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Budd Stanley
A family of Titans
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Nissan
A family of Titans
We’ve tested all the current half-tons; this is the most comfortable of the bunch.
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Budd Stanley
A family of Titans
The Platinum Reserve trim we tested gave an excellent ride and was packed full of luxury materials.
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Budd Stanley
A family of Titans
The PRO-4X trim gets Bilstein shocks and General Grabber all-terrain tires.
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Budd Stanley
A family of Titans
The improvements made to the 5.6L V-8 were impressive, more power and linear smooth delivery.
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Nissan
A family of Titans
We’re not the biggest fans of high tech, but 360-cameras are fantastic.
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Budd Stanley
A family of Titans
While the PRO-4X handled a rough gravel road beautifully, we didn’t get to see any real challenges.
Story & photos by Budd Stanley
I love to cheer for the underdog. It’s the only reason I can explain being a Winnipeg Jets fan, why I drive a four-cylinder, and in these dark days of turbocharged Formula 1 cars, I still don a black McLaren team shirt at 4:00 am every Grand Prix Sunday morning.
When it comes to new vehicles, there is a plucky underdog truck maker that strives to take a chunk out of the big three domestics and their dominance of the full-size pickup market. Nissan has been building the Titan full-size since 2004, but for most of its life, has not seen the success of the domestic competition.
Enter the Nissan Titan XD. It’s not 1500 or half-ton, but it’s not a 2500 or three-quarter-ton either, it sits in this little slot between the two, with the comforts of a half-ton but with greater towing power. It’s aimed at the truck owner that wants a half-ton, but doesn’t want to push the limits of a half-ton’s performance. I like to call it a half-ton and a half, or half-and-half. Last December I got to test the Cummins Titan XD (check out 4WDrive Volume 18, Issue 1 for the full review) equipped with a 5.0L turbo diesel sporting 390 hp and 555 lb-ft. Needless to say, it blew me away with not just its towing and off-road potential, but it has a fantastic new interior and Nissan’s ZeroGravity seats, which I claimed to be the most comfortable seats in the business. Interior comfort is rather important in a segment where the truck owner spends the majority of their day in the cab, and Nissan nailed it.
Titan XD Gasoline
The latest inclusion to the XD line-up comes in the form of a completely redesigned 5.6L V-8 gasoline engine that has been reworked with all the usual efficiency improving suspects, such as direct fuel injection, variable valve timing as well as new exhaust, head, intake and piston design. Now dubbed the “Endurance” engine, Nissan claim it to be stronger, lighter, more efficient, more durable, and more powerful with 390 hp and 401 lb-ft.
So, how did the new gasoline mill do in the bigger badder XD? Well, pretty good. Mated to the 7-speed auto rather than the 6-speed found in the diesel, the 390 hp 5.6L V-8 is not quite as lively getting the XD off the line in comparison to its diesel counterpart, however that's not to say the 5.6L is a slouch. On the highway the 5.6L purred along nicely in the added 7th gear and gave no sign of weakness when we dumped 317 kg (700 lb) of cargo in the bed. I still prefer the Cummins 5.0L diesel, but hey… power is corruptive.
Unfortunately, Nissan wasn’t able to get a Single Cab Titan XD to the launch in time for testing, however know that this will be the workhorse of the line-up, featuring an 8-foot bed, single row bench seat and vinyl flooring to handle the messiest trades.
Titan Half-ton
The latest in a growing family of Titans is the redesigned Titan half-ton. Sporting the same modern design update as the XD, the half-ton sits atop a completely different chassis than the XD but features the same cab. Under the skin, you will find a much lighter frame with additional bracing to combat chassis wobble over harsh roads, rack and pinion steering, a new American Axles rear-end and upgraded Bilstein suspension. Like the XD, the Titan gets the 5.6L Endurance V-8 with a torque rating listed at 394 lb-ft mated to a 7-speed automatic transmission.
Talking to Andrew Harkness, Chief Marketing Manager for Titan, I asked which focus points did Nissan try to achieve when redesigning the new Titan? His answer was “none.” An odd answer to give, but he followed it up with, “we wanted the new Titan to do extremely well in all facets of driving, capability and efficiency. Other manufacturers aim to have a couple best in class features at the expense of other features. We wanted a well rounded truck all together, and if we got a couple best in class points, then that’s a bonus.”
