The Best Years For Nissan Frontier (And Some To Avoid)

Earlier in August, Nissan announced an update for its midsize Frontier pickup for the 2025 model year, with new tech, tweaked styling, and improved capabilities. It's an overhaul that helps keep the truck fresh in an increasingly tough segment, but for now, it's too soon to tell whether the 2025 Frontier will rank among the best Frontier model years. Its new features look promising, but features don't count for much if a truck isn't reliable.

In general, the Frontier is considered to be a reliable truck, with RepairPal giving the model an overall four out of five rating and J.D. Power ranking Nissan as the best truck manufacturer for dealership service satisfaction in 2023. Resale platform iSeeCars also gave the Frontier a respectable 8.4 out of ten score for reliability based on its analysis of used truck listings, although the Nissan slightly lagged behind its competitors from Toyota, Honda, and Ford. Part of that is likely down to a small number of problematic Frontier model years, which have the effect of dragging its overall average down slightly.

Avoiding those model years is advisable for anyone looking for a hassle-free truck ownership experience, especially since there are plenty of Frontier model years that don't suffer from the same issues. We've put together a roundup that aggregates data from the NHTSA, reliability surveys, and owner reviews to find out which model years are the best rated overall and which are worth steering clear of.

A new generation of the Nissan Frontier was launched for the 2022 model year, offering buyers a much-needed tech upgrade and fresh styling among other improvements. However, NHTSA data shows a slightly higher level of complaints for the 2022 model year than average –- not a lot, but enough for us to recommend the 2023 model year instead.

The 2022 Frontier was also subject to six recalls, while the 2023 Frontier only has one recall listed on the NHTSA as of this writing. It's important to note that a higher number of recalls doesn't mean that a vehicle is less safe, as long as the required remedial work has been carried out. However, it does mean that buyers looking for a used example will need to check that said work has in fact been done, and if it hasn't, will have to take the truck for the necessary repairs themselves. Buying a truck with less recalls, like the 2023 Frontier, simply avoids that hassle.

Owner reviews also paint a consistently positive picture for the 2023 Frontier. The truck boasts an average rating of 4.2 out of five across owner reviews on Edmunds, and owner reviews on Cars.com average 4.5 out of five. J.D. Power also gave the truck a Great rating for reliability, with a score of 84 out of 100.

Drivers who can live without the upgrades that the 2022-2024 Frontier brought might want to consider the 2021 model year Frontier. It's the last year of the D40 generation, which had been in production since 2004 as a 2005 model year. It also boasts a remarkably low level of owner complaints to the NHTSA, with only 11 complaints recorded as of this writing. 

Evidently, the reliability issues present in earlier D40 models had been long since addressed. There are some key compromises to the 2021 model, with nearly all of them centered around its relative lack of modern luxuries and infotainment. The truck was only available with a basic, plastic-filled interior and no Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, but depending on personal preferences, that might not be a bad thing.

Certainly, anyone looking for a basic, no-frills work truck or off-roader should find exactly what they're looking for here, with that sentiment backed up by strong reviews from existing owners. The average owner review score on Edmunds is 4.2 out of five as of this writing, and on Cars.com, that average jumps to 4.6 out of five. KBB paints an equally positive picture, with owners scoring the Frontier particularly highly on reliability, with an average of 4.6 out of five.

One of the benefits of the long production run of the D40 Frontier is that buyers get a large range of model years within the generation to pick from. The 2015 model year is another of the highlights according to both owners and experts, with an average owner rating of 4.5 out of five from Cars.com and an average of 4.4 out of five from owners on VehicleHistory. Other positive reports come from J.D. Power, which scored the 2015 Frontier highly for reliability, giving it an 85 out of 100 rating.

The Frontier was already starting to show its age by the time that the 2015 model year rolled around, with lackluster handling compared to other trucks in its class and dated interior materials. Those complaints could also be levied at any other D40 Frontier model year, though, and they're unlikely to matter too much to anyone looking for a budget-oriented workhorse. What will matter is the truck's reliability and capability, with the Frontier's optional V6 engine being the best choice for anyone particularly concerned about the latter.

With a mere 16 complaints lodged to date with the NHTSA, the 2019 Nissan Frontier is another top performer when it comes to reliability. J.D. Power backs up that view, giving the truck a reliability rating of 87 out of 100. That's doubly important given that the truck isn't particularly standout in most other ways, at least on paper. The 2019 model year saw very few changes from previous years and attracted criticism from some reviewers for its old-school driving dynamics and interior. However, one small nod to modern connectivity was given in the form of a new standard seven inch infotainment touchscreen.

