Was he promoted or demoted?

Or does Nissan really want to have a serious and big tilt at the pickup market?

Time will tell. I have read that Nissan is going to expand it's Titan production capability to over 150 000 a year.

If this is Nissan's goal, then the other manufacturers better take notice. I'd then expect the XD Titan to be well positioned in pricing to expand it's footprint in the market.

I do know the new Navara is selling very well. I wonder if it could rival the Hilux. If you guys get an Americanised version of the Navara as the Frontier it could rock the boat.

Add this to Toyotas proposed increase in the Taco and GM's Colorado and Canyon proposed increase in production sort of makes my prediction regarding the lack of decent midsier in the US market of a few years ago look true......

Is this a promotion or demotion? Moving from Senior VP Sales in US, to VP of Truck Sales in US, MX and CA.

The NV2500 and 3500s are all over the place here. Lots of small businesses using them. The Transit Connect however is dominating the work minvan market. I can see Nissan using the XD as testing the water to add a true 2500 or 3500 Titan in the near future that will compete with the Big 3. When the Titan Debuted in 2004 it was every bit the equal or superior in many areas to the Big 3 1500s.

Nissan needs an actual small compact truck like the old days for people who do not want to drive a gigantor mobile .

The guy got replaced by a Canadian Reid Bigland at FCA and now got replaced by another Canadian Christian Meunier.

Either he can't handle the big stuff or he is expected to turn Titan into big stuff.

First order of business for this guy is to get rid of the stylist at Nissan!

I agree. Those stylist would be kicked out!!!!!

Watch Nissan become a much bigger player in the next few years. Diaz did great things for Ram for the short while he was in charge.

@ BAFO: Let's put it this way,Diaz has to report to the guy that took his place.IMHO,that was a demotion,and a stupid one.Diaz had nothing to work with.The frontier is ancient,the Titan did get backing from corporate,but who knows how well it would do.

Again,my opinion only,he should have been given 5 years to build up all new Nissan truck offerings.The commercial units are suffering from extremely bad looks,and again,old inefficient powertrains,just like the frontier.

At least he is responsible for the all new Titan XD.And again,how well it does is to be determined.They are coming out first with the high end trim lines,then the diesel will be offered all the way down to the barebones work trucks.That should help,and might just be what fleet buyers would want too.An open question.Anyways,the more,the merrier,and better to have more competition then less.It's in our favor.

Diaz and Nissan will do fine.

These Titans will take off in the beginning but slow quickly. Heavy incentives will be needed on them in year 2.

It sounds to me they want him to grow the truck side of Nissan. So far I think he is off to a nice start. The Titan looks way better than the F150. Adding the baby Cummins is a nice start. Just wish they put an engine brake in it! Now I can't wait to see how the non HD version of the Titan is.

Nissan full-size trucks haven't done fine in the past and I have no reason to believe they will start to now. XD is highly overrated by fanbois and dreamers.

A car show host here said the Titan was already behind the compitition when it was new in 2004.

psssssst! Nissan is dreaming if they think they could take on Ford, GM and Ram !

@Jack "host said Titan was behind" Let's break it down.

Here are some facts:

1. 32 valve alloy DOHC V8 standard--Titan yes, (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
2. Five sp Auto trans standard--Titan yes (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
3. Best standard towing--Titan yes (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
4. Four wheel disc brakes standard--Titan yes (Ford, GM, no)

Titan was way ahead of the competition on these key metrics back in 2004 when it first appeared.

The early Titans had a problem with a 3rd party's rear end components back then and some issues with a 3rd party vendors' disc brake pads. Apart from that the Titan was the truck with the best standard equipment by far.

Your local host needs to go to school, in my opinion!

Toxicmud,
How do we know the setup in which Fred Diaz is operating under?

I have been involved in projects where you don't report the your "superior" and report directly to the top of the food chain.

This could be the case if Nissan is attempting to position itself as a larger player in the market with it's pickups.

I would think this to be the case. I don't and can't see any logic in the allowance of Diaz to stay on if was demoted.

