When the second-generation Nissan Titan half-ton pickup began rolling off its Canton, Mississippi assembly line in late 2016 for the 2017 model year, it was powered by a heavily revised 5.6-liter V-8, but Nissan promised an all-new V-6 on some unknown future date. Most industry experts figured the Nissan would wait until its fleet-minded single cab models started production, but that time has come and gone. Recently Nissan released its detailed information on the 2018 Titan, and while pricing has increased by $200 across the trim lines, no V-6 was announced.

That’s got us asking questions. After all, a V-6 Titan with a lower base price and higher fuel economy would be very attractive for fleet operators needing to spend as little money as possible. As it stands, the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, and Ram 1500 all come standard with V-6 engines. Only the Toyota Tundra comes standard with a V-8. Toyota, however, completely dropped the ultra-slow selling single cab Tundra for 2017, showing just how little Toyota cares about reaching fleet customers.

In a recent interview with Wards Auto, Nissan’s senior VP of product planning for Nissan North America, Michael Bunce, said, a V-6 Titan is still “in the plan.” Bunce did not comment on Nissan’s timeline, however. One theory is Nissan is waiting on the next-generation Frontier pickup to debut in 2018, and with it, an all-new V-6. Since the Frontier and Titan are built in the same plant, the engine could easily be shared between the trucks. When Wards Auto asked Bunce about it, he said, “I can’t give you any specific details on that, but we will be moving in that direction.”

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The Needed V-6 For Expanding Sales

While it’s true most private customers would happily skip a V-6 for the Titan’s healthy 5.6-liter V-8 with 390 horsepower and 394 pound-feet of torque, business with large fleets of vehicles are more interested in their bottom line. A V-6 would theoretically save money on both the initial purchase price and fuel costs. We’re talking nation-wide conglomerates with 5,000 trucks to local government agencies with 10 trucks. The vast majority of these aren’t hauling 10,000 pounds around and those that do graduate to three-quarter and one-ton trucks.

Nissan has expanded the Titan lineup to include the single cab, extended cab, and crew cab, along with short and long cargo beds. These same configurations are also available on the Titan XD, Nissan’s “heavier duty” truck that is designed to split the difference between the half-ton and three-quarter ton segments in both price and capability.

Still, adding a V-6 to the half-ton Titan and dropping its MSRP, along with catering word-ready options that appeal to blue-collar trades should go a long way to helping Nissan grab more market share from Ford, General Motors, and Ram.

References

Nissan Titan

Read our full review on the 2017 Nissan Titan.