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Nissan Titan

Nissan Titan
Nissan Titan
Nissan's contribution to the full-sized truck market, the Mississippi-built Titan is kind of a big deal. Large in charge, the Nissan Titan rivals trucks like the Ford F150, and the Tundra, and has been acclaimed for its expansive interior, wide rear doors and other unique features. Its downside though is that it sells rarely, maybe due to a lack of body styles in comparison to similar trucks. Also unfortunately, the Titan has been afflicted with quality issues, mainly with the brakes which tend to wear out quickly. The Titan was produced for the North American market, and shares the stretched Nissan F-Alpha platform with the Nissan Armada and Infinity QX56 SUVs.

In 2005 the Titan was officially debuted and launched as a full size pickup truck. The extended cab's rear door-opening back doors didn't open independently of the fronts, but are hinged to open flat against the side of the body. The truck came in two sizes, the four-door extended cab and the four door crew cab. Both of these models were available in the XE, SE and LE versions. The length of the Cargo-bed for the crew cab was 5.5 feet and 6.5 feet for the extended cab. All three of the models were powered by a 5.6-Liter V8 engine with 305 horsepower. The Titan is capable of towing approximately 9500 lbs. Edmunds.com listed it as the best full-size truck. In 2004 the Titan was nominated for the North American Truck of the Year award.

A strong competitor for large domestic pickups in performance, utility, available safety features and comfort, along with its smooth, powerful V8, the Titan is among the quickest large trucks off the line. With competitive 9500-lb towing capacity and ample passing power, the Titan was quite a beast, but it was a thirsty beast. The Titan 4WD XE Crew Cab averaged 14.5 in mixed city/highway use, and only 12.1 mpg in just city driving. Possibly the most nimble pickup, the Titan is relatively easy to drive with its large, simple easy to read gauges and generously sized controls. Inside the Titan the quality is considered quite solid, only slightly deterred by the lightweight plastic bin covers with plenty of bins and cup holders in both cab styles.

While the SE and the LE came with bucket seats in the front and column-mounted transmission lever, the XE version came with a bench seat in the front. All models could seat up to three people and were equipped with a bench seat in the back. The Titan was available in two-wheel or four-wheel drive that had to be disengaged on dry pavement but included low-range gearing. Standard was ABS. Standard with 4WD was traction control, optional with 2WD. Optional was an antiskid system, along with front side torso airbags and curtain side airbags for both seating rows. On the LE power-adjustable pedals were standard, and optional on SE. All new for a pickup, the Titan featured a locking storage compartment in the left rear fender, and a fold-flat front-passenger seat. The Titan shared its powertrain and chassis with Nissan's Armada large SUV.

For 2005, the crew cabs came equipped with power windows in the rear. No changes were made in 2006. The engine horsepower was increased from 305 to 317 in 2007.

For 2008, the Titan came out in two body styles, the extended cab and crew cab. The extended cab was available with either a 6.6-foot cargo bed or an 8-foot cargo bed. The crew cab was available with either a 5.6-foot cargo bed or a 7-foot bed. For this year the Titan was available in four models; the SE, XE, the 4WD Pro-4X and the LE, all four of them were powered by a 5.6-Liter V8 engine with 317 horsepower, and all have a five speed automatic transmission. Also for this year, all Titans received a revised front-end appearance.

The Titan XE version came with 18-inch tires, a split bench seat in the front, cruise control, a stereo system with a CD player and air conditioning. The SE came equipped with 18-inch tires, fully powered accessories, front caption chairs, a CD changer in the dashboard, leather seats, power-heated mirrors and an overhead console. The Nissan Pro-4X came with Rancho shock absorbers, all terrain tires and heavy-duty skid plates. The LE came with a spray factory applied bed liner, 20 inch tires, specialized cargo tie-down tracks, adjustable powered front seats, a system that assisted the driver with parking, power adjustable pedals, Bluetooth connectivity and a stereo system manufactured by Rockford Fosgate.

By Jessica Donaldson

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