That’s a refreshing comment coming from a man in charge of a truck in a segment full of loud trucks yelling, “Look at me, look what I can do!” His words had meaning once I was able to get behind the wheel and drive the Titan in the real world. Long story short, this is a damn good truck.
With the same cab as the XD, you have the same great seats and interior design and layout, but once you start moving, that’s when you can really feel the difference. With the lighter chassis, the Endurance V-8 really comes alive and moves the Titan along with absolute ease and a nice low grumble from the exhaust. Nissan have made great strides forward with this engine as it now delivers more power and 30% better efficiency, rated at 11.1L/100km on the highway, only a few tenths away from the best in class GM 5.3L V-8. However a real trademark of the Endurance is its smooth linear power delivery. The old engine used to surge and lose power in the middle of the rev band, however the new Endurance has a power delivery line that is as straight as you can get with a gasoline engine, making for a much smoother drive.
There are a lot of good things to say about the new half-ton Titan, but one of the best is the solid feel of the entire package. Just about every half-ton on the market give the driver some kind of disconnected feel with the chassis, but the Titan is solid and tight, almost like a car, giving the driver good communication with the chassis, but still keeping a pickup truck mentality.
The new Titan will come in S, SV, PRO-4X, SL and Platinum Reserve trim. The Platinum Reserve is obviously the luxury trim featuring full leather, premium materials and all the latest tech and features. The PRO-4X is Nissan’s off-road designate, featuring LED Headlamps, skid plates, Bilstein shocks, an E-Lock differential, Hill Descent and a set of 275/70 R18 General Grabber all-terrain tires. We didn’t get to do any real off-roading, but will be sure to test this in the future. The utility box found in the lower rear quarters of the old Titans is gone, now replaced with Nissan’s Titan Boxes that have more dry and lockable storage that is also removable.
The smoothness continues with the chassis, body and transmission. Shifts are seamless, even under load, rack and pinion steering gives the driver a much more connected feel and the chassis rolls along, smooth and extremely quiet even at speed on the highway.
There are few little things that annoyed me however. The 5.6L is the only engine option at this time, although a V-6 is very likely coming down the pipe. The half-ton comes with a 1.7 m (5.5 ft) bed rather than the 2.0 m (6.5 ft) bed of the XD, so those who will be hauling larger items take note. Finally, if you need to charge a lot of electronics, the Titan has two USB ports up front, an AC outlet and two 110v outlets (one in the centre consul and one in the bed). That will likely due for most, but I’d like to see a couple extra USB’s in there for good measure.
Inside, the centre infotainment screen provides 360-degree camera views at low speeds, a brilliant feature for those who parallel park, tow trailers or like to partake in a little off-roading. Other driving aids include Blind Spot Warning, front and rear sonar, Trailer Sway Control (another awesome feature) with Integrated Trailer Brake Control and Downhill Speed Control. Like the XD, the half-ton also has Nissan’s Trailer Light Check feature that allows the driver to cycle through all the taillights on a trailer with the touch of the key FOB. Again, another real-world feature that just makes sense.
Nissan designers and engineers had very clear targets in terms of increasing efficiency, durability, comfort and capability, and they pretty much nailed it. Smoother suspension, lighter weight, smoother power delivery, better fuel efficiency, good steering, best seats in the business and an engine that competes with the top performers; it’s hard to find something to dislike. I wasn’t a fan of the new fascia design of the XD, but even that is starting to grow on me with the lower slung half-ton. Is the Titan still an underdog? Well, it shouldn’t be, as I feel it is one of the best half-tons currently on the market, one worth taking a look at for sure.
SPECIFICATIONS:
- MSRP: $44,650
- Price as Tested: $65,800 (Platinum Reserve)
- Engine: 5.6L V-8
- Power: 390 hp, 394 lb-ft
- Transmission: 7-Speed Automatic
- Curb Weight: 2,580 kg (5,688 lb)
- Wheelbase: 3,550 mm (139.8 in)
- Tow Capacity: 4,182 kg (9,220-lb)
- Fuel Efficiency (L/100km): 11.1L Highway, 15.2L City, 13.4L Combined