I love my Nissan Frontier - but...
Over the six years I've owned this vehicle, there have been some disappointing things I've learned about it. We had a fairly major rear-end accident recently, and learned about some very cheap parts they'd used in construction of the vehicle, as the result of the damage that was done and the repairs (and replaced parts) that were required as a result of the accident. What should have been a much sturdier material was actually a plastic part (two of them) that had fully deteriorated in only five years - and probably would not have been discovered for quite some time had it not been for the accident. And parts that had to be replaced due to the cruise control going out after just six years of ownership (and low mileage), had to be replaced because of inferior quality - the lowest cost parts to do the job, with a life that was unlikely to go 10 years or 100,000 miles as in vehicles I've owned in the past. That was learned from our highly experienced and qualified mechanic when we just spent nearly $400 just for the small parts that go in the steering column that required replacement - one part actually melted due to insufficient quality of the OEM part.
Frankly, I don't know if anyone is creating truly quality vehicles in the price ranges affordable to average people, so perhaps I wouldn't find anything better elsewhere. But the Nissan name has always meant "quality" to me, and the longer I own the truck, the less confident I am that it will last nearly as long as previous vehicles I've owned, without expensive, needed repairs, much earlier than would have been required in previous models. The philosophy appears to be the same as most other companies these days - save as much money on parts, sell the product for what the market will bear (a "rule" in any business school - been there, learned that).
With that said, if my mechanic of 30 years tells me I'd find the same issues in any other brands of mid-size pickups anyway, then I'd replace this Nissan Frontier with another one without hesitation, if it required replacement. I love driving it, love the features, and there are still many good things about the truck beyond the cheap quality of at least some of the components.
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