General

[Marauder_Pilot]

Watch out for electronics issues on the Frontier. That generation of Frontier, Titan, Armada and NV-Series all had a LOT of electrical gremlins. The Titan and Armada have been updated since, but the Frontier, AFAIK, still suffers from them.

My parents just bought a brand new Tacoma, and honestly I love the thing. Fantastic little truck, there's a reason it's the de facto standard for small trucks and has been since it was introduced.

That being said, I know you said you can't wait, but one vehicle nobody else has mentioned coming into the segment is the finally-for-real-happening-after-almost-15-literal-years-of-teasing 2019 Jeep Scrambler, which is basically just going to be a production version of the AEV Brute conversion for Jeep Wranglers.

[Alive]

I have a 2011 taco 4 cyl 4wd. It's been great, reliable, 4wd works great I use it all the time. It's a farm truck for me, as well as a daily so I don't mind, but the interior sucks and the power is actually scarily low merging and with the AC on.

All in all I'd buy another but only if it's a 6cyl.

[dNick]

Originally Posted by Alive

I have a 2011 taco 4 cyl 4wd. It's been great, reliable, 4wd works great I use it all the time. It's a farm truck for me, as well as a daily so I don't mind, but the interior sucks and the power is actually scarily low merging and with the AC on.

All in all I'd buy another but only if it's a 6cyl.

Another vote for reliable Tacomas. My brother got one and we installed a customized backrack headache rack for the bike and small kayak he haul. 4wd never fails.

[Magoo]

Update: in spite of the love for Tacos, I wound up with the Frontier. I love the damn thing. Just feels right. It's an SV King Cab model with the 4.0 motor and Arctic Blue paint. I wish it were that bright blue that Nissan uses time to time, but I still like it. Came with all the usual accoutrement, i.e. bedliner, towing package, mudflaps...

It's absolutely obvious that the truck was last redesigned in 2005, but honestly, that's why I love it. It's a familiarity. It has everything I need and I feel absolutely comfortable with it.

As for more objective opinions, I'll do a bit of a first impressions thing.

The V6 is noisy but plenty peppy and responsive. It gets up and goes when it needs to, and it doesn't struggle on the freeways like the I4 has been reported to do. The seats and interior are comfortable to me, and at 6'3", I'm a bigger dude. Plenty of adjustability, leg room, and head room. All the controls are easily accessible, and it comes with Bluetooth, USB, and 3.5mm auxiliary input.

The most obvious issue is with the materials. I've heard reviews that the plastics used in the interior feel cheap. I'll echo that sentiment, though I don't really see anything breaking because of it. The seats are an aesthetic sort of cloth mesh, which is good for comfort (I hate leather seats), but I worry it's gonna collect grime. I can objectively see why the lack of features and the spartan interior are viewed as a negative, despite being what I wanted. Many standard features in new cars are conspicuous in their absence here. The back seats are an absolute joke. Not much more room back there than in my Scion. But I didn't get it to haul butts. The engine is clunky and the 5 speed auto is slushy, but I want to reiterate: it feels like a TRUCK and I like that. I'm a big believer in character. The most unforgivable complaint is the turn radius. Hoo whee... K-turns everywhere. Makes for smoother freeway cruising, I guess...

All in all I love it, and I paid around $5k less for it than the Taco.

[Cunha]

Frontiers are great trucks from a great company with a long history of good trucks. At this point they may he more technologically pure than the Tacoma which may be very desireable.

If it was a matter of 1 to 4000 dollars the Tacoma is worth the upgrade on resale value alone. If you're looking at saving a substantial amount the frontier may be worth it new.

There is nothing wrong with them, it's just that Tacoma's have insane resale value.

Ridgeline is very non trucky which seems to be exactly the opposite of what you want. It's non truckness is it's selling point for others.

I haven't seen the frontier for significantly cheaper than the Tacoma for similarly equipped models. For that reason I would get a new Tacoma for resale value alone.

[Cunha]

For a full moocher you are saving about 3000 dollars going frontier vs Tacoma.and that is with a 5sod manual on the frontier and a 6spd auto on the Tacoma.

Unless you're paying cash the Tacoma is worth the extra 3 dollars a month car payment.

[Magoo]

Well it's too late now!

I'm just not interested in resale. I intend to keep this as long as I can. If that bites me in the butt, well we'll cross that bridge when we get to it.

[Cunha]

Sorry didn't read your post when I was taking a dump.

Their v6 is great and the older truck is more pure and truck like. 5000 savings is a ton. Nice truck post pix!

I agree with the old trucks thing I liked the Ford rangers when they were way long in the tooth and were the last really comoact trucks you can buy..I'm sure the next gen frontier will be bloated and less utilitarian. Enjoy your ride.

[dNick]

Frontiers are reliable! Congrats on purchase

[mtaylor]

Originally Posted by Jordan

The transmissions had problems with the trans cooler in the rad cracking and then getting coolant into the trans fluid, which then cooks the trans quickly if not caught fast enough. The best solution is to bypass the rad-mounted trans cooler with an external one, which solves those potential issues.

That problem was fixed in 2010.

Originally Posted by Magoo

The biggest potential problem (MPG aside [which isn't a super big deal as I don't really have to stack up miles]) is the turning radius. It steers like a boat, but it's comfortably sized enough to where I don't see that being a MAJOR issue.

You get used to it. It's still better than any current Ford 4x4.

Originally Posted by Magoo

Update: in spite of the love for Tacos, I wound up with the Frontier.

Congrats! Now you just need some rock sliders and I'll see you in Moab. Clubfrontier.org is a great community if you haven't found it yet. Now Titan swap it!