VVL seems interesting.

What's the story with DI? Have the manufacturers resolved the carbon build-up issue on the back of the valves? At this point in time, I would be reluctant to buy a DI engine unless proven wrong. I am still looking at an 5.7 I-force to replace my aging Titan. Old technology and gas guzzler for sure, but proven technology, good for 200,000 miles or more.

I wonder how much lighter it will actually be than the Diesel. Lose the ATD, DEF tank, charge air cooler, 2nd battery, , and go with an AL block- will certainly save weight, but it will still be the heaviest truck that isn't an HD truck. payload might improve. Big question will be if they gear it to maintain the same GCW, or if towing will drop.

Wow, nice work Nissan, that sounds huge, just another step above the GM twins as usual, they need to start catching up(again)

Seriously, I was wondering about this, for the non diesel fans Nissan Titan just became relevant again

Nice upgrade for Nissan. It should make there gas 3/4 ton very competitive with the big 3. They come up very short on there diesel 3/4 ton compared to the big 3.

Hopefully upgrade it more further for there 1/2 ton as it won't run with gm 6.2 and ford's ecoboost.

Yes the VVL sounds very interesting. Looking forward to seeing how this performs. It may not have the biggest numbers but it is all about powerband.

Wow, all those valves to make the same hp and less torque then a 5.7 hemi, at no rpm sooner either.

Compared to a 5.0 Ford, barely more power, but less per cubic inch.

All to go in a truck that in diesel form trails the GM 2500, Ram 2500, and the can't stand up to it'so name, Super Duty 250.

I guess in gas engine form, it will probably be a lot less payload, as well as being so heavy. It's really a truck that they can't figure out whether they want to make it into a 1500 class, or 2500 class, so it won't do either class as a leader.

On top of that the front end of that truck is UGLY!

FINALLY!!!! something not about the XD/Cummins part of the Titan. And its important. Glad we are talking about a thoroughly modern DOHC 34v Vari timing V8 and good proportions. Hope it delivers a higher level of efficiency than the previous 5.6 Endurance V8 which was also modern and delivered good MPG in its day and horrible MPG. I don't find 390 "modest" at all for a mid 5ish liter V8 in a full size half ton. Its above GMs 5.3 and right in line with Ford, Toy, and Fiat small block offerings for power #s.

As long as this engine with that power is also competitive in efficiency and proves reliable in a competitive package the Titan just like the Tundra will become a viable alternative to the traditional choices and gain relevance.

sorry 32 valves.

Now how about a modern 350ish HP V6 for the non XD models?

TRX-4 Tom - Nissan is supposed to have 2 Titan models. The XD and regular Titan. In some respects I cannot see how changing to a gasser will affect towing capacity since the competition has 12k tow rated 1/2 tons and all of the HD gassers are in the 14-17k tow range. If anything the cargo capacity should go up since the gas engine is much lighter.

I do agree that the Titan is heavy and doesn't really have any competitive numbers when compared to 3/4 ton trucks. Even mpg will be on par so why even bother with an XD? A regular Titan would be more competitive with the competitors 1/2 tons.

sorry, RAM, not Fiat

@TRX-4 Tom

You might want to learn about what Variable Valve Lift does for the engine at all rpms instead of just ignorantly concentrating on peak numbers. Depending in how they tuned this engine for the Titan, it has the ability to have more torque then the non VVL Hemi at other rpm ranges.

Who cares lets see the regular cab long bed Titan .

Cummins, the high compression ratio also indicates to me a good possible broad torque range. Most NA gas engines make peak torque high up unless they are large displacement like the Chevy 8.1L. You can influence the torque band on a smaller NA engine with the use of valve timing, compression and variable intake tract designs. Its all about manipulation of the air intake travel.

Sounds like a strong engine. The last 5.6 was strong as well. Just didnt have the rest of the pickup to back up all that power. Hopefully this new titan will be diff. I think it will be. Not the greatest looking truck but some people wont mind if it performs well.

@Cummins, the Hemis have variable valve timing, the variable valve lift better be sooooooooo much better, because you gotta heavier engine with a lot more components.

You might want to wait till the results are out before you ignorantly say your stuff

@Lou_BC: yeah, they need to have a second one, the frame on the diesel puts it at a real heavy weight, to have such a low payload for such a heavy truck. The numbers I seen were 1450 to about 1650 pounds depending on trim.

I think Ram, and others, missed the chance at grabbing that 5.0 to make a 2500/250 with the goal of mileage in an hd truck, knowing not everybody needs to tow 20K.

