Home Forums Gear Hunting Trucks and Four-Wheel Drives Nissan trucks

You see a lot here and elsewhere about Toyotas. Maybe I've missed them but can't recall seeing many if any posts on small or full size Nissan pickups. I know a couple of people that own them. One is full size the other is the smaller one. Both are older with a lot of miles and the owners say they've been good trucks.

Are Toyotas that much better, offer more options, better resale, etc. or what.

I have a 2010 Frontier crew-cab 4wd. Zero complaints in the 2.5 years and 40k miles I've owned it. Toyotas do have better resale, but otherwise I don't see any real difference in capability, options, etc. I can't comment on the Titan.

My bother-in-law has a Nissan truck (V-8 engine).

He loves it -- very trouble free (4 years old now, I think), handles great, very nice ride and goes like a bat out of hell.

His only negative comment is that it will pass anything except a gas station. Ah well, all that acceleration has a price!

John

I love the '90's nissan pickups, super reliable, good backcountry trucks, the new ones like the frontier are not as good for me, have had both. Had a full size Titan, biggest POS i ever owned. Def NOT a work type truck, as prev poster mentioned, it did haul azz, but guzzled fuel like no other. If you can find a relatively low mileage hard body 4x4, dont hesitate to buy it, they are excellent.

Good friend of mine has one, maybe a 2008? model year, Titan crew cab, he thinks its the best truck going. He doesn't baby it, hauls trailers loaded down with his rock crawler or many 4-wheelers so not a ton of weight, but not light either, and to my knowledge hasn't had any major repairs.

I have several friends with Frontiers, I have a 2007 Tacoma 4 door. I looked at Frontier and at the time the back seat on the Toyota had a lot more room. Not sure today. As near as I can tell the Nissan might well be just as good. It just doesn't have the reputation, or the resale value. Long term, and with resale value figured in it will cost about the same to own both.

I only know one person driving a Titan. A local deputy who is a bloodhound dog handler drives a 4 door 4X4 Titan that belongs to the Sheriff's office. He has been pleased with it. It has performed well off-road, even had to use the winch a few times during searches so it isn't babied. He often pulls a pretty heavy trailer too. Gas milege is pretty bad, but he ain't paying for it. I understand the newer Tundras are just as bad.

Like Toyota, Nissan seems to think there's no need for a 3/4 ton. If we need to carry weight, it's Ford, Dodge, or Chevy.

It took them a loooong time just to make a 1/2 ton. I like my Tacoma, but think I'd still buy Ford, Chevy, or Dodge if I go back to another 1/2 ton. I know lots of folks who need and use 3/4 tons, I don't need one.

I don't know anyone with a Titan but the new one sure look bad ass!

There is a reason. Connect the dots.

That being said the older Hardbodys ran like the dickens.

2007 Titan here with almost 100k on it. So far it's been excellent.

Gas mileage is not great 13-14 in town 17-18 interstate but I'm the only guy I know with a full sized 4wd 4 door truck with 300+ HP that doesn't get 20mph towing a 5k trailer 75mph uphill in a head wind with the parking brake engaged while in 4wd low though.

When I was a kid I had a 68 Mercury Cougar with a souped up 302. The thing was fast.

My 2010 Titan is faster...and better on gas than the old Cougar.

A little over 50,000 miles and I just put struts in. That's it. I'm very happy with the truck so far. I can't imagine a truck that's more fun to drive.

Dan

I had this done to mine, it makes them more fun to drive.


http://uprev.com/secure/

The GM 6 litre LS engines do about the same. mtmuley

Had a guy tell me the other day his 2014 Toyota Tundra got 51 mpg. I don't think he really knows WTF he is talking about though, lol.

He's dyslexic.

I think he's dumbassic


He figured his mileage by watching his gas hand because when he filled it up it went above full and when it went down to the F mark it was 1 gallon and it was always around 50 miles traveled when it did that, so 51 mpg.

It's a cult question.

I've owned both, had 3 Nissans, now driving a Tacoma. Both my last Nissan, and my current Taco, have 4.0L V6 engines and 6 speed manual transmissions. The Nissan had more HP and torque and better gas mileage. To overcome the engine differences, Toyota runs deeper gears and higher RPM, thus the lost gas mileage ... about 1.2 MPG across the long haul. The Nissan pulled trailers better despite having a lower factory tow weight rating.

I'm fairly satisfied with the Toyota, but the Nissan was a better truck.

Each person's needs and expectations are different. What I would say is this: if you are going into a purchase planning to keep the truck stock plus or minus changing tread pattern but not tire size, the Nissan is likely going to be a better choice, however, the toyota's front suspension geometry is a lot easier to modify and there's a lot more aftermarket support, so if you're going in planning for future change, the Toyota is probably a better candidate.

