Nissan Frontier Reliability

4,448 NHTSA complaints (1998–2026). Complaint rate: 62.7 per 1,000 vehicles.

Severity Score
107.3
Complaints
4,448
Crash Rate
4.9%
Fire Rate
1.4%
Injuries
171
Fatalities
10

Nissan Frontier Generations

Manufacturer redesigns the car every few years (a “generation”). Each generation has different engineering and common issues. Click a generation to see year-by-year breakdown.

GenerationYearsComplaints
Gen 11998–2004964
Gen 22005–20213,155
2005750View→
2006836View→
2007699View→
2008187View→
200944View→
201076View→
201184View→
201298View→
201365View→
201449View→
201548View→
201655View→
201744View→
201829View→
201937View→
202029View→
202125View→
Gen 32022–present329

Which Years to Buy & Avoid

Years auto-clustered by complaint volume relative to this model's median.

Bottom line: Avoid the 2005–2008 Nissan Frontier. The 2014–2021 models had significantly fewer reported issues. Most common issue across all years: POWER TRAIN.

Avoid These Years

2005–2008
~618/yr complaints · 45 crashes
2000–2002
~177/yr complaints · 46 crashes
2022
~188/yr complaints · 22 crashes
1998
~146/yr complaints · 14 crashes

Average

1999
~106/yr complaints
2003–2004
~91/yr complaints
2010–2013
~81/yr complaints
2023
~106/yr complaints

Better Years

2014–2021
~40/yr complaints
2009
~44/yr complaints

Too New

2024–2026
35 complaints so far

Need 3+ years on the road for reliable complaint data.

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Complaints by Model Year

NHTSA complaint count per model year

Nissan Frontier — Complaints by Model YearPeak: 2006 (836)
0240481721961199820002002200420062008201020122014201620182020202220242026

Common Nissan Frontier Problems

Most reported component complaints to NHTSA

ComponentComplaintsCrash %
POWER TRAIN8551.2%
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE4080.0%
ENGINE3462.0%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM2532.8%
AIR BAGS24817.7%
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM2420.4%
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING2120.5%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER1717.0%
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL10912.8%
SERVICE BRAKES9716.5%

Year-by-Year Breakdown

NHTSA complaint count per model year — click any year for full problems & recalls breakdown.

YearGenerationComplaintsCrashesFiresDetails
1998AVOIDGen 1(D22)14614—View→
1999Gen 1(D22)10610—View→
2000AVOIDGen 1(D22)224206View→
2001AVOIDGen 1(D22)155138View→
2002AVOIDGen 1(D22)152132View→
2003Gen 1(D22)92112View→
2004Gen 1(D22)89106View→
2005AVOIDGen 2(D40)7501112View→
2006AVOIDGen 2(D40)836233View→
2007AVOIDGen 2(D40)6999—View→
2008AVOIDGen 2(D40)18724View→
2009GOODGen 2(D40)4412View→
2010Gen 2(D40)763—View→
2011Gen 2(D40)8451View→
2012Gen 2(D40)987—View→
2013Gen 2(D40)6581View→
2014GOODGen 2(D40)4951View→
2015GOODGen 2(D40)4821View→
2016GOODGen 2(D40)5563View→
2017GOODGen 2(D40)4471View→
2018GOODGen 2(D40)290—View→
2019GOODGen 2(D40)3733View→
2020GOODGen 2(D40)293—View→
2021GOODGen 2(D40)253—View→
2022AVOIDGen 3(D41)188223View→
2023Gen 3(D41)10682View→
2024TOO NEWGen 3(D41)230—View→
2025TOO NEWGen 3(D41)90—View→
2026TOO NEWGen 3(D41)30—View→

See also: Nissan Frontieraccident & safety statistics from our vehicle history database.

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Nissan Frontier Years to Avoid (1998–2026) — Reliability, Problems & Best Years to Buy | VinItel