TRX-4 Tom - great point. The 5.0 Cummins would have been an excellent mid-level option for a 2500 or 3500.

It would have to be a cheaper option over the big diesels though. All 3 diesels offer good economy in the 2500 series trucks. But if someone wanted a Diesel and wanted to spend just a few grand for it, yes it could work.

Seems like with all that tech it should produce more power. VVT/DI/VVL/11.2 comp. Does it require prem fuel for that 11.2 comp? Other makes are still using push rod v8s getting same or more power in much simpler designs. I wonder what mpgs will be like with this tank being the qx80 with the same motor and trans only gets 14/20 in a 5600lb config.

TRX-4, It is proven. The 5.6L Endurance has been offered in the full sized Infinity for a few years now. FWIW the current 5.6L the Titan runs outperforms the 5.7L Hemi in the RAM. I would think the gas XD slots right about where the Ford max payload max tow sits as well as GM's top rated 1500's. Difference is the XD is stronger just about everywhere as it is not just parts dropped onto a 1500 chassis.

Skeeter, they said that it was designed for 87 unleaded. This is why I suspect HP is lower than expected. The high CR would likely require more retard in the timing to prevent detonation. My guess is this is designed to be a work engine and not a high performance engine

Sorry i didn't see the reg fuel part but that just means it can run fine on reg. At Acura all are motors are now designed to run on reg fuel but prem is recommended for best f/e and performance.

Lou,
Nissan is not building the XD Titan to be a direct competitor of any HD.

I also support your view that the 5.6 XD Titan will have the same tow.

It will be interesting to see what the FE is for this new V8.

Like most all of Nissan's engines I do expect this engine to be a great engine.

What would be funny is if this gasoline engine is averaging better than the 15.6mpg that the aluminium F-150 2.7 EcoThirst is attainng. Imagine a gasoline engine over twice the size in a pickup that weighs several thousand pounds doing this.

I did not apologize for referring to Fiats trucks as Fiats. That was a dishonest post by a dishonest person. Probably a fanatical Fiat fan who cant deal with the fact that he or she is fan of what is now Fiat.

The current Titan 5.6 does not outperform my 14 5.7/8-speed/3.92 Ram Sport.

@Big Al as long as the US greenback maintains its current muscle, fuel will be cheap here in America. When pump gas is cheap, people quit worrying about FE so much. Simple fact.

Like you, I think that Nissan's new gas engine should be sweet!

@TRX-4 Tom

Man, you re the one making the ignorant comments just to bash something other than your precious Ram, not me.

Also, this is not a case of Variable Valve Timing(VVT) versus Variable Valve Lift (VVL). This is a case of one engine having only VVT with a fixed duration like what is in the Hemi versus the Nissan 5.6L that will have VVT and VVL. This not only allows you to alter the timing of the valve, but also it's duration. You can essentially tune the valves to stay open longer at lower rpms which allows for more air to enter the cylinder creating more power at lower rpms than an engine with just VVT can provide. So yeah, just looking at peak number and judging it on that is pretty ignorant, and that is before even talking about the fact that adding higher octane fuel like the midgrade that is required on the Hemi would probably increase the Nissan 5.6L's output since it can also alter it's ignition timing.

I wonder if this engine will get better fuel economy than the 19 mpg the Ecodiesel gets?

If the FE is decent...and if the torque band is broad-i.e high % of peak torque at 3000 RPM or less, it will be a great engine.

I look forward to it.

The gas powered Titan would be of more interest for me but I still think the best overall HD gas engine is GM's 6.0.

No matter how well the XD 5.6 performs it won't have anywhere near the capacity the HD's do.

Big Al from Oz - it doesn't matter who Ram targets with the Titan XD. What matters is which trucks buyers will compare it to.
I'm already comparing it to 1/2 tons and 3/4 tons. Any truck guy will. It comes up short compared to HD's and cargo wise comes up short to 1/2 ton's too.

What is the price?

I'm betting HD diesel territory.

oops meant to say Nissan not Ram. Freudian slip since Diaz is ex-Ram.

In 2007 Toyota made the 5.7 which is almost the same power wise to this motor. Would think Nissan could have improved a bit on those numbers with this amount of technology? I'm thinking they left a lot or potential power behind in order to get the best possible economy. Aftermarket go fast companies will be on this quickly.

I am so disappointed in this truck. Seemed like a great idea, but failed execution. Just nothing about this truck excites me at all.

@Beebe

I agree. This won't be a total blunder like the T100 was but it will be a big question mark in pickup truck history. It's not enough of one thing to make it stand out other than being a niche product for a small audience.

