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Nissan Australia has never been shy about its desire to introduce the full-size Titan pick-up to local showrooms, but exact timing and details have been ever elusive.
Speaking to CarsGuide, Nissan Australia boss Stephen Lester could not update the timeline for the US-built Titan, but said progress has slowed due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
“The ball doesn’t sit in my court where that (Titan) is concerned,” he said.
“We have other folks that need to be aligned on that and, so far, they’re not giving us any indication of their urgency.
“Admittedly – especially in the last two months because COVID-19 distractions have been around a lot longer than just their impacts in Australia – that conversation is taking a backseat at the moment to be perfectly honest.”
Built from Nissan’s factory in Mississippi, the Titan pick-up will slot in above the Navara dual-cab ute, with the former powered exclusively by a 298kW/560Nm 5.6-litre petrol V8 – the same engine found in the Patrol large SUV – and the latter making use of a 140kW/450Nm 2.3-litre twin-turbo diesel.
The Titan was available with a 230kW/752Nm 5.0-litre turbo-diesel Cummins V8 up until the end of 2019, but that engine has now been discontinued.
Nissan clearly has its sights set on the 291kW/556Nm 5.7-litre petrol V8-powered Ram 1500, which sold 2609 combined petrol and diesel units last year, with Mr Lester saying the petrol-only Titan has always been a consideration for Australia.
“Our early program discussions around Titan were not solely based on diesel only,” he said. “I think you’re seeing sales in that segment, it’s not diesel exclusive.
“There’s still opportunity there for it (Titan) in Australia for sure. I think the talk and conversation has been a long time coming.”
The Titan would also serve as a petrol alternative to the Navara, which tops out at $65,990 for the automatic N-Trek Warrior designed and developed by local engineering firm Premcar.
It is understood that Premcar is also the front-runner to remanufacture the Titan from left- to right-hand drive, similar the Ram’s conversion done by American Special Vehicles in Melbourne.
Mr Lester told us that “at the moment, there are no plans for an even further range-topping variant of the (Navara N-Trek) Warrior”, though the Titan could easily fill that space.
“We would love another alternative, and at this point, you can see in the market where other powerplants have taken off, whether its diesel, whether its petrol, whether its hybrid or even electrification,” he said.
“Those are all things Australian consumers are adapting their tastes to an even greater rate than they were previously.”
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