I’ve taken a final drive in the outdated 2015 Nissan Titan 4X4 Pro-4X pickup, still operating with its 317-horsepower, 5.6-liter V-8 and 5-speed automatic transmission with gated shifter.
The tough Titan was a fine competitor 10 years ago; today its lack of updates is apparent and the lapse has been costly – in all of 2014, only 12,000 Titans were sold, less than 1 percent of the light-duty truck market.
The dismal sales totals will soon climb, say Nissan truck officials, who point to a total rebuild of the 2016 Titan for unveiling late this year.
The ’16 Titan XD will show up in the fall with renewed power from a Cummins 5.0-liter V-8 diesel engine and Aisin 6-speed automatic transmission. The crew cab will be joined a couple of months later by an extended-cab model, both units becoming available with V-8 or V-6 gasoline engines, in addition to the diesel.
A choice of three engines will be of good cheer to Nissan prospects, who to date have had available only the 5.6 V-8, which has a relatively low EPA fuel-mileage rating of 12/17. Only twice during the week did I turn the 4-by-4 dial from 2hi to 4hi, and then for short stretches of travel, and my overall average with the Titan was 14.4 mpg.
The crew cab, equipped with a 5-foot-7 box, carried a base price of $40,370. The addition of these options pushed sticker price to $46,365:
- Rockford Fosgate premium audio with 10 speakers,
- NissanConnect navigation,
- leather seating (heated in front),
- under-seat storage bin,
- sliding bed extender,
- rear-bumper step assist,
- spray-on bedliner,
- utili-bed track channel system with tiedown cleats,
- memory mirrors and pedals.
The bed extender flips over onto the tailgate.