The Nissan Frontier RONIN concept truck is what happens when Nissan lets its off-road imagination run wild. It’s a midsize off-road truck with a R35 Nissan GT-R turbochargers and suspension that’s similar to that of the Ram TRX. It’s rolling on 35-inch all-terrain tires and it’s coming to the SEMA 2026 show in Las Vegas, Nevada this week. Here are all the details. Let’s dig in!
The term “Ronin” is Japanese for “masterless warrior”, according to Nissan. This truck is its own boss. If Nissan’s RONIN off-road brand comes to production, it might be able to eat the Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro or the Ford Ranger Raptor for breakfast.
We have wanted Nissan to bring something like this to the market for a long time. The current PRO-4X lineup is great, but the RONIN 4×4 may just be the off-road halo vehicle enthusiasts have been waiting for.
Power
The concept is powered by a twin-turbo 3.8L VQ38DD V6 engine. The turbochargers come courtesy of the R35 GT-R “Godzilla” super sports car. The turbos are rear mounted. We need to learn more about this! Nissan enthusiasts will note that this is not the GT-R VR38DETT engine that had the same displacement. This concept is using Frontier’s existing 3.8L V6 “truck engine” that is currently rated at 310 horsepower without any turbos.
Nissan has not provided a RONIN twin-turbo horsepower estimate, but it could be north of 400 horsepower.
Suspension
The RONIN concept’s suspension is truly unhinged for the midsize pickup truck segment. Nissan did their own “Titan Swap”. The wider solid rear axle and the front suspension combine with the wheels and tires for a track that’s 12 inches wider than that of a stock Frontier. The RONIN suspension also gives the truck a 4-inch lift.
Nissan worked with Bilstein on a custom set of Black Hawk high-performance shocks. Nissan refers to it as the “M-9400 70-mm 4-way adjustable coilovers with internal hydraulic bump stops, integrated rebound cut-off, individual high and low-speed compression rebound. and bypass damping adjustments.” These are not the Black Hawk e2 semi-active adjustable dampers that are on the Ram RHO and the Ram TRX, but this suspension is nonetheless very impressive.
This suspension’s design allows for up to 14 inches of travel. For a quick comparison, the current Ford Ranger Raptor has up to 11.4 inches of suspension travel.
Wheels & Tires
The wild suspension allows for 35-inch all-terrain tires. Nissan says the RONIN is wearing Prototype NISMO ASCEND 17×9-inch beadlock capable wheels that are wrapped in 35×12.50R17 Yokohama Geolandar X-AT tires.
Brakes
Nissan did not forget about stopping. The RONIN concept has the following:
- Custom high-performance big brake kit
o Front: 6-piston calipers, fully-floating 2-piece slotted 335x32mm rotors
o Rear: Slotted and vented 286x18mm rotors
o Stainless brake lines
o Street/Track performance brake pads
What do you think? Should Nissan bring a Frontier RONIN off-road truck to production? In the meantime, here is a hands-on look at a new 2027 Nissan Frontier.
