Nissan Project Trailgater takes tailgating off road

Tailgating normally takes place in paved stadium parking lots, but Nissan’s latest one-off build takes it far away from crowds and post-game traffic.

Project Trailgater is a 2025 Nissan Frontier that combines expected tailgating touches with off-road capability that lets its driver throw a tailgate party in the woods. The build process will be shown across three episodes of “Music City Trucks” airing on PowerNation TV this month.

Nissan Frontier Project Trailgater

The modified pickup has a pair of 43-inch televisions and a sound bar mounted on a Nismo bed rack, with an onboard battery pack and inverters supplying power. An 18-amp DC-DC charger can be used to recharge the pack, with supplementary power supplied by a folding solar roof. A Starlink internet connection ensures content can be streamed in remote locations.

The truck also features a fold-out kitchen station and sink, propane grill, and a built-in cooler for food preparation. However, the back seats of this crew-cab Frontier were removed to make room for some of this equipment.

Nissan Frontier Project Trailgater

To ensure Project Trailgater can get to remote tailgating spots, Nissan provided a host of Nismo parts. The truck sports a lift kit, forged upper control arms, and remote-reservoir rear shocks from Nissan’s performance division, as well as 17-inch beadlock-capable wheels with Yokohama Geolander M/T G003 tires. The standard 3.8-liter V-6, which offers a peak 310 hp, also gets a Nismo exhaust system.

Project Trailgater helps draw attention to the updated 2025 Frontier, which arrived over the summer with a fresh new look, increased towing capacity, and new in-car technology. The updates help Nissan’s midsize pickup, last redesigned for the 2022 model year, stay fresh. That’s something Nissan failed to do with the previous-generation Frontier, which lingered in showrooms for over a decade with few changes.