If you ever have worked on any significant projects or with the higher echelons of power you will know this.

Keeping a person of Diaz's influence in the organization with a demotion could spell disaster.

I'd say Diaz has been given a free reign to manage Nissan USA's trucks with no interference from anyone but the top.

Good call papajim.

@Supercliffy, if you think the Titan looks better than the F150 then you have bad eyes. Titan is SuperUgly. That's why those comments were made about there stylist. That's your opinion though.

I think the Titan looks better than the f 150 as well. The f150 is just ugly, it looks like a pope mobile with the huge green house and lowered belt line on the new models.

I don't think the new XD will make much of an impact. Aside from initial interest sales there's not much to keep it selling in large numbers. It's a niche vehicle and aside from the 5.0 Cummins it's a heavy, bulky vehicle with no real upside to a typical half ton. The initial mileage reports are not good either.

A simple increase in GVW would make it a lot more appealing to a half ton buyer but Nissan missed the mark as far as making a major impact.

I'd consider one if the loaded crew cab had a payload of 2000lbs+ at minimum. As it stands my 2015 Denali 1500 has about the same payload or even more than a comparable XD which really doesn't give me cause to go out and get one.

As far as the 5.0 advantage the TFL testing didn't show it to outrun an Ecoboost up the hill. Granted, diesel will perform without as much stress but is it really going to sway buyers in large numbers?

So far for me two big disappointments, A. 26 gallon fuel tank B. Styling. I would not buy it because of the small fuel tank alone. I want a real truck. Have to go Big Three.

4. Four wheel disc brakes standard--Titan yes (Ford, GM, no)'
---

Ummm. No, the 2004 F-150 had standard 4 wheel disc brakes. And for those playing along, F-150 debuted at the same show as the Titan and was built first. As for the other stuff on your list, I am aware of the context, Nissan launched a rotten truck with a decent motor.

Nissan's current light duty truck is far from competent and was the worst on the market. One which has, AFAIK, lost sales every year it's been on the market?

They completely and totally misjudged the market.

1) They had the most unrealistic sales expectations, 2) they had a most unrealistic range of cab/bed configurations, and 3) they completely underestimated their competition.

I don't know how you can consider the Titan to be anything other than a failure. It did not live up to Nissan's sales expectations in its first year, and it hasn't come anywhere near them ever since.

Furthermore, revenue from the Titan has not funded its ongoing development, Nissan has had to once again take money from elsewhere in the company to basically relaunch the Titan.

Will it be any better?

Why would you think it would be? What evidence is there? Reviewers are panning it right now including PUTC. What demonstrated level of competence has Nissan shown in this market? They misjudged the market in '04, and have done nothing since then and appear to misjudging it again. How could anyone look at that, "Hey, it's very likely that the next Titan will be much more successful"?

To play devil's advocate, the Titan will be more successful, but only by default.

Its kind of hard not to be when sales are in the tank. What did they sell around 700 Titans in all of November? smh. But papa jim is shilling for Nissan now.

The XD is supposed to be a HD fighter but its payload kills its towing, its got less payload than a lot of halftons and less that a true HD. Some say say but most people do not tow or haul and just ride around empty. Then why would they they buy a Titan XD?

I'll also say they still haven't provided anything or much on the non-XD. What are they hiding?

Nissan better pray that they didn't misjudge the market again or it will be 04 all over again.

As for low end grunt that papa jim loves to talk when he is backed intoa corner, but but has no experience or facts to back that up. Here it is losing speed but it was pedal to the floor and wasn’t even at its tow limit. Not impressed. The fact is when you accelerate on a hill what does that look like. This truck just seems like no fun when unloaded either. Slower than RAM ecodiesel which is an economy engine. Come on….

