Australia’s fast-growing plug-in hybrid double cab (PHEV) market will add another member in 2027 Nissan Frontier Pro arrives Down Under.
As reported by Car sales today and then independently confirmed by Daily Sparkz According to dealer sources, Nissan Australia unveiled and confirmed the local launch of the Frontier Pro at a gala dinner attended by its dealers in Adelaide last night – a day after the global unveiling of the new generation Mitsubishi Triton-based Navara ute in the Adelaide Hills.
The media was not invited to the event and Nissan Australia has not yet made a public announcement about the local release of the Frontier Pro; It would not respond to our request for comment on the matter today.
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However, Nissan Australia has previously said the Frontier Pro, developed by the parent company’s Chinese joint venture partner Dongfeng, is being considered for this market, where the Japanese brand’s PHEV pickup would offer a two-pronged ute range.
Nissan Oceania managing director Andrew Humberstone has long suggested it would “absolutely fit into Nissan’s local product range”, where the low-emission ute would offset the CO2 emissions of the diesel-powered Navara under the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).
“I don’t see any problem with this running parallel to the new Navara,” he said Daily Sparkz in May.
“It’s a question of ‘Does the business case work?’ I think it takes about six months to get a right hand drive. I think it could potentially work for the market.
“What we’ve been told officially – it’s obviously a joint venture with Dongfeng – the car is available for export, we are one of the markets that could be considered. I think it could be a very interesting product for us. I think it could absolutely fit.”
The Frontier Pro will not only give Nissan a direct competitor to the popular BYD Shark 6 as well as the GWM Cannon Alpha PHEV and Ford Ranger PHEV, but also to a number of other PHEVs that are scheduled to hit the market here by 2027.
These include Chery Australia’s first ute, expected to be based on the Rely KP3X and powered by a diesel-electric PHEV system, and the JAC T9 PHEV, which has been confirmed for local release in early 2026.
The groundbreaking LDV eT60 on sale here will also be joined by several fully electric vehicles, including the KGM Musso EV (in December), the Toyota HiLux BEV (2026), as well as the LDV eTerron 9 and Isuzu D-Max EV (TBC), among others.
Unveiled at the Shanghai Motor Show in April, the Frontier Pro is based on Dongfeng’s Z9 ute rather than the previous Navara-derived Frontier pickup D40 sold in the US.
As the world’s first PHEV model and Nissan’s first electrified vehicle, it is powered by a turbocharged 1.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with a transmission-mounted electric motor, resulting in a total system output of 300kW and 800Nm of torque.
Nissan claims an electric range of 135 km on the CLTC cycle and fuel consumption of 6.9 l/100 km.
The Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) function delivers up to 6 kW of power and enables electrical devices to be powered via sockets in the tray.
The braked towing capacity is 3500 kg – matching the Navara – while the wading depth is 700 mm and the off-road capability is likely to eclipse that of the Shark 6 thanks to an electromechanically locking rear axle differential.
The Frontier Pro offers selectable hybrid, electric, performance and snow driving modes, a five-link rear suspension and comes standard with all-wheel drive and 18-inch alloy wheels with 265/65 R18 tires.
Inside, there’s a 10-inch digital instrument cluster, a 14.6-inch touchscreen infotainment system and the option of heated, ventilated and massaging front seats, as well as a panoramic sunroof.
Nissan Australia’s most advanced ute ever could also give its sales a much-needed boost. So far this year, sales are down 17.7 percent and the company has fallen out of the top 10 list of car brands.
But it hopes to turn things around by 2027 with a cavalry of new models, starting with the D27 Navara in early 2026, updates to the X-Trail and Qashqai SUVs later next year, the all-new Patrol in early 2027 and potentially a host of other new models via Dongfeng.
Just as Mazda is using its Chinese partner to supply the Mazda 6e electric liftback to Australia, Nissan could eventually offer a range of Dongfeng models here.
These could include the N6 PHEV sedan and N7 electric sedan, bringing Nissan Australia back into the sedan market, as well as a range of electrified SUVs, one of which may be based on the Frontier Pro.
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