Nissan Frontier: Years to Avoid and Best Years to Buy
Nissan Frontier: 15 model years scored from 509 NHTSA owner complaints and 29 recall campaigns. Worst year 2022, best year 2015.
Nissan Frontier: which years to avoid
Across 15 scored model years the Nissan Frontier ranges from 41/100 in 2022 to 93/100 in 2015 — a 52-point spread, so which year you buy matters more than whether you buy a Frontier at all. The weakest year’s complaints concentrate in Forward Collision Avoidance (33 of them).
Avoid: 2022 — scored below 45 on the complaint and recall record.
Safest years: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 — scored 70 or better.
Scored from NHTSA complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. How the score works · every car’s years to avoid.
Year-by-year data table
Best year in our data: 2015 (score 93). Worst: 2022 (score 41, AVOID).
| Year | Score | Verdict | Running cost / yr | NHTSA complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 90 | BUY | $3,480 | 0 | 3 |
| 2024 | 88 | BUY | $3,620 | 0 | 3 |
| 2023 | 92 | BUY | $3,910 | 0 | 1 |
| 2022 | 41 | AVOID | $4,572 | 110 | 6 |
| 2021 | 91 | BUY | $4,190 | 0 | 2 |
| 2020 | 91 | BUY | $4,330 | 0 | 2 |
| 2019 | 88 | BUY | $4,696 | 28 | 1 |
| 2018 | 88 | BUY | $4,819 | 25 | 2 |
| 2017 | 85 | BUY | $4,980 | 38 | 1 |
| 2016 | 85 | BUY | $5,271 | 43 | 1 |
| 2015 | 93 | BUY | $5,237 | 33 | 0 |
| 2014 | 85 | BUY | $5,386 | 42 | 2 |
| 2013 | 87 | BUY | $5,530 | 48 | 1 |
| 2012 | 76 | BUY | $5,705 | 78 | 3 |
| 2011 | 85 | BUY | $5,820 | 64 | 1 |
Running cost is fuel or energy plus the maintenance band midpoint for that car at its age today, re-priced to your country. Purchase price, insurance and depreciation are not included.
Photographs and every generation of the Frontier, through the years →
Frontier sub-models & family
Variants & trims on record
Body, powertrain and trim variants of the Frontier on the federal record. Variants folded into this nameplate are counted in this page's data; the rest have too thin a record for a page of their own yet.
What goes wrong on the Nissan Frontier
Across every Frontier model year in our index, owners report these component groups most often. The cost beside each one is the representative repair for that group at a US independent shop, re-priced to your country.
- Air Bags97 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Airbag module, clockspring or sensor replacement$600–$1,700
- Power Train86 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Transmission service or clutch-pack repair$1,290–$4,040
- Unknown Or Other75 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Diagnosis and mixed repair$360–$940
- Electrical System75 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Alternator, battery-drain or body-module diagnosis and replacement$540–$1,310
- Service Brakes39 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Pads, rotors and caliper service, both axles$580–$1,140
- Forward Collision Avoidance33 complaints across all Frontier years · typical job: Radar or camera module replacement and calibration$780–$2,160
Flat-rate labour hours x local shop rate plus a parts band. An estimate of what this class of failure costs, not a quote. Formula.
FAQ
Which Nissan Frontier years should I avoid?
On the NHTSA record the years to avoid are 2022 — each scores below 45 out of 100 on complaints per year of exposure and recall campaigns. The 2022 is the weakest at 41/100, with its complaints concentrated in Forward Collision Avoidance.
What are the best Nissan Frontier years to buy?
2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018… all score 70 or better. The strongest is the 2015 at 93/100, on 33 complaints and 0 recall campaigns.
What is the most common Nissan Frontier problem?
97 of the complaints filed against the Frontier across all its model years sit in the Air Bags group — more than any other component.
Compare with
Sources: NHTSA, EPA · Methodology · Updated 2026-10-04