When it comes to midsize pickups, we’d usually find a turbodiesel under the hood. For the US market, it’s either a V6 or a turbocharged four-cylinder. But the folks at Nissan USA decided to have a little bit of fun with the Frontier for this year’s SEMA (Specialty Equipment Market Association) show.
So, what did Nissan do in this case? Well, its in-house tuners (probably) used a pair of massive shoehorns to shove the Patrol’s 5.6-liter V8 into the Frontier’s engine bay. No biggie.
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It’s worth pointing out that the Nissan Frontier in the US is very different from the Navara that most of the world gets. The Frontier uses a highly modified version of the F-Alpha platform that was also utilized in the 2007 to 2014 Navara. Of course, it’s been stretched and reinforced in this case to fit the needs of the North American market.
The North American Frontier is powered by a 3.8-liter V6 engine, the sole option over there. It then shifts with a nine-speed automatic transmission. However, the SEMA version packs the aforementioned Patrol 5.6-liter V8, so it doles out 400hp and 560Nm of torque. That’s quite a huge upgrade over the stock model’s 310hp and 381Nm of torque.
Other upgrades? It has NISMO-developed suspension that gives it a wider stance and, more importantly, more ground clearance. It also rides on Bilstein dampers and springs for additional off-road capability, and the chunky mud terrain tires aren’t just for show. Speaking of other things not just for show, the steel bumper is neatly integrated to the standard bumper’s design, additional driving lights illuminate the path ahead, and there’s a roof basket for good measure.
As it’s a SEMA show car, we’re not expecting this V8-powered Nissan Frontier to ever reach production. However, it is possible that we’ll see some of the parts installed on this truck will be offered to customers. Here’s to hoping Nissan makes it for the Navara too.