I'd also say that if you are ok with an automatic transmission, you might be better off with a half or three quarter ton fullsize truck. The small trucks are disappointing in the gas mileage arena. Mostly, though, I hate automatics enough that I think the tradeoff of a small truck is worthwhile.

I think he got the 1 and the 5 bassakwards.

I went to buy a Toyota in 2005, Toyota would not give me a fair price on my trade so I went to Nissan and drove away in an 05 4x2 Crewcab 4.0/6spd Frontier, I have owned it longer than any other vehicle and it has 195K on it now.

I think it has been a very good vehicle but needed repairs at times.

I drive it like I hate it, even now and have no issues running the 275hp 4.0 to the 6K redline. I have carried one ton of ceramic tile in the bed (on the bump stops), hauled multiple vehicles with a tow dolly and oversize trailers with no issues, it is balanced and tows very well for its size.

It has failed to start two times in 10 years, one time I was told a relay failed and Nissan replaced the power distribution box under warranty. A few years ago it would not start in the driveway, turned out the rubber bumper fell off the clutch safety switch, stuck it back on and it was fine.

In warranty, I believe it was 60K, I had the rear pinion seal replaced and the cam tensioners. The pinion nut backed off during a trip to Houston, luckily I was able to limp it to a friends house and re-install the nut that was captured in the yoke and have driven it as is for almost a year, I think this is related to the dealership work years ago, I believe the FSM calls or a new nut when installing the seal.

I have replaced the front wheel bearings, u-joints, carrier bearing, front brakes pads twice, spark plugs, and one window motor. Two weeks ago I replaced the cam chains and tensioners, 20 full hours of work but they were rattling real bad and mileage plummeted from 19.5 to 12.0 in less than 3 months, it is getting 19 again now.

The worst fuel mileage ever was 9 mpg, but it took me 23 hours to evacuate from the south side of Houston to College Station for the hurricane.

I would buy a Toyota, the small version although I am looking to get back in a fullsize truck.

I would buy another Frontier based on my experience over the last decade but I would get a 4x4 automatic with a white exterior and charcoal interior.

Oh, I drove it to work Monday for the first time since the cam chain replacement and got tagged by another driver...bad luck I guess.

I'm on my fourth Nissan pickup. I've had nothing but good luck out of them, few repairs, and excellent service, but I don't work it too hard, either.

I agree with ratsmacker. Have had numerous with no problems. Beautiful machines and durable.

I agree with ratsmacker. Have had numerous with no problems. Beautiful machines and durable.

The new Titan should be out this fall and with the new Cummins diesel, beefed up frame, Aisin transmission, built in king pin, 13000 pound towing capacity, etc.. should be a stump puller.

Looking forward to sitting in one next month.

Is it a 3/4 ton? Often I need the weight in the bed, not behind.

It will be marketed as a 1/2 ton plus. Not quite a 3/4 ton, but not a 1/2 ton either.

exact specs are not out yet but it should have a payload over 2000 and a GVWR of 8500 or so.

I was at the Mid-America Truck Show in Louisville last month and the Nissan diesel was there in one of the Cummins displays. The Nissan rep told me that these would be at the dealers late 2015. That truck attracted quite the crowd and that would be an understatement!

Yep delivery is slated for end of Nov start of Dec. Do you remember who you talked to by chance?

I am the Nissan Rep for New Mexico and El Paso.

I am trying to order one as a demo

Damn, a cummins in a Nissan Titan. Sounds cool. I was looking at a 2008 pro 4x4 Titan the other day because I'm getting tired of rebuilding everything on my 04 gmc 1500 sierra 4x4. The only thing on that truck that is worth a damn is the LS1!!!!

BSA old buddy how's it going? My wife had a 08 Nissan Titan 4x4 and that tuck was the nicest driving truck we had at the time. But we traded it off due to the gas mileage I think the best we ever got was around 15 MPG but the std was 13-14 mpg. At the time we got rid of it in 2010 gas in Alaska was close to $4.00 bucks a gallon and she drove 90 miles(roundtrip)a day to and from work so it adds up quick.

I understand that Nissan's Cummins will be about 5.0L, not the bigger 6.7 used by Dodge. It won't be the powerhouse work horse put out by the big 3.

No it is not the same powerplant, but with the king pin integrated into the frame, and 13000 lb towing capacity, it will be pretty stout.

I am going to be sitting in one next week at dealer show. Gonna take lots of pics.

The Nissan 4x4 supercab I had was a nightmare, to be exact it was the lousy service department for the dealer in Flagstaff, AZ. The repairs were supposed to be covered by warranty but the shop manager seemed to nickel and dime the 10-13 page bill so that I ended up paying the equivalent of the cost for repair. The truck got 13 MPG at the best.

