VRacer-111
1000+ Head-Fier
I've always been interested in both trucks and sportscars. My first truck was a 1st gen Tacoma with the 2RZ 4cylinder motor and 5 speed manual. Made for a great daily driver and light hauler. I actually took a performance driving school in it and used it for autocrossing for a few years. I had sold it to a coworker for his son a few years after getting my FR-S since wasn't really driving it any more and it was just sitting around. About 4 years ago I starting thinking about getting another truck though when was wanting to get the FR-S prepped for track duty, but between not liking driving my dad's newer gen Tacoma (I only buy manual transmission vehicles and don't like the changes they did from the first gen to the newer ones, feels like you are driving a bus the way the pedals are setup) and the prices they command used I started looking at alternatives.
Naturally the Frontier came up and for what it offered at a big discount to Tacoma pricing I was sold. I like the boxier looks with shorter front overhang, the fully boxed in and reinforced chassis, the torquey VQ40 6cylinder engine, nice 6-speed gear shifter similar in notchiness/directness to sportscars but with a longer throw, the hand brake lever being what and where it should be (not a freaking T pull handle you have to reach for under the dash). Basically for the price of a bare bones stripped down 4cylinder Tacoma you can get a nicely optioned V6 Frontier, and I did...
I can tell you this for certain, after living with a V6 mid-sized truck for over 3.5 years I won't ever go back to a 4-cylinder 'mini' truck again... world of difference between the two, especially when it comes to towing anything. I like the Frontier more than I liked my first gen Tacoma, and I really liked my '98 Tacoma. I think the 'midsize' truck with a V6/torquey motor is what makes it work. Just the right size, with enough weight to ride really well and a powerplant that is not anemic feeling. My Frontier accelerates quicker than my FR-S did to 80mph (aerodynamics start taking over past 80mph) and makes for a great Interstate cruiser.
And then when the road gets rough, it takes the roughness out of it and makes it fun (providing you keep the unsprung mass [wheels & tires] as light or lighter than stock)... a small light trucks feel like small light sportscars on rough roads and are more prone to being blown around on the highway and less secure feeling in wet conditions. While my FR-S wasn't ever bad in the wet, it was a matter of you having to really manage the rear end as it wanted to move around some, even on tires that perform really well in the wet. In comparison, in the Frontier it just grips and goes around corners in the wet with an extremely planted, solid feel. Whenever I had choice of vehicle to take in stormy, wet conditions I'd always prefer the Frontier.
For offroading trucks, the smaller midsizes are where it's at because you don't want a vehicle heavier or larger dimensioned than it needs to be... which is why you see all the support for the Tacomas, Frontiers, Rangers and not as much for the full sized trucks. The F150 kind of rides the line between being a little too big for serious offroad yet not too big. Then you have your dedicated Jeeps and FJs and the like whose mission is for offroading with onroad being a compromise. I'm not into rock climbing or serious expedition exploring - I just like to go fast and take turns quickly on both paved and unpaved terrain, my Frontier does that well enough for me.
Naturally the Frontier came up and for what it offered at a big discount to Tacoma pricing I was sold. I like the boxier looks with shorter front overhang, the fully boxed in and reinforced chassis, the torquey VQ40 6cylinder engine, nice 6-speed gear shifter similar in notchiness/directness to sportscars but with a longer throw, the hand brake lever being what and where it should be (not a freaking T pull handle you have to reach for under the dash). Basically for the price of a bare bones stripped down 4cylinder Tacoma you can get a nicely optioned V6 Frontier, and I did...
I can tell you this for certain, after living with a V6 mid-sized truck for over 3.5 years I won't ever go back to a 4-cylinder 'mini' truck again... world of difference between the two, especially when it comes to towing anything. I like the Frontier more than I liked my first gen Tacoma, and I really liked my '98 Tacoma. I think the 'midsize' truck with a V6/torquey motor is what makes it work. Just the right size, with enough weight to ride really well and a powerplant that is not anemic feeling. My Frontier accelerates quicker than my FR-S did to 80mph (aerodynamics start taking over past 80mph) and makes for a great Interstate cruiser.
And then when the road gets rough, it takes the roughness out of it and makes it fun (providing you keep the unsprung mass [wheels & tires] as light or lighter than stock)... a small light trucks feel like small light sportscars on rough roads and are more prone to being blown around on the highway and less secure feeling in wet conditions. While my FR-S wasn't ever bad in the wet, it was a matter of you having to really manage the rear end as it wanted to move around some, even on tires that perform really well in the wet. In comparison, in the Frontier it just grips and goes around corners in the wet with an extremely planted, solid feel. Whenever I had choice of vehicle to take in stormy, wet conditions I'd always prefer the Frontier.
For offroading trucks, the smaller midsizes are where it's at because you don't want a vehicle heavier or larger dimensioned than it needs to be... which is why you see all the support for the Tacomas, Frontiers, Rangers and not as much for the full sized trucks. The F150 kind of rides the line between being a little too big for serious offroad yet not too big. Then you have your dedicated Jeeps and FJs and the like whose mission is for offroading with onroad being a compromise. I'm not into rock climbing or serious expedition exploring - I just like to go fast and take turns quickly on both paved and unpaved terrain, my Frontier does that well enough for me.
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