Nissan's first full-size crew cab pickup has already substantially raised the bar in the full-size truck category and begins its first full model year as leader-of-the-pack in a number of categories considered vital to success in the full-size truck market.

The all-new 2004 Nissan Titan Crew Cab is No. 1 in interior space*, boasts an available High-Utility bed ™ with the industry's first spray-in bed-liner, a new Utili-track® bed channel tie-down system that provides ultimate cargo hauling flexibility, and an integrated, lockable bedside storage compartment.

“The Titan Crew Cab, like the Titan King Cab, is in a league of its own in styling and innovation,” says Ian Forsyth, Nissan Canada Inc.'s director of marketing. “It brings a fresh, new alternative in the full-size truck category and, clearly, represents a shift in truck thinking and design.”

The heart and soul of the Titan is pure, unabashed power, with the all-new Nissan Endurance 5.6-litre V8 engine producing 305 horsepower and 379 ft-lbs of torque. Titan Crew Cab SE has a maximum towing capacity of 4,218 kilograms (9,300 pounds).

Forsyth says truck buyers rate power, torque and towing capacity as the top three prerequisites in a full-size pickup, so those are areas that received Nissan's highest priority. For instance, he says almost 90 percent of the Endurance V8's torque is available below 2,500 rpm for superior towing, hauling and off-road perfromance.”

The Endurance V8 features aluminum cylinder heads and an aluminum block with cast-iron liners, a microfinished forged steel crankshaft with microfinished chain-driven dual overhead camshafts, graphite-coated pistons and a single-stage timing chain. It was designed to balance its impressive power with superb fuel efficiency and quiet engine operation, Forsyth says.

Standard on Titan is a specially engineered, electronically controlled five-speed Torq-King® automatic transmission with Tow/Haul Mode. The transmission was designed especially for heavy-duty truck use with an emphasis on serious towing.

All Titan Crew Cab models are equipped with an advanced shift-on-the-fly four-wheel-drive system with two-wheel-drive (2WD), four-high (4H) and four-low (4LO) modes. Contributing to Titan's off-road capability is an advanced torque-split control strategy that works in co-operation with the brake-activated limited-slip Traction Control System to transfer optimum torque to the wheels, according to road and driving conditions.

Titan is built on a fully boxed ladder frame designed specifically for serious full-size vehicles. The frame has closed-section side rails, rather than the traditional C-channel open section rails used by most full-size trucks.

Titan's responsive handling is a product of its all-steel double-wishbone front suspension with coil-over shock absorbers, stabilizer bar and rigid-leaf (dual-rate) rear suspension.

Major items on Titan's generous list of standard features include power-assisted rack-and-pinion steering system, four-wheel disc brakes with Bosch Anti-lock Braking System (ABS), a 40/20/40 front bench seat with fold-down centre section and a rear seat with a full 24 degrees of seat back angle and a 60/40 split fold-up feature that offers more usable space than fold and tumble designs.

Other standard equipment includes an AM/FM/CD sound system with eight speakers, air conditioning, cruise control and power windows and door locks.

All of this — and much more — is standard on all three models of 2004 Titan, the base XE 4x4, the sporty SE 4x4 and the luxury-sport LE 4x4.

As well as the equipment on the XE, Titan SE 4x4 adds the High Utility Bed ™ with its many features plus 18-inch aluminum alloy wheels with white-lettered tires, a 350-watt 10-speaker Rockford Fosgate™-powered sound system, an overhead console that gives passengers more storage options and houses rear audio controls, front bucket seats with eight-way power adjustable driver's seat and a large centre console that can hold a variety of beverage containers, including a one-litre bottle. A 12-volt adapter is included in the storage area and can be used as a power source for a phone or other electronic devices.

Two feature packages are available on SE. The Off-Road Package includes Rancho™ shock absorbers, seven-spoke 17-inch alloy wheels with BFGoodrich A/T tires, skid plates, fog lights, front-seat side-impact airbags and curtain side-impact airbags with rollover sensor.

A DVD Entertainment package includes a seven-inch colour monitor that drops down from the overhead console, a DVD player that is compatible with video games plus two sets of wireless headphones.

Titan LE 4x4 includes all the features of the SE plus leather seat surfaces, six-spoke alloy wheels, fog lights, step rails, front seat side-impact airbags, curtain side-impact airbags with rollover sensor and many other comfort, convenience and appearance items.

LE offers two optional equipment packages, a DVD Entertainment package that includes everything in the SE DVD package plus a power sunroof with tilt and slide features, and a Navi package with a DVD-based navigation system, a seven-inch colour monitor and Canada and U.S. DVD map data.

Perhaps Titan's biggest innovation and differentiation from the competition is in its pickup bed. After studying available aftermarket bed utility systems and bed liners, the Titan team created a unique, two-part solution.

First, a special factory-applied spray-in bedliner was developed. Using a special high durability hard surface resin application, which can be sprayed on complex surfaces, the bedliner helps prevent scratch damage and corrosion to the bed and inner tailgate surface. It is the first offered by any original equipment manufacturer and is covered by the Nissan Basic Limited Warranty.

The second part of the bed utility solution was the development of the Utili-track tie-down channel system. With this system, five special “C” channel rails are mounted in the bed (two channels in the bed floor, and one each on the bed side rails and the bed header panel). Removable utility cleats slide into the channels, providing a wide range of attaching points for cargo tie-down.

The Titan bed also includes four standard stake pockets and, as required for a working pickup, Titan carries 4x8-foot plywood sheets easily between the wheel housings.

Standard safety features on 2004 Titan include Nissan's Advanced Air Bag System (AABS) with dual-stage front supplemental air bags with seatbelt sensors and a front passenger occupant classification sensor, front seat belts with adjustable upper anchors, pretensioners and load limiters, three-point rear passenger seat belts and LATCH (Lower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren) child seat anchor system.

Driver and passenger confidence is accentuated with an extensive list of vehicle-incorporated safety features including Zone Body construction with front and rear structure crumple zones, an energy-absorbing steering column, hood buckling creases with safety stops, knee bolsters and special body-side reinforcements and a shift-interlock system.

Titan is assembled in Nissan's new manufacturing facility in Canton, Miss.

* Ward's full-size, half-ton truck class