New Nissan Titan, road trip report.

[LoboGunLeather]

In an earlier post I described my new Nissan Titan 4X4 truck. 5.6L V8, 7-speed automatic, AC, cruise, AM-FM-CD, but few other upgrades (just good rubber floor mats, utilitarian upholstery, etc).

Left Pueblo, Colorado on May 22, drove to Duluth, Minnesota where I picked up my older son, then continued north to Ely, Minnesota and Birch Lake where we spent 4 days on a houseboat, doing some fishing, eating like pigs, sharing some stories, etc. Then returned home on May 30. Total trip was about 2600 miles, probably 2/3 on interstate highways and 1/3 on lesser developed roads.

New truck runs like a scalded dog when needed. Zero to 60 is very fast, so entering an interstate from a ramp is pretty easy. When passing is necessary acceleration from 55 or so to 90-plus can be done in the time it takes to get around a semi-truck. Goosing 390 horses is still fun, even for us old guys!

Used 4-wheel drive twice, going down and returning up a steep dirt road at the lake access. Quick shift from 2WD to 4WD with the flip of a switch. Easy and effective, so I'm sure winter use here in Colorado will be good.

Totaled up all the miles and I can now report overall of 19.24 MPG for the trip. I find that to be excellent for a full-size 4WD pickup with a strong V8 and automatic transmission.

Anyone considering a new truck for personal, business, or recreational use might want to include a Nissan dealer in the shopping mix. I am very pleased with mine.

 

[The Big D]

Good stuff!

Dig road trips and stories thereof!

Be safe.

 

[WardenRoss]

Congrats on your new truck. I like Nissans and they make great stuff.

Wifey has a new Rogue and so does my daughter-n-law. Exemplary vehicles indeed.

If Ford didn't make the F150, I'd drive the Titan.

 

[RobertJ.]

Very nice!

I have a 15 year-old Pathfinder with 200k, and it's still going strong.

 

[Fishinfool]

Enjoyed the review. I think Nissan makes an underrated truck compared to the usual players. My old 1984 Nissan Frontier with the 4 cyl., 8 spark plug NAP-Z motor had over 200k trouble free miles when I sold it. Unlike my current GMC, it had no rust issues, and didn't nickel and dime me.

Larry

 

[Whitwabit]

That's great gas mileage for a 4X4 truck !!!

I'm waiting for the new JEEP truck that should be out this fall !!

 

[Farmer17]

My 2004 Titan went 240K miles over the 10 years I owned it and not a single repair was needed until about 180K miles and it handled corners like a sports sedan and would tow 9500 lbs no problem.

 

[old bear]

Ray, I'm glad that you had a good trip, enjoyed yourself, and got home safe.

Fred

 

[muddocktor]

Thanks for the truck review. Nissan must have done some real magic to get the mileage up as high as you are seeing. We have a 2004 Titan with the same engine and it's lucky to get 17 mpg cruising on the interstate. We will be shopping for a new truck later this year and I was leaning toward the smaller trucks such as the Tacoma, Colorado and Frontier, but the Titan can also be on the shopping menu since they seem to have improved mileage on them.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

Lobo, how comfortable was the ride. I have heard they shake at moderate to high speed?

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Lobo, how comfortable was the ride. I have heard they shake at moderate to high speed?

The ride is firm, but not uncomfortable (it is a 4WD truck, not a family sedan). Very quiet interior at highway speeds. No vibrations or shaking that I detected, other than usual on rougher road surfaces. Never felt anything that reflected on safety or security. Very comfortable overall.

My last truck was a 2004 Ford F150 XLT SuperCab, also V8 with 4WD. Excellent truck that I enjoyed for 12 years. The Nissan Titan is, in my opinion, equal in every way, and superior in power (390HP), torque (395FP), and towing capacity (13,000 lbs). You can almost listen to the computer working through acceleration, deceleration, braking, etc, with a solid sense of control in every situation I have encountered so far. In cruise control mode long uphill grades cause the transmission to utilize the range of power throughout the 7-speed automatic's performance envelope; on downhill runs the transmission is also utilized to best control the programmed speed; when you disengage cruise and let off the gas you can feel the transmission react to control deceleration smoothly while allowing instant performance upon application of throttle. Maneuvering is crisp and responsive at all speeds. As mentioned in my initial post, kicking into passing gear provides very impressive performance.

Worth mentioning is that the Titan is made in the USA (Canton, Mississippi).

If I say any more Nissan will have to start paying me for the endorsement!

