We know that the new 2022 Nissan Frontier PRO-4X is good off-road, but this is our first opportunity to do some serious trailer towing with it. It doesn’t get more difficult than this. We put it on the Ike Gauntlet™ – the world’s toughest towing test with a maximum trailer load of 6,700 lbs. We also bring a new Nissan Titan to set a benchmark. The midsize Frontier surprises us.
Ike Gauntlet
This is the world’s toughest towing test because it’s an 8-mile climb up the country’s steepest interstate highway (I-70) to a maximum elevation of 11,158 feet above sea level. This is a 7% grade with a 60 MPH speed limit.
Nissan Frontier
The new Frontier is powered by a 3.8-liter gas V6 engine with 310 horsepower and 281 lb-ft of torque. It’s currently the most powerful midsize truck on the market as far as the horsepower rating is concerned. The engine is mated to a 9-speed automatic transmission. This is the only powertrain that is available for this truck at this time.
The Frontier is rated to tow up to 6,720 lbs, so we are pushing it to the limit with this trailer that has our Toyota FJ Cruiser on it.
The Frontier surprises us with a solid downhill performance that matched that of the larger Titan with 9 brake applications. On the way up the mountains the Frontier had enough power to a nearly benchmark 8 min 3 second time. Eight minutes is a perfect time up the mountain because it means the truck can maintain the 60 MPH speed limit for the 8-mile climb.
Check out how we scored the truck in the video below.
