It’s been a while since we’ve started to get reports about the next generation of the good-old Frontier and among all kinds of novelties and expectations, one of the things that bothered many lovers of this pickup truck was the engine. These days, Nissan has finally come with the new engine, which will power the next-generation Frontiers. The new Frontier engine will be more powerful, but also more efficient compared to the current unit, which is no surprise. The thing that could be seen as a surprise is that the company has decided to present the engine first, before the truck. The reason is pretty simple here – the engine is ready, while the truck isn’t.
New Frontier Engine Specs
The new Frontier engine comes to replace the current, pretty old 4.0-liter V6 unit, which is outdated by many standards, especially when it comes to fuel economy. The new engines will fix all of these issues, according to the manufacturer.
When it comes to base specs, the first thing you should know is that the Japanese manufacturer will stick to a naturally-aspirated design. There is no place for a turbocharger and downsizing in Nissan’s plans. Therefore, don’t be surprised with the new engine’s displacement of 3.8-liters. The engine is a little bit smaller but delivers almost 50 horses more. According to the company, the new unit will be rated at 310 horsepower and 281 horsepower. As you can see, the max torque will remain the same.
Besides significantly more power, the new engine is also expected to be much more fuel-efficient. Considering that the current engine returns around 15 mpg in the city and 21 mpg on the highway, that won’t be hard at all.
Along with the new Frontier engine, we will see a new transmission. It looks like the new 9-speed automatic gearbox from Titan will find its place under the hood of this truck as well. On the other side, it looks like the manual gearbox won’t be in the offer anymore.
New Frontier Engine For Old Model
One of the most intriguing things about this new engine is the fact that it will have a premiere before the new-generation truck. While the new truck is about to arrive as the 2021 Frontier, the new engine debuts in the outgoing 2020 model year. Every model comes standard with the new engine and the base version is expected to go around 20.500 dollars.
On the other side, the new truck will come next year. Of course, we count on many more novelties. So, beside the new engine, we will see significant improvements in terms of design and features. Count on the latest version of the familiar F-Alpha platform, but also on significant improvements in terms of weight savings, fuel efficiency, towing capacity etc. Of course, count on a completely new styling and interior design.
You can read more about the next-generation Frontier here.
