Nissan’s not worried about a clash of the Titans. With three trucks sharing the same name, trim packages and looks, it says customers shouldn’t get confused.
“We want the choice of the truck to be based on specific capability requirements customers have,” said Andrew Harkness, manager of truck marketing for Nissan Canada. “If there’s no specific needs, then the Titan is a good fit – if they have specific needs, then they’ll move in to a specialty truck.”
The three trucks are the half-ton Titan, and the three-quarter-ton Titan XD with either a gas or a Cummins 5.0-litre, 310-hp turbodiesel. When talking about the trio, Nissan calls the half-ton the Titan, and the other two the XD gas and the XD diesel. The XD is for extra-duty.
The single cab Titan is the everyday workhorse – it has bench seats and an eight-foot bed, destined for fleets, and coming soon. The price hasn’t been announced. There will also be a V-6. It’s aiming for customers who are buying a truck solely for work, although it says the bulk of sales will likely be in the higher trims.
The other two’s specialties? The XD gas, starting at $45,900, is for customers who want to haul the heaviest payload – 1,138 kilograms compared to 1,098 for the XD Diesel and 875 for the Titan, Harkness said.
And the $53,400-and-up XD Diesel? Nissan says it’s for serious towing – 5,448 kilograms compared to 4,976 for the XD Gas and 4,413 for the Titan.
Nissan launched the XD Cummins first, to establish street cred among truck buyers who saw the previous Titan as a truck for the SUV-set. In 2015, Nissan sold just more than 3,200 Titans while Ford sold nearly 119,000 F-Series trucks.
“It’s the most loyal segment in the market – our number one challenge is to show: ‘Hey, this is a pretty good truck’,” Harkness said.
The Titan sits on a different chassis than the XD – “under the skin, they don’t share a single bolt,” Harkness said – but it shares its engine and transmission with the XD gas.
The XD is longer and sits higher off the ground. The Titan crew cab has a smaller bed than the XD crew cabs.
All three have identical interiors and they share the same trim packages. Nissan says that’s because it doesn’t want customers to decide between Titan or XD based on “whether it has heated seats.”
All three Titans come in rear-wheel or four-wheel drive. There are five trims – S, SV, PRO-4X (with Bilstein shocks and electronic locking rear differential) and the loaded Platinum Reserve.
TECH SPECS
Base price: $44,650; as tested: $63,500 (PRO-4X)
Engine: 390-horsepower 5.6-litre V-8
Transmission/Drive: Seven-speed automatic transmission/Rear- or four-wheel drive
Fuel economy (litres/100 km): 15.0 city, 11.2 highway
Alternatives: Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150, GMC Sierra, Ram 1500, Toyota Tundra
RATINGS
Looks: The Titan is nearly identical to the larger XDs, although its hood looks less unwieldy. It has more style than the Big Three competitors although, if you squint, you could mistake it for the competition.
Interior: The Titan and the XD share a quiet interior. The higher trims have a lot of chrome and fake wood, while the PRO-4X is sharper, with more brushed metal. The seats are comfortable, the touchscreen intuitive – and there are knobs for volume, tuning and for setting the temperature. Gripes? There are too many switches down to the driver’s left, although they’re for things you probably won’t use daily – like hill descent.
Performance: Compared to the XDs, the Titan feels more agile as an everyday driver. It drives more like an SUV than a truck. Shifting on all is smooth. We only towed with the diesel – and I had to look in the rearview mirror to remind myself that I was pulling 4,000 pounds of equipment up the hills along the St. Lawrence. Still, the gas is more fun to drive than the diesel.
Technology: No Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. On higher trims, there’s an optional trailer light check triggered by the remote. It cycles through the right signal, left signal and brake lights. No more shouting at your spouse in the rain to hit the brakes. Higher trims get the around-view camera.
Cargo: In higher trims, the bed comes with a sprayed-on liner and there are LED lights along the side of the bed. There are optional lockable, removable storage bins. Inside, there’s a lockable storage box under the rear seats that can hold a rifle. There’s also a fold out shelf for holding large items, like flat-screen TVs.
THE VERDICT
8.0
The Titan is a capable, comfortable, eye-catching workhorse that’ll haul and tow more than most of us will need – and if you do, there are two good heavy-duty options.
The writer was a guest of the auto maker. Content was not subject to approval.