 

[LoboGunLeather]

Thanks for the truck review. Nissan must have done some real magic to get the mileage up as high as you are seeing. We have a 2004 Titan with the same engine and it's lucky to get 17 mpg cruising on the interstate. We will be shopping for a new truck later this year and I was leaning toward the smaller trucks such as the Tacoma, Colorado and Frontier, but the Titan can also be on the shopping menu since they seem to have improved mileage on them.

The major differences seem to be in transmission and computer technology. The 7-speed automatic gives impressive performance, cruising on level interstate highways at 75MPH at around 1800RPM. Computer monitoring and controls work constantly, and better than I could ever compensate for changing conditions.

I have done the smaller trucks in years past (Ford Ranger, Toyota SR5), both 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder. Neither of those delivered the gas mileage, much less the performance of this new Nissan Titan. Worth taking a look.

 

[johngalt]

The major differences seem to be in transmission and computer technology. The 7-speed automatic gives impressive performance, cruising on level interstate highways at 75MPH at around 1800RPM. Computer monitoring and controls work constantly, and better than I could ever compensate for changing conditions.

I have done the smaller trucks in years past (Ford Ranger, Toyota SR5), both 4 cylinder and 6 cylinder. Neither of those delivered the gas mileage, much less the performance of this new Nissan Titan. Worth taking a look.

I'm a little suspicious of gas mileage claims when a little engine is put in a heavy vehicle. A big engine using a small fraction of its maximum output is more efficient than a small engine being flogged to death.

 

[muddocktor]

I also noticed that they are advertising a 5 year/100,000 mile warranty on the Titan too. Pretty good I would say.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

I also noticed that they are advertising a 5 year/100,000 mile warranty on the Titan too. Pretty good I would say.

Warranties are great, until you need them!

 

[muddocktor]

Warranties are great, until you need them!

I've had pretty good luck with Nissan warranty work in the past with the truck and also a 97 240SX. And there were several recalls on the 04 Titan, which was the first year they made them. The biggest problem that we had was that they tried using too small and thin a rotor on the front brakes and had warping problems with them. They had to change out all the front rotors on the 04 Titans and we got a rental truck while they were doing it.

 

[Lonegle57]

Have had three Nissan trucks, not 100% sure I will get another. The 93 , needed new transmission at 100K, they found a second radiator is needed to cool tranny. The 07 Frontier V6 had such a set up. At 130k the water from the tranny leaked into it and a rebuild was necessary for the 07. Nissan has known about this, extended warranty to 8 years, 80,000 miles when in my opinion should have had a recall, there are lots of 07's with the same problem. Not sure there will be another in the driveway.

 

[BigBoy99]

In 2016 I trade-in my 11 year F250 diesel truck and got a Nissian Titan XD truck with the Cummings diesel engine. We were looking for a vehicle in which we could take long road trips but still have space to haul items. The Titan fit the bill perfectly. My wife's biggest complaint about the F250 was the diesel engine was "too loud." When we test drove the Titan, I didn't tell her it was a diesel, just to see what she said. She even commented how quiet the engine was. As long as she was happy with it, so was I. We have made several long trips: WI to NC and back, WI to VT to NC to WI and NC to FL and back. It is an extremely nice riding vehicle and the it has of the creature comforts. Driving 12 hours is very easy and you don't feel stressed when you get out. I've had driving segments where I got over 20 mpg but the overall average is in the 17-18 mpg range. Great truck in my estimation!

 

[BearBio]

Wife and I both have 2005 Nissans==Mine's a Frontier crew cab and hers is an Xterra. Both have 275 hp V-6 and get about 20-21 mpg. Hers is a little more nimble than mine is. Mine has 75k and hers has 175k.

 

[LVSteve]

Have had three Nissan trucks, not 100% sure I will get another. The 93 , needed new transmission at 100K, they found a second radiator is needed to cool tranny. The 07 Frontier V6 had such a set up. At 130k the water from the tranny leaked into it and a rebuild was necessary for the 07. Nissan has known about this, extended warranty to 8 years, 80,000 miles when in my opinion should have had a recall, there are lots of 07's with the same problem. Not sure there will be another in the driveway.

Oh dear, the Strawberry Milkshake Of Death (SMOD). I changed the rad on my '05 Xterra for an aftermarket piece with a brass transmission cooler rather than the original aluminum to avoid that issue. I agree that Nissan should have replaced the lot, just as Mercedes should have recall all their 2003-2010 7 speed boxes, and Jaguar should have pulled back all the 3 and 5 litre motors with the defective Ford designed water pumps. Yeah, like THAT was going to happen.