This truck is supposed to be able to tow over 12k lbs? Here it is at 9600lbs and cannot accelerate any further – that tells us on the same grade it wouldn’t be keeping its speed when fully loaded. Ford EcoBoost or Chevy 6.2L would tow this load and probably still have the "grunt" and room to accelerate.

http://tinyurl.com/z4ymmld

papa jim you were doing so well until your latched your hitch onto the Titan and Nissan

RJC - Unless a vehicle manufacturer has one line of vehicles the cost of R&D comes from across the board. How do you think the new aluminium F-150 was funded?

Gregory Stevens - The Titan will be a success due to the (non) segment it is targeting. I doesn't need to sell 20 000 XDs per month. If it sells 5 000 XDs per month the Big 3 will feel the pain.

Kyle - I think you will be surprised about the fuel tank. Remember don't look at EPA numbers to guess the range of a vehicle. A diesel will in real life offer 25% - 30% better range than a gasoline vehicle with the same size tank.

I'd bet it will travel as far as most 1/2 ton V8 gasoline pickups.

So--he now represents a new truck that's overweight, more expensive, has styling ripped off from it's competitor[s] and barely matches the F-150 in performance and capability? Good luck!!

Not sure about the 5.0. Wards Top 10 Engines award was just released. The Italian diesel beat out both GM's and the new Cummins. That 3.0L has now been a top 10 engine for 3 years in a row. Everyone thinks the Cummins will sell this truck, even Nissan. Otherwise they wouldn't release the Cummins before the gaser. I think Fiat is onto something.

@ RJC "Reviewers are panning it right now including PUTC."

What? All the reviews I've read and watched like the truck. It won Texas Truck of the year as well.

1. 32 valve alloy DOHC V8 standard--Titan yes, (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
Really? Toyota and Ford have had DOHC engines for decades.
GM and Ram are pushrod but GM had cam in cam so works similar but not as well as DOHC for timing changes.

2. Five sp Auto trans standard--Titan yes (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
Correct on that one. Everyone lese has 608 speeds and soon 10.
3. Best standard towing--Titan yes (Ford, GM, Ram, Toyota no)
Best standard towing means nothing without the cargo ratings to back it. No point bragging about towing a 33 ft camper when GCWR is maxed with 2 skinny passengers and a chihuahua in the cab.
4. Four wheel disc brakes standard--Titan yes (Ford, GM, no)
WTF?
GM was the last hold out and fixed that with the GMTK2XX trucks.

@PapaJim - was your list just a spoof of Nissan PR? I hope so since you tend to be a rather astute fellow.

Chad,

"If you swallow the research Nissan is pushing, there are many people who want more than a half-ton can provide without making the trade-offs one has to make when choosing a heavy-duty platform. The problem we see is that when you look at the numbers, it's a much heavier truck with less payload capacity than many half-ton configurations, and it's not strong enough to pull the heavier loads that heavy-duty powertrains can handle.

There's no question that as trailers and toys get bigger, the pickups that tow them will have to change, but up to this point it seems like half-tons have done a pretty good job. We wonder if there are that many people who need to tow or carry heavier loads than most normal-sized half-tons can manage. Or put another way, is there really a need for this "tweener" or is this new pickup an answer to a question that no one in the pickup-buying world is asking?

Take the Ford F-150 as an example. There are several crew-cab and SuperCab F-150 models that offer more payload capacity than the much heavier Titan XD. Yes, the stronger and heavier frame of the XD does offer more than 1,000 pounds of extra gross vehicle weight (ranging between 8,800 and 8,990), but then again the aluminum-bodied F-150 weighs at least 2,000 pounds less (in some configurations even more) than the XD. That means that the Ford's max payload in a four-door crew cab is often much greater than(depending on trim and engine) the bigger and heavier XD.

From our vantage point, the Titan XD, regardless of how capable or well built it is, could turn out to be a niche vehicle player in a segment that has a ton of bandwidth."

From: http://news.pickuptrucks.com/2015/12/for-whom-does-the-2016-nissan-titan-xd-roll.html

Generally the reviews have to be somewhat favorable so the press can get their hands on the press fleet. But there are some pretty negative stuff being written about the Titan. Also some very bad performance data on tfltruck.com from the first drives.