If the gasser has a payload around 24-2500lbs then it will do well. Tundras are ugly, Fords aluminum body is easily dented and GM is gutless.

@Dale Milner Gutless?

Have you driven a GMC Sierra 6.2 V8 with 8sp auto trans yet? Just curious.

Given the displacement and the tech inside this engine one would think that should be a 400hp/400lb ft of torque engine. This must be where they decided to stop on tuning. Not competing with the 5.7L Hemi Ram 1500 but numbers that compete with the 5.7L iforce. Then they would have the Titan XD pick up from that point which they see as not competing with the Big 3. So they remain an alternative to the Big 3.

The use of the 7 speed with matching rev
is an indication that this is going to be the race truck
of the Titan line up probably 5600 lbs +- 200 lbs
and gas mileage will be up

I also heard that the Frontier will be aluminum with a 300 hp v6
which would suggest the Titan will be as quick as it meaning quite a fast spot truck I doubt Nissan will enable it to tow more than 9500 lbs as the XD covers the towing of heavy loads.
Nissan will go for the sportier side of the equation for sure they always do.

The Ram 5.7 engine fails with weight cast iron anchors are something out of the 60's era
That is something Ram should work on I am surprised that it has not changed that yet.
Where the Titan XD shines is what it was built to do
slot in between a 1/2 ton and a 3/4 ton . Though the XD is a 1500 truck it has been outfitted with some HD content.
it can tow heavy trailers without being bone jarring to drive .
the Regular Titan with the NEw gas engine and 7 speed transmission will certainly have better mpg.
as well it will have a lighter frame than the XD so should weigh in about the same as the F150.
5500 lbs. with 2 extra gears and rev matching it should prove to be quite lively .more so than the current Titan.
top end may be 130 mph as well

I had a Titan with the bigger gear ratio, I know have a hemi ram. While I like my ram better overall I have to say it feels way slower then my Titan did, the Titan was down right fast for a truck especially in the lower rpm range of which is where most people drive.

I had a Titan with the bigger gear ratio, I know have a hemi ram. While I like my ram better overall I have to say it feels way slower then my Titan did, the Titan was down right fast for a truck especially in the lower rpm range of which is where most people drive.

Face??...are you really that naïve?? The Hemi was on the Ward's 10 Best Engines list for 2003 through 2007, and again in 2009. That's no failure brother!

This heavy duty talk of the XD makes me laugh. The frame doesn't look any beefier than the Frame on my new F150. Just because it weighs 7,000-8,000Lbs doesn't automatically make it stronger. Definitely not close to a 3/4 ton either. These trucks looks pretty beefy in person. Mostly due to long nose I think along with crew cab 6.5ft bed. This new 5.6 should be a good engine. Really its just playing catch up though and barely doing so considering next year we will see a 10 speed on fords and maybe GM too. Not to mention the current 8 speeds on the market already. GM 6.2 will out perform this 5.6 same with the 3.5L ecoboost which is top of the list for broad torque and is expected to be updated soon. Poor Nissan this is a tough industry.

This heavy duty talk of the XD makes me laugh. The frame doesn't look any beefier than the Frame on my new F150. Just because it weighs 7,000-8,000Lbs doesn't automatically make it stronger. Definitely not close to a 3/4 ton either. These trucks looks pretty beefy in person. Mostly due to long nose I think along with crew cab 6.5ft bed. This new 5.6 should be a good engine. Really its just playing catch up though and barely doing so considering next year we will see a 10 speed on fords and maybe GM too. Not to mention the current 8 speeds on the market already. GM 6.2 will out perform this 5.6 same with the 3.5L ecoboost which is top of the list for broad torque and is expected to be updated soon. Poor Nissan this is a tough industry.

@ face Mark my words the regular titan will not weigh same as F150. The 5500Lbs you mention is on a fully equipped platinum 4x4 crew cab. I have a loaded XLT crew 4x4 with 3.5 EB and it weighs around 5,100Lbs. That huge moon roof and all the other gadgets bring curb weight up significantly. The average F150 people are buying is weighing bottom 5,000s and even under. XD is more than 2k Lbs more than F150 when comparing top trim levels. Doubt the regular titan will loose 2,000Lbs from XD. Nissan just doesn't have the budget or market for their truck to weigh less.

Jerame - The non XD Titan will be far lighter. Different and lighter frame, different rearend, different suspension...

Add that in with the only weights that we have seen for the XD are for the Cummins equipped ones.

Nissan tends to underate their engines. The Gen 1 Titan put up similiar numbers to the F150s 5.4L but walked all over it in performance.