Nissan took nearly 17 years to replace the previous Frontier in the United States where the current midsize truck was launched for the 2022 model year. It won’t have such an unusually long shelf life but Automotive News reports it’s going to stick around longer than planned. Per the original schedule, the factory in Canton, Mississippi was supposed to build the pickup until the 2027MY. However, production has now been extended until the 2029MY.
AN had access to a supplier memo revealing the Frontier has had its life cycle prolonged by two years. The internal document didn’t specify the reason why the timeline has been changed, but it might have something to do with Nissan’s electric agenda. One supplier cited by AN says the Japanese automaker wants to avoid launching an ICE-powered vehicle at a time when EV production will have been in full swing already in Mississippi.
When Nissan celebrated the fifth-million vehicle made at the Mississippi plant in October 2022, it also briefly mentioned electric vehicle production. As part of the Nissan Ambition 2030 plan, one of the bullet points is to start assembling EVs at the Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant. To make it happen, an investment of $500 million will pave the way for all-new Nissan and Infiniti electric vehicles due to roll off the assembly line from around the middle of the decade.
The supplier went on to mention the Frontier could return for 2030MY as a purely electric truck, but a Nissan spokesperson contacted by AN refused to talk about what the future has in tow for the truck. Meanwhile, the first EVs to be built in Canton are expected to be sedans for both Nissan and Infiniti brands from 2026, with a Nissan-badged crossover due in early 2027 and an Infiniti crossover in 2028.
While the Frontier is sticking around, the larger Titan is on its deathbed considering Nissan has already announced it will end production next summer, with 2024 being the final model year for the slow-selling Ford F-150 rival.
On the subject of trucks, at the beginning of the year, Nissan Advisory Board Chairman Tyler Slade hinted at the prospects of a small electric truck to complement the Frontier. However, it’s too soon to say if and when it’ll come out. For what it’s worth, Nissan has already previewed a zero-emission utilitarian vehicle with the Surf-Out concept presented in October 2021 as an electric single-cab truck.
