, i think my bmw sound system is great, but people with higher end cars on the bimmer forums think the factory sound system is garbage. there is a pretty good consensus on these forums that the 1st gen radio tends to take a dump and recieve poorly after a while. my radio quit working at 60k miles, and my cd player quit around 94k miles.

Likes:

Power
Ride Quality
The bed
Appearance


Dislike:

Turning radius is a joke
Headlights are weak

Overall a great truck!

I like the feel of mine in 4x4. Just feels really nice and they seem very sure footed. I've drove a ranger and taco in the past, and I didn't have the same type of feel. I love the flat bellies they have. No xfer case hanging down to hit rocks. The VQ40 is amazing, even my long bed can walk most trucks on the road. I raced a ram 1500 in the mtns on a massive hill going up. We were going about 85mph and I just pulled by him slowly and he was yelling up a storm, I know he was pi$$ed some guy in a Nissan was schooling his big ole Ram. The seats KICK A$$! That fabric is just awesome to the look and feel. I like the console, great way to organize and the dual glove box, under the seat storage and even the little pouch on the side of the seat rocks.

Turning radius is lame. Stereo is fine, wish it had better looks to say the least. It was 2008 when I bought it, and it looked like mine from my ranger in 94 lol. Wish it came stock with ipod hookup or something.

Love my truck so far, 22k miles on it and counting. Plan on driving it to death, honestly do. Little ones on the way hehe. Do all my own maintenance approx on time and hope this lasts me for a long time. I want to put 300k on it.

Not much I don't like about it really. I have nit picks, but I have never owned a perfect vehicle. I can't complain about the MPG as I knew it sucked before I bought the thing.

Ups-

Styling and appearance is polished and proportioned.
Power. Seriously, this has to be the best V6 ever put in a truck.
Bed with spray in liner and track system.
Comfortable.
Interior is great. Not sure what the "cheap interior" complaint is all about.
Will tow all I ever want it to.
All in all just a solid truck with no real downsides.

Downs-

Arm rest options are poor. :censor:
Yeah, stock stereo is sub par. This really doesn't bother me.
No outside temp gauge unless you buy the tippy top trim. Dumb.

When my kids get bigger I will have to get a full size CC truck, but for the next 8 years or so the Frontier is perfect.

I'll throw a few things out now that I've owned mine for 10 months, was planning to do a full review after the 1 year mark.

I think the stereo is fine, but I've never been a stereo guy. In my last few older cars (Cherokee) I threw a cheap-o Panasonic CD and some pioneer speakers and was happy. I agree that the 08' and older stereo layout is pretty crappy, they did a nice job of integrating it with the HVAC system in the 09's. Agree also that it would be nice to have an I-pod hook up in case I ever get one (I still use CD's).

Interior plastic is... well plastic. I think the Pro-4x's and LE's have some different trim that help break it up. I think my older 00' base model XE had more comfortable interior, was actually more in line with what the Tacoma used and is using. However, at least our plastic is on the inside where Tacoma's seem to be the outside. You can still get our trucks with a real metal front bumper, imagine that.

I also feel fit and finish could be better. The mysterious rattles that come and go, my loose drivers seat, and clicking brake pedal do get annoying.

I'll preface this by saying that for at least a good 4 months after I bought it, I thought I'd made a mistake. No fault of the trucks, but I had to get used to it and let go of my previous truck. Say what you want, but I for one get very attached to my vehicles so when I replaced my beloved Ranger with the Frontier, I was sad.

Now, however, I'm warming up to this rig and I can more or less objectively compare what I like in this truck vs. what I think could have been improved.

Good
Power
Styling
4 wheel disc brakes
Spray in bed liner
Utili-Trac
Comfort (Very nice on the longer drives says my GF)
Stereo (for a factory system, it's pretty good... Doesn't compare to the Tremor's but I didn't listen to it that much anyway)

Eh...
Turning radius
Interior Plastic (I've never liked plastic)
Fit and Finish (mostly good, some issues and squeaks seem unnecessary)
Lack of crucial aftermarket parts to compliment some of the great ones available

Now, I rolled her off the lot on April 25, 2009 and as of this morning when I got to work I've put just about 24,900 miles on her (minus the 17 that was on it when I test drove it.) I care not about the gas mileage. It's a truck, lets be serious here. My previous rig was an '02 Ford Ranger Tremor that got 18mpg on a good day going downhill with a tailwind. The Frontier gets 18mpg on a day when I can't keep my foot out of it running around the back roads of western CT and upstate NY. Overall, I really do like this truck. It's got plenty of go, plenty of show and does exactly what I need and want it to. I've also decided to mod this one so any vehicle that I've decided is worthy of more of my hard earned money than is necessary to maintain it must be pretty decent.