I work in the oil field and im lookin to save as much as i can of the 1/3rd of my income that currently spend on housing. Ill have to tow with my personal vehicle a nissan frontier for 6 ish months then it will probably go to 50% use with my personal vehicle.The frontier is rated for 6,000 lbs from what ive read on the internet. I have to full time with co-worker 80% of the time damn near 365 days a year in ND. Ive seen a few TT that my truck could pull, but im not sure they are big enough for 2 people and im not sure my truck could pull the TT loaded down with cargo. I doubt ultralights could stand up to full time use, or have even semi adequate insulation. Plus everybody up here has atleast 2 100lb propane tanks or they just rent a horizontal.I plan on purchasing this spring or summer so ill have time to prepare it for winter but if it will fall apart in 6 months or just wont stand up to -30 no matter what I do i guess i just need a different truck.I know ill have to throw alot of my stuff out even though i dont have much. Do yall think full timing it is possible with a 4,000lb trailer with a cargo capacity of 700-1,200lbs for two people? My truck only has a 20 gallon tank an with pulling a trailer i dont know if id have enough range. I doubt my truck could pull a tt with a aux gas tank as well. I thing max tongue weight is 500lbsIf not how much would i have to spend on a different truck?I know nothing about diesel trucks other than they are expensive. What do yall think reliable truck with around 100,000 miles would cost? I dont care how pretty or luxurious it is or what year I just cant be stranded. I dont need more than a 3/4 ton but if theres a bigger truck for about the same price ill take it.

There are small trailers that you could pull with the Frontier, but none that would be well-insulated enough to get through the winter up there. A guy asked the same question in this thread. Arctic Fox are known as the best insualted trailers for year-round camping, but they are heavy, even the mallest model is out of range of the Frontier, and all the but the smallest you really need a 3/4 ton truck.Diesels can be expensive, don't rule out the Ford V-10 or GM 6.0 or 8.1L gas engines either.The new Ram 6.4L is strong too but has only been out for a couple years.

I would look at the Artic Fox line as well. You might have to buy a cheap 3/4 ton to tow with and park the Frontier.With the cold temps I would stay with a gas truck it would be a lot less problems. You should be able to pick up a older one for 5k.

Your question depends on a lot of personal factors IMO. Are you looking at mostly towing to a location and leaving it there for an extended period, or are you moving the trailer/towing it around a lot? How much "stuff" do you want to keep.Personally, I'd be ok towing a heavier trailer (5-6000 lbs) w/ a Frontier if it was only short periods and once in a while. The min I could see myself living in with another person is probably 30' w/ a slideout, though, so the Frontier is irrelevant, because that will be well over 6000 lbs.Good luck!

I pull with a Pathfinder, which is just the SUV version of your Frontier. We tow a 4000 lbs Jayco x23B, with roughly another 500lbs of people and stuff (the kids are still small), and it's "adequate" but is not a great tow vehicle. Mostly it's fine to tow around the flats of Illinois, but towing through the Black Hills last summer, it was a lot of 3rd gear, 3500-rpm towing while getting 7-8 mpg. That 20-gallon tank does look awfully small with those numbers--we stopped every 100-150 miles to fill up. The tongue limit is 600lbs, so you're looking at relatively light trailers. It gets the job done, but if you can afford a bigger truck, that would be the way to go.

Could a nissan frontier be a tow vehicle for a fulltimer?

10 Replies

Sprink-Fitter
Explorer
Mar 17, 2015
handye9 wrote:
You're the second person to ask about full time in ND, in the last week.

Here's a link to the other thread.

What ever truck you decide on, it will need enough payload available to carry you, your passenger, your tools, any luggage you put in the truck, a bed cap (if you put one on), a 100 lb weight distributing hitch, and the tongue weight from your trailer, all combined.

Weigh the Frontier and subtract that from it's GVWR. That will tell you what kind of weight capacity you have left.

Like I said three hours ago, he is the guy that asked a week ago.
handye9
Explorer II
Mar 16, 2015
You're the second person to ask about full time in ND, in the last week.

