Nissan gives Titan a new suite and more fire power

With a possible right-hand-drive future lingering, Nissan used the Texas State Fair in Dallas last week to unveil the facelift Titan heading for North America next year.

Only into its second generation having debuted three years ago, Nissan’s rival for the Toyota Tundra, Ram, Chevrolet Silverado and Ford F-150 boasts a new front facia dubbed Powerful Warrior, consisting out of LED headlights, a reworked grille in three designs, boomerang shaped daytime running LEDs similar to that of the revised Patrol, a redesigned front bumper, new fog lights and at the rear, updated lights and tailgate applique.

As well as benefitting from a LED light integrated into the bed, the Titan’s interior has been subtly tweaked to include upgraded materials, a dual pane panoramic sunroof on Crew Cab models and, depending on the trim level, three infotainment systems; a seven, eight or nine-inch display with the latter boasting Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as well as over-the-air updates. In addition, the latter comes with an internal Wi-Fi router supporting up to six devices, while a 12-speaker, 485-watt Fender Premium Sound System with a nine channel amplifier can also be specified.

On four-wheel-drive models, the Titan gains a so-called Off Road Gauge with pitch, angle and rollover angle gauge, as well as an electronic locking rear differential, a Brake Limited-Slip Differential, Hill Start Assist and, in the case of Pro-4X models, Hill Descent Control.

On the safety side, Nissan has added two airbags for a total of eight, plus two additional safety belt pre-tensioners which forms part of its new Safety Shield 360 suite of tech that consists of Blind Spot Warning, High Beam Assist, Automatic Emergency Braking with Pedestrian Detection, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Lane Departure Warning and Rear Automatic Braking.

Additionally, the Titan can be equipped with Traffic Sign Recognition, Rear Door Alert, Intelligent Forward Collision Warning, Intelligent Driver Alertness, Intelligent Cruise Control and Intelligent Around View Monitor.

In North America, the Titan will go on sale in a choice of five trim levels; S, SV, Pro-4X, SL and Platinum Reserve, all powered by the 5.6-litre Endurance V8 petrol that has been upgraded to produces 298kW/560Nm.

The same engine that powers the Patrol, the V8 churns out seven kilowatts and 26 Nm more than before, and comes paired to a brand-new nine-speed automatic gearbox in place of the old seven-speed unit. Gone however is the Cummins sourced 230kW/752Nm 5.0-litre turbodiesel V8 that sold in lower than expected numbers, with a further casualty being the single cab bodystyle, thus leaving the King Cab and the aforementioned Crew Cab.

Production will once take place at Nissan’s Canton Plant in Mississippi with a choice of nine colours being offered; Glacier White, Super Black, Brilliant Silver Metallic, Gun Metallic, Pearl White TriCoat and Deep Pearl Blue, as well as three new hues; Cardinal Red Metallic, Baja Strom and Red Alert. Pricing will be announced at a later stage.

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