Compare the2023 Nissan FrontierVS 2023 Ford Maverick

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Nissan Frontier have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Ford Maverick doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Nissan Frontier has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Maverick doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The Frontier has standard Active Head Restraints, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Active Head Restraints system moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. The Maverick doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

Over 200 people are killed each year when backed over by motor vehicles. The Frontier offers optional Rear Automatic Braking that uses rear sensors to monitor and automatically apply the brakes to prevent a rear collision. The Maverick doesn’t offer backup collision prevention brakes.

The Frontier PRO-X/PRO-4X offers an optional Around View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Maverick only offers a rear monitor and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the front or sides.

Both the Frontier and the Maverick have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, rearview cameras, available four-wheel drive, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

The Nissan Frontier weighs 590 to 1210 pounds more than the Ford Maverick. The NHTSA advises that heavier vehicles are much safer in collisions than their significantly lighter counterparts.

To reliably power the ignition and other systems and to recharge the battery, the Frontier has a standard 185-amp alternator. The Maverick’s 150-amp alternator isn’t as powerful.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Nissan vehicles are more reliable than Ford vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Nissan 9 places higher in reliability than Ford.

The Frontier’s standard 3.8 DOHC V6 produces 119 more horsepower (310 vs. 191) than the Maverick’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder hybrid. The Frontier’s 3.8 DOHC V6 produces 60 more horsepower (310 vs. 250) and 4 lbs.-ft. more torque (281 vs. 277) than the Maverick’s optional 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Nissan Frontier uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Maverick requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Frontier has 7.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the Maverick Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (21 vs. 13.8 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Frontier has 4.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the Maverick 2.0 EcoBoost’s standard fuel tank (21 vs. 16.5 gallons).

The Frontier’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Maverick are solid, not vented.

The Frontier stops shorter than the Maverick:

For better traction, the Frontier has larger tires than the Maverick (265/70R16 vs. 225/65R17). The Frontier’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Maverick (265/70R16 vs. 235/65R17).

The Nissan Frontier’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Ford Maverick only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Frontier has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The Maverick doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

The Frontier has a standard full size spare so a flat doesn’t interrupt your work or a trip. A full size spare costs extra on the Maverick. Without the option you must depend on a temporary spare, which limits mileage and speed before replacement.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Frontier Crew Cab’s wheelbase is 4.9 inches longer than on the Maverick (126 inches vs. 121.1 inches). The Frontier LWB Crew Cab’s wheelbase is 18.7 inches longer than on the Maverick (139.8 inches vs. 121.1 inches).

For greater off-road capability the Frontier LWB SV Crew Cab has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Maverick (8.9 vs. 8.6 inches), allowing the Frontier to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Frontier PRO-4X Crew Cab’s minimum ground clearance is .4 inch higher than on the Maverick Tremor (9.8 vs. 9.4 inches).

The Frontier Crew Cab shortbed has a much larger cargo box than the Maverick shortbed (40.1 vs. 33.3 cubic feet).

The Frontier’s cargo box is larger than the Maverick’s in almost every dimension:

The Nissan Frontier has a standard tailgate assist feature, which prevents the heavy tailgate from falling with a crash and causing injury. It allows adults and children to easily open and close the tailgate with one hand to better facilitate loading and unloading. The Ford Maverick doesn’t offer a tailgate assist.

Both the Frontier and Maverick have bed indentations that accommodate 2x4’s for two-tiered loading, but the Frontier also has indentations to separate the cargo box into three different sections length-wise.

The Frontier’s minimum standard towing capacity is much higher than the Maverick’s (6260 vs. 2000 pounds).

The Frontier has a higher maximum payload capacity than the Maverick (1610 vs. 1500 lbs.).

The Frontier uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Maverick uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The engine in the Frontier is mounted longitudinally (North-South), instead of sideways, as in the Maverick. This makes it easier to service and maintain, because the accessory belts are in front.

The Frontier’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Maverick does not have an oil pressure gauge.

Consumer Reports rated the Frontier’s headlight performance “Good,” a higher rating than the Maverick’s headlights, which were rated “Fair.”

The Frontier PRO-X/PRO-4X’s standard GPS navigation system has a real-time traffic update feature that plots alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Maverick’s available navigation system doesn’t offer real-time traffic updates.

The Nissan Frontier comes in extended cab and crew cab bodystyles; the Ford Maverick isn’t available as an extended cab.

J.D. Power and Associates rated the Frontier second among midsize pickups in owner reported satisfaction. This includes how well the vehicle performs and satisfies its owner’s expectations. The Maverick was rated third.

The Nissan Frontier outsold the Ford Maverick by 22% during the 2022 model year.