The infotainment still remained more dated than most of the competition, however, with common features like Android Auto and Apple CarPlay missing. It seems most buyers didn't seem to mind — the 2019 Frontier gets high reviews from current owners, with an average rating of 4.7 out of five from owners on Cars.com. Owners posting on KBB are similarly positive, giving the truck an overall rating of 4.4 out of five and a reliability rating of 4.6 out of five.

Anyone who's not sold on either the most recent Frontier generation or the previous D40 generation will have to look back to the 2004 model year or before. However, there's little reason to look further back than the 2004 model, as it boasts the lowest level of NHTSA complaints of any first generation Frontier. A total of 66 complaints have been made to the agency about the truck to date, and it has been subject to four recalls over its lifespan, with the most recent being a steering column shaft recall in 2010.

The 2004 Frontier also boasts impressive reviews from owners across the board, with owners reviewing the truck on KBB giving it an average of 4.8 out of five stars for reliability. Other leading platforms offer similarly positive results, with Edmunds owner reviews averaging a rating of 4.5 out of five and Cars.com owner reviews averaging 4.2 out of five.

It's worth noting here that, like any truck of its age, the condition of any given example will play as much of a part in future reliability as the model of the truck itself. Get a clean example of the 2004 Frontier and it should be a workhorse, but there's no guarantee that an example in less optimal condition will be as dependable.

While it can never be guaranteed that any used Frontier will be dependable, there are a few model years that are more likely than others to cause problems. Among the worst is the 2005 Frontier, which made our list of the most problematic used Nissan models on the market. The 2005 Frontier was the first model year of the D40 generation, and to say it had teething troubles would be an understatement. It's one of the most frequently complained about models of Frontier according to NHTSA data, with the agency receiving 531 complaints as of this writing. Hundreds of those complaints cite a failing transmission as the primary issue.

The issue revolves around the automatic transmission fluid tank, which can fail over time and result in engine coolant mixing with the transmission fluid. This causes permanent damage to the transmission, eventually leading to partial or total transmission failure. A class action lawsuit regarding the issue was filed in 2010. 

That isn't the only lawsuit that the 2005 Frontier has been involved in either — another concerned a defective timing chain and involved every Frontier from the 2005 to 2007 model years that was equipped with a VQ40 engine. Nissan later settled that lawsuit, offering owners a reimbursement for the cost of replacing the chain or a voucher of up to $1,500 for a new vehicle.

The 2006 Frontier suffers from the same key issues as the previous model year, and takes the unfortunate title of being the most complained about Frontier according to NHTSA data. More than 600 complaints have been reported to date, covering a variety of issues. The two lawsuit-invoking issues around the transmission fluid and timing chain are frequently reported, but so are issues involving the truck's electrical systems and fuel system.

The airbags of the 2006 Frontier are also potentially problematic, with a small number of reports claiming that the replacement parts for a necessary airbag recall were not available when owners had contacted Nissan. A small number of issues with the truck's steering have also been reported. Given that the 2006 Frontier doesn't offer buyers any particular advantages over later model years of the D40 generation, it's best to avoid it altogether, alongside the 2007 model year, which suffered from a similar range of problems according to data compiled by the NHTSA.

While it's not as notorious as the 2005 to 2007 Frontiers, the 2000 model year Frontier has also been subject to a higher level of owner complaints to the NHTSA than other model years. These complaints cover a wide range of areas, from powertrain issues to electrical systems. A small number of owners reported instrument panel failure, while others have reported excessive corrosion in various components leading to premature failure. None of these issues have proved prevalent enough to warrant investigation by the NHTSA.

Given that the truck is now approaching a quarter of a century old, it's safe to assume that most examples available on the used market will be in far from perfect condition anyway. That makes it doubly important to be aware of the common used vehicle buying pitfalls, and ensure that there's evidence that the truck has been looked after. The Frontier is, overall, a reliable used truck, even if it's not quite among the absolute most reliable trucks on the market. However, the 2000 model year hasn't quite lived up to the high bar set by later models.

To establish the best model years of the Nissan Frontier, we gathered data from a variety of sources, including both experts and owners. Our initial selection of both recommended model years and those to avoid was drawn from an examination of data from the NHTSA, which keeps a database of every complaint it receives about a given model year as well as every recall or manufacturer communication issued. Each of our recommended model years is among the best performing in NHTSA data, and likewise, our years to avoid are all the most problematic according to that data.

We supplemented those initial findings with reliability scores from J.D. Power and consumer reviews from sources including Edmunds, KBB, and Cars.com. Our intention was to create a list of best and worst model years that accurately reflected the experiences of current and former Nissan Frontier owners, although it should be noted that these findings are intended as guidance only and do not account for the differences in history and condition between individual examples of any given model year.