Lou BC, Pap Jim was talking about 04, so he was wrong about 2 of the 4 points. Correct one one. And the third point was the ole "best" "standard" trick. Best standard towing because they only had one engine. LOL.

Lou,
So, what overhead cam V8 pickup did Frod and Teeyota have in 2004?

Hmmm.............

I think you spank yourself to often.

When the Titan launched in 04, it met or beat the F150 in almost every single metric. On paper, it was the 1st real challenge to Detroit truck supremacy. Didn't play out that way in the real world. The axle and brake problems spooked a lot of buyers back onto the reservation. The available configurations weren't the big problem- in the last decade, regular cab trucks barely make up double digit percentages. Take rates on a smaller V8 option is tiny as well.
The Titan didn't do anything the competition didn't offer though, so there was little to convince buyers, aside from pricing. by contrast, the 1st gen Tundra offered really nice driving characteristics compared to contemporary offerings. Together offered 120k customers a year something slightly different, while avoiding going toe to toe with the big boys. I really think the 2nd Gen Tundra was a mis-step in that respect. The Titan XD PROMISED to do something similar, but is failing to bring it on paper. If all you do is match the competition on paper, no-one is coming to take a look.
Nissan has a big investment on the line, and that's why Diaz is in charge of Nafta trucks. I think the move was to separate/re-org trucks as a more clearly defined unit.

The future success of the HD rests on cost. The market will determine its value - my opinion is there are better value choices from the B3 and Yota

MrKnowitall,
The current (old) Titan is only representing around 35% of the pickup market. The new Titan will represent around 85% of the pickup market.

I would expect Nissan to at least triple numbers considering the current Titan is old and tired.

Being realistic the new Titan could easily represent the 150 000 full size pickups that Nissan want to move each year.

Add to that the next Frontier it is possible Nissan could easily move 200 000 pickups a year.

How many a year is Nissan selling now? 50-60 000?

This must be a concern to Frod, GM, Ram and even Toyota.

I do think Ford will take the biggest loss in number from Titan.

Let's say Nissan did sell 150 00 full size pickups, 100k half ton, 50k XDs. Ford could easily lose 30 000 aluminium F-150s and 20-25 000 Superdutys. Remember these Titans must poach customers.

I do know that Nissan did have a 2.8 Cummins Titan. Imagine if Nissan make a cheap small diesel Titan work truck?

Nissan is looking for much more volume. Some or all must lose out to make room.

Nissan will never get the numbers they want if they are "same as" players. The XD is a nice attempt to differentiate themselves and time will tell. They have to overcome loyalty with a compelling market case. Changing the loyalty of the US truck market is difficult at best - just look at all the fan boy postings on this and many other sites. Why by an XD to pull your favorite 5th wheel when you get much more capability with a similarly priced 3/4 ton of your favorite brand.

Grnzel1, Tom Lemon, Lou BC or whoever you are,
Who do you work for? You seem to have your noses out of joint. You work for the UAW and/or American and Canadian nationalists!

Try thinking beyond your own borders.

You should spend more time reading comments and interpreting what you read.

I love the Nissan XD. Awesome fuel economy with capability.

I do think this Titan will take sales away from the 3/4 ton segment.

I even think you’ll find Ford moves only 40 000 per month. and around 25-30 000 SuperDutys. Of the SuperDutys the lighter 250s are the biggest sellers for Ford.

Nissan is targeting this.

Ford should worry a little as it has the most to lose out of the Big Three with the new XD Titan.

If Nissan only sell 5 000 XDs a month I’d bet Ford will lose 2.5-3 000 SuperDutys and the rest will come from GM and Ram.

Ford current Friends & Family fire sale was really needed as the Silverado (even discounting the Sierra) outsells the aluminium F-150.

Big Al from Oz is thinking about buying a new Nissan full-size pickup truck when he moves to Florida in the next two years and that is the proof that is in the pudding that buyers are going to be all over this.

