You can find a Nissan Frontier for about $6,000 — older model years get even cheaper — making it a very affordable truck that also has surprisingly decent gas mileage. A 2000 Frontier is rated a combined 21 mpg, but keep in mind this is another smaller truck, much like the Ford Ranger. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it’s not going to pull around the large payloads like a larger-sized truck would. The tradeoff for that is better gas mileage, but that doesn’t mean it’s not capable of smaller tasks, as a 1998 model can still tow up to 3,500 pounds.
The following Frontier generation upgraded from a compact truck to a midsize, where the mpg plummeted down to a combined 16 mpg city and highway. If you’re searching for the best mpg you can find, you’ll want to stick with the generation of Frontiers before that change was made. The next-gen did come with some bonuses, however, and the 2005 Frontier could tow up to 6,300 pounds as a tradeoff for its worse gas mileage.
