New Nissan Frontier Reportedly Delayed, And Electric Roadmap Could Be To Blame

According to a memo shared with Automotive News, Nissan is delaying the next generation debut of its Frontier midsize pickup by two years. The latest Frontier, which rolled out for the 2022 model year, is now expected to continue production through at least 2029. 

Still, that's less than half the lifespan of the previous generation Frontier, which lasted for more than fifteen years without any significant changes. With Nissan's full-size Titan being killed off after the 2024 model year, the Frontier will represent the brand's sole offering in the burgeoning pickup truck market.

The reason for the delay is widely believed to be Nissan's expansion of its all-electric vehicle lineup, called Nissan Ambition 2030. Specifically, the strategy needed to retool or reconfigure the Canton, Mississippi factory for the production of EVs for the Nissan and Infiniti brands — at a reported cost of $500 million. 

Since the Frontier is also manufactured at this facility, the implementation of a newly redesigned ICE truck at the exact same time that EV production significantly ramps up could be overwhelming.

Besides the electric sedans and crossover SUVs that will be produced at the Canton facility, there's also some speculation that the Frontier itself could be abandoning internal combustion powertrains in favor of all-electric propulsion. Although, Nissan has steadfastly refused to comment on the future of the truck. 

Alternatively, the brand has also hinted at an all-electric truck in a smaller form, which might leave the Frontier unscathed. To that end, it shared images of a futuristic single-cab pickup truck concept called Surf-Out (pictured above) in late-2021, though it's unclear whether that concept will manifest as a new model or not.

Often forgotten about in the wake of flashier brands like Tesla, Nissan was an early pioneer in the electric vehicle space with its iconic Leaf, which debuted in 2010. Last month, the brand celebrated its one millionth EV sold globally. While it's still unclear if electrification is in the Frontier's future, or whether it will merely be impacted by it, Nissan has bought themselves an additional two years to make that decision.