Nissan Titan Overview

"A man and his truck. It's a beautiful thing." So read the legend on a sweatshirt. I smiled in understanding. Most certainly pickups inspire in their owners, male or female, an emotion rarely generated by other wheeled objects. It's a feeling more often associated with a favored dog, or maybe a sports team.

That unique relationship is a force to be reckoned with if you're a manufacturer looking to move up in the market. That's the task Nissan has set for itself with what it terms the first truly full-size pickup from a company other than Ford, Dodge, or General Motors. Titan is significantly larger than the Toyota Tundra, which is not quite full-size.

Nissan has done its research, benchmarking favored pickups and edging the bar higher for its Titan. The Titan boasts best in class headroom; best in class torque; best in class interior volume (for the Crew Cab); best 4x4 ground clearance; best 4x4 approach angle; largest in class 4x4 tires. Titan can tow up to 9,500 pounds, putting it at the top of the class alongside the new Ford F-150.

The Titan features a new 5.6-liter V8 and five-speed automatic that deliver dazzling response. Its handling is equally responsive, making it among the most enjoyable of the full-size half-ton pickups. Brakes, suspension, drivetrain all feel refined. This is a serious pickup that pleases all the senses.

Titan boasts clever innovations that improve on the traditional pickup bed, such as the factory-applied spray-in bedliner and a C-channel tie-down system. A stash box integrated into the driver's rear fender offers a neat place to store a hitch or other small items. The rear doors on the King Cab open nearly 180 degrees for quick access.

The Titan was designed in California. It's built at Nissan's new plant at Canton, Mississippi, and its new V8 is built at Nissan's Decherd, Tennessee, production facility.