If I were in the market for a 3/4 truck, why would I buy and XD??? Any of the B3 have more capability than the XD.

@BAFO,

"Awesome fuel economy with capability."

The fuel economy is not awesome, not even close, and the capability is less than my regular F-150. No deal.

@BARF0 -
I missed the 2004 part BUT this isn't 2004.

We are 11 years down the road and EVERYONE has surpassed Titan. Actually the Titan did not surpass anyone when released in any parameters other than the features listed. I do not recall it winning any comparison tests. PUTC's oldest shootout was 2008 and the unchanged Titan was slaughtered. 2014 that same truck is still around.

It wasn't very reliable when first released and Nissan did not have much of a dealer presence in most regions where trucks rule supreme.

I've always marveled at the childish "we came out with this first" posts. Who cares because as you keep whining about, how does the vehicle function in the real world? It has been a sales failure even when compared to Tundra. If it was vastly superior it would of made inroads based on its real world manners.

2015 - The Titan XD is a bloated pig with a Big "C" on the door. It doesn't compete with anything. As a consumer I have multiple choices from both HD and LD ranks.

BARF0 - please stick to little trucks with little diesels. Leave the rest of the discussion to those who live with these full sized trucks on a daily basis. Any other commentary from you is just basso profundo flatulence.

I think you are losing your touch.......Lois.

It's getting harder and harder to sell Ford pickups, isn't it?

@Big Al f Oz- how are you coming up with those #s? With extended and crew choices, even w/o a longer wheelbase, the 1st gen truck has 90% of the 1/2 ton segment covered. So far, the XD is only confirmed for a Crew/6ft box configuration. With just 1500# payload on a high content 4wd, it leaves me cold.
Bump the GVW to 9900# (like the Van) and offer bags for the rear (maintaining ride and capacity) and you'd have something.
I do wonder what trans the XD gets- is it a diesel prepped version of the AB60 in the Tundra (or VDJ200) or is it the HUGE trans used behind the HO ISB in the Ram? I would bet its the former.

Dave Z,
I'm thinking you have the wrong dude with your comment dud.

You must pay attention to detail.

MrKnowitall,
Re-read my comment.

There are "things" called search engines, select google for example and then type in what you want to find out regarding most anything in the world.

I would use Nissan Titan in any search you are contemplating.

MrKnowitall,
I do believe I'm fairly accurate with my predictions in the US pickup market. I will state I'm not always correct or spot on.

But, the way I see it from the reams of information and data I've read regarding Nissan's move with the Titan indicates that Nissan is quite serious in taking on it's competitors.

For example, why would a business as large as the Renault Nissan Alliance make a decision to significantly ramp up production of a particular vehicle. This is at the expense of a vehicle they have already developed (Navara)?

It would of been far easier for Nissan to pump out new Navara or Frontiers for the US market than it is to develop a new full size pickup with a very limited market in comparison globally.

Think about it.

BARFO - agree with LOU_BC; stick with your own experience/knowledge - butt-ugly BT50 & dream on of owning a true American truck one day. Believe me, FORD are not one bit worried about Nissan's lame attempt & we'll see next year when F150's production is in full swing & new Superduty number's kick in.

But am amazed at your never-ending constant hard on anti-FORD posts even when it's common knowledge (or will never admit); FORD is the only one out of the Big 3 (Toymakers & Nissan don't warrant) pushing the envelope/re-setting standards that the rest will eventually follow (or maybe not due to lack of funds).

In the end - we all benefit with better built dependable trucks with more power, won't rust & equipped with latest modern conveniences.

Hey Lionel from Taihitii, or better still Robert!
How are you today?

Still stirring the pot I see. I do recall when you wanted me to aid you in attacking people on the net.

Why do you persist, are you a sick fnck?

Lionel come, LMOA, Cummins.
Ford is worried.

How much money did these aluminium F Series wunder trux cost?

Ford made a poor "D". Even in 2004 when Ford decided to use the EcoThirst engines.

15.6mpg out of a 2.7 litre engine. Really good.