2020 Nissan Frontier

small pickup / Extended cab pickup

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Evaluation criteria	Rating
Small overlap front: driver-side
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Roof strength
Head restraints & seats

Crash avoidance & mitigation

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Headlights
Front crash prevention: vehicle-to-vehicle	Not available
Front crash prevention: pedestrian (day)	Not available

Seat belts & child restraints

Evaluation criteria	Rating
LATCH ease of use

Key

G
Good
A
Acceptable
M
Marginal
P
Poor

Superior
Advanced
Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Small overlap front: driver-side

Rating applies to 2017-21 models built after February 2017

Tested vehicle: 2017 Nissan Frontier SV King Cab

The Nissan Frontier King Cab was redesigned for the 2005 model year. Beginning with 2013 models, design changes were made to the frontal airbags and seat belts. Beginning with 2017 models built after February 2017, the side curtain airbags were lengthened to improve occupant protection in small overlap frontal crashes. (Information about when a specific vehicle was manufactured is on the certification label typically affixed to the car on the driver door or adjacent B-pillar.)

Evaluation criteria	Rating

Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Hip/thigh
Lower leg/foot
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Action shot taken during the driver-side small overlap frontal crash test.

The dummy's position in relation to the door frame, steering wheel, and instrument panel after the crash test indicates that the driver’s survival space was not maintained well.

The frontal and side curtain airbags worked well together to keep the head from coming close to any stiff structure or outside objects that could cause injury.

Intrusion of the footwell and instrument panel contributed to a high risk of injury to the left lower leg, a significant risk to the left foot and right lower leg, and a moderate risk to the right knee.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1716
Lower occupant compartment
Lower hinge pillar max (cm)	18
Footrest (cm)	35
Left toepan (cm)	29
Brake pedal (cm)	28
Parking brake (cm)
Rocker panel lateral average (cm)	7
Upper occupant compartment
Steering column	3
Upper hinge pillar max (cm)	9
Upper dash (cm)	9
Lower instrument panel (cm)	10

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEN1716
Head
HIC-15	124
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.1
Extension bending moment (Nm)	14
Maximum Nij	0.22
Chest maximum compression (mm)	30
Femur (kN)
Left	1.2
Right	2.7
Knee displacement (mm)
Left	5
Right	13
Knee-thigh-hip injury risk (%)
Left	0
Right	0
Maximum tibia index
Left	1.88
Right	1.04
Tibia axial force (kN)
Left	5.6
Right	1.9
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	233
Right	99

About the small overlap front test

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2013-21 models

Tested vehicle: 2013 Nissan Frontier SV King Cab 4wd

The Nissan Frontier Crew Cab and King Cab were redesigned for the 2005 model year. Beginning with 2013 models, design changes were made to the frontal airbags and seat belts.

Moderate overlap frontal ratings are assigned by the Institute based on a test conducted by Nissan. (The vehicle tested by Nissan was designated as a 2012 model but included the airbag and seat belt changes of the 2013 models.) Because the vehicle structure did not change after 2005, structure ratings are based this test as well as two earlier tests of the Frontier, one a 2005 model and the other a 2008 model.

The moderate overlap frontal ratings apply to both the Crew Cab and King Cab models.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CEF0504	VTF0812	VTF1216
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm)	11	12	12
Left (cm)	12	13	20
Center (cm)	14	15	16
Right (cm)	12	13	17
Brake pedal (cm)	7	6	5
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm)	1	0	-1
Right (cm)	1	-1	-2
Steering column movement
Upward (cm)	4	3	4
Rearward (cm)	0	1	-2
A-pillar rearward movement (cm)	2	3	2

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	VTF1216
Head
HIC-15	333
Peak gs at hard contact	no contact
Neck
Tension (kN)	1.3
Extension bending moment (Nm)	19
Maximum Nij	0.27
Chest maximum compression (mm)	36
Legs
Femur force - left (kN)	3.5
Femur force - right (kN)	2.2
Knee displacement - left (mm)	13
Knee displacement - right (mm)	7
Maximum tibia index - left	1.01
Maximum tibia index - right	0.78
Tibia axial force - left (kN)	2.0
Tibia axial force - right (kN)	4.3
Foot acceleration (g)
Left	137
Right	163

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2015-21 models

Tested vehicle: 2017 Nissan Frontier SV King Cab

The Nissan Frontier King Cab was redesigned for the 2005 model year. Beginning with 2012 models, design changes were made to the side curtain airbags to improve occupant protection in side impact crashes. Beginning with 2015 models, design changes were made to the side torso airbags and front door trim panels to further improve protection for front seat occupants.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the crash test.

View of the vehicle after the crash with the front door removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side curtain airbag. (The head was also contacted by the side torso airbag.)

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side airbag.

