From Car and Driver, I have not seen this here yet. Perhaps I missed it?
http://www.caranddriver.com/carnews/14484/diesel-or-v-6-for-nissan-titan.html
Diesel or V-6 for Nissan Titan? - Car News
Nissan is trying to map the proper powertrains to each segment.
BY ALISA PRIDDLE, January 2008
The pieces are slowly coming together to put a diesel in the Nissan Titan full-size pickup, but the move still does not appear imminent. In fact, a V-6 gasoline engine for the large pickup could be a quicker, more viable alternative, we are told.
Globally, Nissan is creating a new engineering division within its LCV (light commercial vehicle) unit to develop diesel engines for light-duty trucks, and North American executives have said for years it is a move the automaker must consider for the Titan to be a true player in the truck market. It also is necessary to broaden its lineup with heavy-duties, an area where Nissan wants to be a serious player in the U.S. in the future, much like it is with light-commercial vans in other parts of the world.
“We’re studying it (diesels for the Titan),” Larry Dominique, Nissan North America vice president of product and advanced planning, told Car and Driver in a recent interview.
Obstacles Remain Many
Cost has been one factor in delaying the move to date. Another factor is that while Nissan is developing oil burners in-house and has access to diesels through its partnership with Renault, none are appropriate for large trucks. Negotiations continue with suppliers to supply a larger engine. And, as the current generation Titan is about halfway through its lifecycle, the pickup must wait for the next generation to add a diesel.
As Nissan continues to study which powertrain alternatives are best suited for different vehicle segments, Dominique says it has concluded that diesels make more sense than gasoline-electric hybrids for body-on-frame trucks. But he recognizes that more women buy SUVs and crossovers and they may not want to line up between landscape trucks to get diesel fuel. He speculates this may be one reason General Motors has opted to hybridize its full-size SUVs, rather than fit them with diesels.
Nissan is still on track to introduce diesels in the U.S. with the Maxima sedan in 2010 and will not stop there, says Tom Lane, corporate vice-president in charge of product planning and strategy for the parent company.
The Infiniti luxury lineup also will get diesels down the road in some markets, such as Europe. Lane says he thinks it would be the right thing to do in North America, as well, but he is not convinced there will be the volume of sales to warrant it. The automaker is “at the edge of decision,” he says.
As for diesel-electric hybrids in the future, their high cost likely will make them prohibitive for all but commercial buyers in Europe and Japan, Lane says.
V-6 from Pathfinder Good Fit for Titan
Meanwhile, another intriguing idea under study is putting the 4.0-liter, 266-hp V-6 VQ gasoline engine from the Pathfinder and Xterra into the Titan. The idea holds merit, Dominique says, and is viable with current high fuel prices and the emergence of more V-6s in the full-size truck market.
“It could be done within two years,” he says. It would not be for all cab configurations. Crew cabs would continue to need V-8 power.
In the future, Nissan is looking at whether consumers want their vehicles to sacrifice some performance for better fuel efficiency. An acceptable tradeoff could be slightly slower 0-to-60-mph acceleration to increase fuel economy by 15 percent by tweaking the gear ratios in the transmission and how the electronic throttle shift points are mapped.
Dominique notes when high gasoline prices affected vehicles with V-8s, the segment in which the Infiniti M35 and M45 play never recovered.
http://www.caranddriver.com/carnews/14484/diesel-or-v-6-for-nissan-titan.html
Diesel or V-6 for Nissan Titan? - Car News
Nissan is trying to map the proper powertrains to each segment.
BY ALISA PRIDDLE, January 2008
The pieces are slowly coming together to put a diesel in the Nissan Titan full-size pickup, but the move still does not appear imminent. In fact, a V-6 gasoline engine for the large pickup could be a quicker, more viable alternative, we are told.
Globally, Nissan is creating a new engineering division within its LCV (light commercial vehicle) unit to develop diesel engines for light-duty trucks, and North American executives have said for years it is a move the automaker must consider for the Titan to be a true player in the truck market. It also is necessary to broaden its lineup with heavy-duties, an area where Nissan wants to be a serious player in the U.S. in the future, much like it is with light-commercial vans in other parts of the world.
“We’re studying it (diesels for the Titan),” Larry Dominique, Nissan North America vice president of product and advanced planning, told Car and Driver in a recent interview.
Obstacles Remain Many
Cost has been one factor in delaying the move to date. Another factor is that while Nissan is developing oil burners in-house and has access to diesels through its partnership with Renault, none are appropriate for large trucks. Negotiations continue with suppliers to supply a larger engine. And, as the current generation Titan is about halfway through its lifecycle, the pickup must wait for the next generation to add a diesel.
As Nissan continues to study which powertrain alternatives are best suited for different vehicle segments, Dominique says it has concluded that diesels make more sense than gasoline-electric hybrids for body-on-frame trucks. But he recognizes that more women buy SUVs and crossovers and they may not want to line up between landscape trucks to get diesel fuel. He speculates this may be one reason General Motors has opted to hybridize its full-size SUVs, rather than fit them with diesels.
Nissan is still on track to introduce diesels in the U.S. with the Maxima sedan in 2010 and will not stop there, says Tom Lane, corporate vice-president in charge of product planning and strategy for the parent company.
The Infiniti luxury lineup also will get diesels down the road in some markets, such as Europe. Lane says he thinks it would be the right thing to do in North America, as well, but he is not convinced there will be the volume of sales to warrant it. The automaker is “at the edge of decision,” he says.
As for diesel-electric hybrids in the future, their high cost likely will make them prohibitive for all but commercial buyers in Europe and Japan, Lane says.
V-6 from Pathfinder Good Fit for Titan
Meanwhile, another intriguing idea under study is putting the 4.0-liter, 266-hp V-6 VQ gasoline engine from the Pathfinder and Xterra into the Titan. The idea holds merit, Dominique says, and is viable with current high fuel prices and the emergence of more V-6s in the full-size truck market.
“It could be done within two years,” he says. It would not be for all cab configurations. Crew cabs would continue to need V-8 power.
In the future, Nissan is looking at whether consumers want their vehicles to sacrifice some performance for better fuel efficiency. An acceptable tradeoff could be slightly slower 0-to-60-mph acceleration to increase fuel economy by 15 percent by tweaking the gear ratios in the transmission and how the electronic throttle shift points are mapped.
Dominique notes when high gasoline prices affected vehicles with V-8s, the segment in which the Infiniti M35 and M45 play never recovered.