Here's a link to the other thread.

What ever truck you decide on, it will need enough payload available to carry you, your passenger, your tools, any luggage you put in the truck, a bed cap (if you put one on), a 100 lb weight distributing hitch, and the tongue weight from your trailer, all combined.

Weigh the Frontier and subtract that from it's GVWR. That will tell you what kind of weight capacity you have left.
wcjeep
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
What dealerships are going to be near your North Dakota location. I have driven through North Dakota. Ford, Chevy and Dodge seemed to be easy to find. I don't recall any Nissan dealership. Make it easy on yourself to find spare parts or warranty if necessary. I would also recommend at least a 3/4ton for long distance heavy towing. It's not the power, it's the braking that's important.
Jamesconn
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
In a few months ill have to tow with the work truck every once in awhile an f150. I could have to move it every couple days or not for 6 months theres no real schedule with this company. I could end up having to tow alot or not much at all. I font want to push my frontier and break it and lose all the money i have in it. I guess i could just get a half ton but i like diesel and they dont really make crew cab long bed gassers.

Id rather get more truck and have it pull trailers for years with no issues than really push the truck, break something and potentially get in a wreck or stranded.

If i really cant go more than 100 miles on a tank i guess i need another truck.

I love cooking and i reload, life would be more livable if I could indulge in my hobbies.
Sprink-Fitter
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
BurbMan wrote:
There are small trailers that you could pull with the Frontier, but none that would be well-insulated enough to get through the winter up there. A guy asked the same question in this thread. Arctic Fox are known as the best insualted trailers for year-round camping, but they are heavy, even the mallest model is out of range of the Frontier, and all the but the smallest you really need a 3/4 ton truck.

Diesels can be expensive, don't rule out the Ford V-10 or GM 6.0 or 8.1L gas engines either.The new Ram 6.4L is strong too but has only been out for a couple years.

The guy that asked the same question is this same guy, that or they use the same username.
kvangil
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
I pull with a Pathfinder, which is just the SUV version of your Frontier. We tow a 4000 lbs Jayco x23B, with roughly another 500lbs of people and stuff (the kids are still small), and it's "adequate" but is not a great tow vehicle. Mostly it's fine to tow around the flats of Illinois, but towing through the Black Hills last summer, it was a lot of 3rd gear, 3500-rpm towing while getting 7-8 mpg. That 20-gallon tank does look awfully small with those numbers--we stopped every 100-150 miles to fill up. The tongue limit is 600lbs, so you're looking at relatively light trailers. It gets the job done, but if you can afford a bigger truck, that would be the way to go.
Tystevens
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
Your question depends on a lot of personal factors IMO. Are you looking at mostly towing to a location and leaving it there for an extended period, or are you moving the trailer/towing it around a lot? How much "stuff" do you want to keep.

Personally, I'd be ok towing a heavier trailer (5-6000 lbs) w/ a Frontier if it was only short periods and once in a while. The min I could see myself living in with another person is probably 30' w/ a slideout, though, so the Frontier is irrelevant, because that will be well over 6000 lbs.

Good luck!
AndyW
Explorer
Mar 16, 2015
Motorhome + pull the Nissan?
colliehauler
Explorer III
Mar 16, 2015
I would look at the Artic Fox line as well. You might have to buy a cheap 3/4 ton to tow with and park the Frontier.

With the cold temps I would stay with a gas truck it would be a lot less problems. You should be able to pick up a older one for 5k.
BurbMan
Explorer II
Mar 16, 2015
There are small trailers that you could pull with the Frontier, but none that would be well-insulated enough to get through the winter up there. A guy asked the same question in this thread. Arctic Fox are known as the best insualted trailers for year-round camping, but they are heavy, even the mallest model is out of range of the Frontier, and all the but the smallest you really need a 3/4 ton truck.

Diesels can be expensive, don't rule out the Ford V-10 or GM 6.0 or 8.1L gas engines either.The new Ram 6.4L is strong too but has only been out for a couple years.

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Could a nissan frontier be a tow vehicle for a fulltimer?

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