Technical measurements for this test

Test ID	CES1703
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm)	-16.0
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1703
Head HIC-15	138
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.8
Compression (kN)	0.2
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	21
Lateral force (kN)	1.0
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	35
Average deflection (mm)	30
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.95
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.53
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	1.7
Acetabulum force (kN)	2.2
Combined force (kN)	3.7
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	1.1
L-M moment (Nm)	140
A-P moment (Nm)	13

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Test ID	CES1703
Head HIC-15	134
Neck
Tension (kN)	0.4
Compression (kN)	0.4
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm)	42
Lateral force (kN)	1.8
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm)	29
Average deflection (mm)	19
Maximum deflection rate (m/s)	3.43
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s)	0.35
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN)	1.1
Acetabulum force (kN)	1.5
Combined force (kN)	2.4
Left femur
L-M force (kN)	0.9
L-M moment (Nm)	126
A-P moment (Nm)	-23

About the original side crash test

Roof strength

Rating applies to 2016-21 models

Tested vehicle: 2017 Nissan Frontier SV King Cab

Overall evaluation
Curb weight	4,104 lbs
Peak force	18,938 lbs
Strength-to-weight ratio	4.61

About the roof strength test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Manual cloth seats AHR

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry

Technical measurements for this test

Seat type	Manual cloth seats AHR
Geometry
Backset (mm)	44
Distance below top of head (mm)	48
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail	Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g)	12.4
Head contact time (ms)	53
Force rating	2
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N)	152
Max neck tension (N)	645

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.

Headlights

Trim level(s)

All trims

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Low-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating
Distance at which headlights provide at least 5 lux illumination:

Low beams
On the straightaway, visibility was inadequate on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was inadequate in all 4 tests.

The low beams created some glare.

High beams
On the straightaway, visibility was inadequate on both sides of the road. On curves, visibility was inadequate in all 4 tests.

Technical measurements for this test

Evaluation criteria	Measurement
Trim level(s)	All trims
Low-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
High-beam headlight type	Halogen reflector
Curve-adaptive?	No
High-beam assist?	No
Overall rating Applies to 2016-20 models

LOW BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)	Amount glare exceeded threshold
Straightaway right edge	71.1 m	None
Straightaway left edge	32.8 m	None
250m radius right curve, right edge	45.5 m	None
250m radius left curve, left edge	38.4 m	12.9%
150m radius right curve, right edge	41.4 m	None
150m radius left curve, left edge	32.9 m	None

HIGH BEAMS	Average minimum useful illumination distance (5 lux)
Straightaway right edge	125.9 m
Straightaway left edge	100.2 m
250m radius right curve, right edge	60.7 m
250m radius left curve, left edge	63.2 m
150m radius right curve, right edge	49.0 m
150m radius left curve, left edge	50.2 m

About the headlight evaluation

Child seat anchors

Rating applies to 2017-21 models

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Vehicle trim	SV King Cab
Seat type	cloth

This vehicle has 2 rear seating positions with complete child seat attachment (LATCH) hardware.

It has 1 additional seating position with a tether anchor only.

Evaluation criteria	Rating
Overall evaluation
Vehicle trim	SV King Cab
Seat type	cloth

Rating icon	Rating
G	Good
A	Acceptable
M	Marginal
P	Poor
	Seating positions that rely on borrowed lower anchors or have only a tether anchor available are not rated.
thether anchor symbol	Tether anchor
lower anchor symbol	Lower anchors
shared lower achors symbol	Lower anchor(s) can be borrowed from adjacent positions(s)
	No hardware available

Details by seating position

Position	Rating
0
0	Tether anchor
	hard-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	none available
1
1	Tether anchor
	hard-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	not too deep in seat
	not too much force needed to attach
	easy to maneuver around anchors
3
3	Tether anchor
	hard-to-find location
	no other hardware could be confused for anchor
	Lower anchors
	not too deep in seat
	not too much force needed to attach
	easy to maneuver around anchors

Technical measurements for this test

Lower anchor A
No lower latch for this seat position
Lower anchor B
No lower latch for this seat position
Tether anchor
Location	Bottom seatback
Confusing hardware present	No
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	Yes
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

Lower anchor A
Open access rated	Yes
Depth	Visible
Force (lbs)	0
Clearance angle (degrees)	85
Lower anchor B
Open access rated	Yes
Depth	Visible
Force (lbs)	0
Clearance angle (degrees)	84
Tether anchor
Location	Other seating position
Confusing hardware present	Yes
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	Yes
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

Lower anchor A
Open access rated	Yes
Depth	Visible
Force (lbs)	0
Clearance angle (degrees)	84
Lower anchor B
Open access rated	Yes
Depth	Visible
Force (lbs)	0
Clearance angle (degrees)	83
Tether anchor
Location	Other seating position
Confusing hardware present	Yes
Has contrasting label within 3 inches of tether anchor	Yes
Tether anchors can be accessed while seatback is properly positioned for use of LATCH	Not measured

About the child seat anchor evaluation