After ignoring the full-size truck market for far too long, Nissan rolls out what it calls an “Every Duty” truck.
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After ignoring the full-size truck market for far too long, Nissan rolls out what it calls an “Every Duty” truck. The concept is a good one. The execution? Not so much.
Changes for 2016
• Extra-duty version of the upcoming redesigned 2017 Nissan Titan
• Supposed to tackle tougher jobs than a light-duty truck, but without the cost of a heavy-duty truck
• Standard turbo-diesel engine
• Spec numbers reveal a marketing challenge
2016 Titan XD Highlights
Compared to the most popular pickup truck in America, the Ford F-150, the Nissan Titan XD out-tows it by just over 600 pounds when equivalently optioned, but the Ford can still tackle more than 800 extra pounds of payload and does it for less money while offering more equipment (Titan XD S vs. F-150 XLT).
We’re pointing this out because Nissan is positioning the Titan XD as a truck that splits the difference between traditional light-duty and heavy-duty pickups. The reality, at least when compared to equivalent Ford models, is that the Nissan barely bests the F-150 in terms of towing and comes nowhere near it in terms of payload capacity.
You can’t get a diesel engine in an F-150…yet. The Titan XD has one as standard equipment, a Cummins 5.0-liter turbo-diesel V8 whipping up 310 horsepower at 3,200 rpm, 555 lb.-ft. of torque at 1,600 rpm, accompanied by a clatter that does a Peterbilt proud. Compare that to the F-150’s twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6, which musters 365 horsepower at 5,000 rpm and 420 lb.-ft. of torque at 2,500 rpm.
So what gives regarding the Nissan’s stumble on payload capacity? The Titan XD weighs more than 2,000 pounds more than the F-150 EcoBoost. In other words, it’s got a bunch of extra blubber to haul around before anything gets placed in the cargo bed, so that means you can’t pack it with as much people and stuff as you can the Ford.