It is not intended to be. Much like the new GM 1500's with the 6.2 L gasser option with the max trailering package. Max payload of 2200+ pounds and max towing of 12000 pounds. Eyeballled one yesterday. A heavyier duty light duty truck.

I am considering a a new-to-me truck for work. My work mostly consists of long road trips hauling 4-600 pounds worth of gear so payload isn't a huge consideration.

But, comfort and handling on crappy roads is a major concern. I rented a Nissan Armada this winter for an extended road trip. I was not pleased with the ride comfort, so I have not included a Nissan in my current search. I may try to test drive one this weekend and see if it might work for me after reading some of these reviews.

OUCH !!! That must have hurt the old pocket book. I've done a little research and the consensus is they suck the gas down. The one I was looking at was lifted and riding on 35s, which would make it even worse. I think I'll keep the ol GMC

Hornet, I'd really appreciate it if you post those pictures and let us know what you think of the truck. Sounds like a damn good one.

http://www.nissanusa.com/trucks/2016-titan/?dcp=tqd.ttn.VLP.body_hero_image_ttn_mar_0406_Int



Here's Nissan's website with the Cummins/Titan truck.

Damn that gives me a woody, but it looks too much like a ford.

I thought it looked more like a Dodge, frankly, despite all the chrome on the nose.

It's more truck than I need, and the mileage is horrible, by all accounts, but my Frontiers don't get much better mileage, to be truthful about 'em. I like their size better for my needs, though, they're easier to park than the Titan.

I have driven a Titan, nice truck, but too much truck for what I want and need. I think I'll stick with my Frontiers.

One day I will find a 2002-2006 Chevy/GMC 2500 with the 8.1 liter in it with Allison transmission which I think was std starting in 04 with the 8.1.

I am a general manager of a Nissan store in upsate ny, what I would tell you regarding Frontier to Tacoma, is that reasale is virtually the same. Before all the Toyota Koolaid drinkers jump on me, follow me. A 2015 crew cab sv 4x4 Frontier is bought for a real world price of $27000, and a crew cab Tacoma with the same options in a v6 will cost you 33500-34000. 6 years from now with an assumption of both trucks having 150,000 miles, the Tacoma is worth 12-13000 on the street and the Frontier is worth 8000-10000, both are uber dependable trucks, so it really depends on what YOUR preference is and which seat your ass fits better in. But all the talk of the resale being better is a myth when you take into consideration the Tacomas upfront cost of 5000-6000 more dollars.

Not sure you are going to be able to get any personal pics at the dealer meeting in Dallas of the new Titan, I am going also, but my itinerary says no electronic devices allowed at the conference?

That's a great body style. That engine is used in big U-hauls and is first choice for big motorhomes buddy. Go for it, you'll be feeding that big block sob though!!

that 496 is one hell of a motor they said GMC/Chevy discontinued because it was eating into their Diesel sales at that time. They said it would pull with any of the diesels at the time. Now days with diesels out of the big 3 pushing well over 800 ft lbs of torque the 8.1 is clearly lagging behind now.

Saw an 8.1 with Allison for sale here. You willing to come to Montana for one? mtmuley

I would expect nothing less from a general manager at a Nissan store. WTF would you say that the Nissan is inferior(It IS) and has less resale value (which it does). Toyota dealers don't have to discount or discount a Toyota truck very little. Why do you think that is ???? Its because they are in demand.

Yep you are correct. I just opened mine as well. I fly in Tuesday morning as we ( Nissan Corporate) have meetings Wed and Thursday morning. Oh well.

I still think that the Tacoma hardware outlasts the Frontier hardware, but truth be told, it's a lot closer than it used to be. I loved my 97 Taco, but I'm lukewarm at best about my 2009. I'd love to see a four-banger diesel in the Frontier that gets 35 MPG plus. That would be the schitz for putting around the back country without having to run into town for fuel.

Unfortunately I'm in Kuwait right now. Wont be back until Oct-Nov. How much were they wanting?

I just bought a '15 Titan, and love the heck out of it so far.

Trucks, like rifles, are a personal thing. If you just wanna hate a brand, you'll be more than capable of finding reasons to do so.

And, pick a brand, someone hates it. Guaranteed. Every brand, domestic or foreign, there are people who will foam at the mouth to tell you all that's wrong with any given truck. It's just how the world turns!

Or maybe someone drove 1/2 dozen of Nissan and Toyota trucks, knows people who also own both and decided that the Toyota was a better truck. I have much more confidence in my ability to ascertain whether something is well built then any info gleaned from the interweb.


Out of all the trucks built right now you could not give me a GMC/Silverado truck new production.

I agree....that was kind of my point. Everyone has to make their own decision. If someone set out to buy a truck that no one on the web would bash, they'd spin around in circles till they fell over.