Nissan’s new BYD Shark 6 rival makes dramatic debut in Shanghai

Announced earlier this year as part of its product restructuring process, Nissan has unveiled its first-ever plug-in hybrid bakkie at the Shanghai International Motor Show.

What is it?

Wearing the Frontier name, the fully titled Frontier Pro Plug-In Hybrid shares only its moniker with the models sold in North America and Latin America, the latter being identical to the Navara but assembled in Argentina rather than in Thailand or South Africa.

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Modelled on the Z9, a joint development model between Nissan and long-time Chinese partner Dongfeng, the Frontier Pro forms part of a wider roll-out of seven new energy vehicles planned for the People’s Republic from now till 2027.

Futuristic

Differentiating itself from the Z9 by way of a different grille, a five-diode LED headlight arrangement and a light bar running below the bonnet lip, the Frontier Pro sports model specific 18-inch alloy wheels and an upper LED bar with Nissan scripting connecting the taillights.

Based on the same body-on-frame platform as the Z9, the Frontier Pro has measurements of 5 520 mm in overall length, a wheelbase of 3 300 mm, height of 1 950 mm and width of 1 960 mm, the same as its sibling.

Rated to tow 2 540 kg, the newcomer has a claimed ground clearance of 231 mm and comes standard with an electromechanically locking rear differential, plus a terrain on-demand transfer case with high and low range four-wheel-drive.

Its suspension layout comprising a double wishbone independent design at the front and five-link at the rear, the Frontier Pro’s final off-road centrepiece is a mode selector with four settings; hybrid, EV, Performance and Snow.

Compared to Shark up front

Tipped as the most direct rival for the BYD Shark 6 based on its powertrain being similar, the Frontier Pro’s setup combines a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol engine with a single motor and battery pack, the former integrated into the housing of the transmission.

While no details about the battery’s size or capacity of the electric unit emerged, Nissan has claimed a combined output of 300kW/800Nm and an electric-only range of 135 km based on China’s CLTC measurements.

As a comparison, the dual-motor Shark 6 develops 320kW/650Nm and will travel 85 km on a single charge, based on the NEDC scale.

Similar to its countryman, the Nissan supports vehicle-to-load (V2L) of up to six kilowatts.

Exports, yes. But….

Still to be priced, Nissan has stated that exports of the Frontier Pro outside China will commence, though it didn’t say when or to which markets.

Speculation has, however, alleged that these will be left-hand-drive countries, making the Frontier Pro a no-no for South Africa as well as other right-hand-drive nations such as Australia where sales of the Shark 6 have been increasing since its arrival earlier this year.

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