The Nissan Titan XD made its debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit today. The Titan Warrior Concept, a modified XD for heavy duty use, was unveiled as well. The Warrior Concept holds the same wheelbase and length of the Titan XD but with a much more commanding presence.
Titan Warrior Concept is an interpretation of “modern armor” but with certain homage to ancient warriors in literature. The truck has a Samurai meets Cyborg feel with carbon fiber fenders, cabin, and taillight spoilers.
The truck is coated in a custom matte-gunmetal paint called “Thunder.” It’s accented with “Magma” and black highlights.
Titan Warrior Concept utilizes the fully boxed ladder frame and Cummins 5.0L V8 Turbo Diesel, with the standard, heavy-duty 6-speed Aisin automatic transmission as the base XD. Where Titan Warrior Concept differs is in suspension design. In the front, the standard suspension has been replaced with custom upper and lower control arms with performance ball joints, along with racing-style internal bypass reservoir coil-over shocks, with custom reservoir mounts and tie-rod extensions.
In the rear, modifications include custom internal bypass reservoir shocks with reservoir mounts. Adjusted-length prototype axles were installed, along with a special sway bar, relocated sway bar brackets, rear lift blocks, and U-bolts. Hydraulic, pressurized front and rear bump stops were also added.
Nissan’s desire to impact the truck market is obvious as potential buyers shop in 2016.
“Truck buyers have a seemingly insatiable appetite for more content and more unique offerings,” said José Muñoz, Executive Vice President, Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Chairman, Nissan North America, Inc. “Even though our all-new 2016 Titan XD just started arriving at Nissan dealers nationwide last month, we are already exploring new territory where Titan might go in the future.”
The Nissan Titan XD comes as the brand is seeing growth in the United States. Total sales in 2015 hit 1,484,918 units, marking an increase of 7.1 percent over 2014 sales.
“We set sales records month after month, profitably. We introduced fresh products in every critical segment, including full-size pickups. And we beat the industry average in terms of percentage of sales increase,” explained Muñoz. “Our calendar year share of 8.3 percent represents one of the highest gains in the industry and our brand value continues to rise.”
Muñoz also credited Nissan’s overall image.
“Our market presence also continues to expand through our involvement in sports, entertainment, and charity support,” he said.
What do you think of the Titan Warrior Concept?
*Carl Anthony is Managing Editor of Automoblog.net and resides in Detroit, Michigan.
