Owners of heavyweight caravans have another big American pickup to choose from, with a Cummins V8-powered Nissan Titan breaking cover at this week's Queensland Caravan, Camping & Touring Supershow in Brisbane.
Imported by US vehicle conversion specialist Performax International, the new Titan pick-up truck powered by a 5.0-litre V8 turbo-diesel engine is priced from $105,000 for a single cab, rising to around $140,000 for the range-topping dual-cab model.
The Titan joins Performax's range of big North American, right-hand drive converted pickups including the Ford Super Duty, Toyota Tundra, GMC Denali and Chevrolet Silverado.
Nissan equips the 4WD pickup with a Cummins V8 turbo-diesel delivering 230kW/750Nm. This pumps through a dual-range Aisin six-speed automatic transmission. Performax says the Titan offers a towing capacity of 5.2 tonnes.
The ‘bed’ or tray measures 1.62 metres wide and 2.0 metres long and comes with lights plus accessories including an electric locking and damped tailgate, a special tie-down system and Titan-branded storage boxes. Payload is 900kg.
Performax is showing off the Nissan Titan XD Platinum Reserve dual-cab model in Queensland this week, which is a $139,000 proposition -- about the same as the more powerful 276kW/1084Nm six-cylinder turob-diesel Dodge Ram. The Titan range also includes the sporty Pro-4X model, which is priced at $135,000.
Some of the features available on the Titan include trailer-sway control, hill-start assistance, 360-degree surround view parking cameras, tyre pressure monitoring, 20-inch alloy wheels, powered leather seats with heating and cooling functions…and the list goes on.
The Nissan Titan is much larger than the most popular 'one tonne' utes sold in the Australian market, including its smaller sibling the Navara, Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger.
Nissan builds the Titan at its plant in Canton, Mississippi. Performax imports the left-hand drive vehicles to Australia and converts them to right-hand drive at its factory in Gympie, Queensland.
Performax claims local versions of the Titan offer "factory-original standards of engineering, drivability, reliability, durability and fit and finish," and all Performax vehicles are backed by a three-year warranty and 24-hour roadside assistance.