[OnTheWrongSide]

Hi from Down under.....RHD Titan!

Firstly, sorry in advance for the inevitable Australian spelling and units…I’ll try to be properly US forum friendly. And sorry also for the long post…..

So in summary, I’m looking into buying a Titan from the states and importing it to Oz. This is possible but import regulations mean it will be expensive due to the combination of having to convert to right hand drive, and the fact there is only 1 company in Oz who is approved to do so  There’s only 1 Titan in the country at the moment, an 05 crew cab

By way of background, I have a serious Nissan sickness and have imported a few of them from Japan to Oz over the years, this is my first one from the US though. I’m no mechanic but am happy taking on pretty much any job on the vehicle (except auto trans or diff) as I’ve learned pretty much everything else working on my race car over the years.

So anyway, to the point. The conversion and import will cost more than the purchase price so I’m looking for late model and high spec. Also, I won’t often need to move more than 2 people but do need space for gear and the dogs so I’m only looking at the King Cab model (which also rules out the new series). That probably sounds crazy but it’s worth keeping in mind cars cost about double in Oz vs the states so it’s not that much more expensive than local options, plus I enjoy something different.

So, I understand top spec in King Cab is Pro 4x (no SL)?
From there it might have a “luxury pack” Luxury package “including Nissan navigation system with 5.8-inch color display and USB connectivity, streaming audio via Bluetooth, leather-appointed seating, heated driver and front passenger seats, four-way power front passenger seat, memory: mirrors, pedals & driver seat “
And also premium utility pack (were any sold with both packs or was it one or the other) “including Rockford Fosgate premium audio system with 10-inch subwoofer and center speaker, Homelink Universal Transceiver, rear overhead console, power adjustable pedals, factory-applied spray-on bedliner, utili-track channel system with four adjustable tie-down cleats, tailgate area lighting & 120 volt power outlet, heated extendable tow mirrors”
I also understand there is a “big tow pack” but I don’t think it’s necessary as I’ll not tow more than 2500kg (5,500lb) and would rather have the long diff to give fuel consumption a chance

So the trick for me would be finding a ’14 or ’15 Pro 4x in good condition with both packs but I have found few or no examples online with that combination

The stuff that matters to me from the spec list are:
Heated seats – it gets below freeing overnight where we are so heated seats are a great addition. But looks like I need luxury pack for these
Auto headlights (who’s got time to turn them on manually?)
Tow bar; I don’t know if these are standard, what plug you guys use and whether the ball is the same as Oz (we use a 50mm ball). I can always sort this locally if I need to
Cruise control (not sure if they all have this), again I can fit locally if I need to, I did on another car I have
Side steps and a hard bed cover would be nice.
Sunroof would be good too
Heated mirrors would be very helpful, what spec do I need for that?

Stuff that doesn’t matter to me:
Sat nav (won’t work here and I use my phone anyway), stereo (I’ll replace it with something that speaks Aussie, differences in frequencies etc), rear view camera (nice but I can install one if it doesn’t come with it)
Electric seats, we have to swap driver’s side in the truck and in any case it’s not that hard to slide a seat

So….what is my odds of finding a good truck spec’ed like that? And if not, the real question is how easy is it to up-spec options (eg is the truck wired for seat heaters and I’d just need the seats and switches?). And is there any other options/specs I should look for?

Any assistance appreciated....and yes feel free to try and sell me a late model KC if you have one to move

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

BTW for interest sake, this is the stable the Titan’s being added to:

R32 Skyline GTR Race Car that I use for circuit racing and rally (the Titan’s most important job will be to lug this around)

W34 Stagea with extensive mods (manual conversion, replaced 2.5l with 3l engine, big turbo, suspension work etc) Makes about 600hp. This is what I’ve been towing with for about 10 years and it does a reasonable job but is ready for replacement with something a little more serious.

Leaf. You guys have these too, right, but they are very rare in Oz, less than 200 sold over the years. We’ve been racing this in the NSW Hillclimb champs and are leading this year.

They call this a Cima in Japan but a pretty much identical car (different engine) was sold there as Q45. This is awesome on the highway, I work 300klm (sorry 200 miles) from home which I do once a week and this is like driving a lounge chair

March Super Turbo. This awesome little guy runs a 900cc engine with a turbo AND super charger and sounds like a cow on boost. Just for fun, only 2 of these in Oz and they are both off the road (I killed the engine…..)

I’ve also got an 88 navara (I think you guys call them hardbody) ute which will also move on to its next owner once the Titan arrives. I do love it but not enough to have ever taken a pic of it....

 

[FishnAlaska]

With the Pro4x you will automatically get the big tow package, which is also known as the premium utility package. The Pro4x will also include the tow bar and a 7 pin pug in the back. The ball will not be included (we use a 2" ball typically). Cruise control also comes standard on all but the S model. The luxury package should include heated seat, heated mirrors, reverse camera. Sun roof is hard to find, but available. Steps are a dealership add on item, so you would have to find one with them on it already or source, same with the hard bed cover. Here is a good link to see what comes standard and with what package on the Pro4x, or any other model. 2015 Nissan Titan Specifications, Pricing, Photos - Motor Trend

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

Awesome thanks for the quick and clear response and the link....the web makes things so much easier to research from here but you never really know which sites you can trust, esp when they have contradictory results

Looks like I'll need to keep looking for a Pro 4x with Luxury pack and the rest will be pretty much right, even the tow ball (we generally use 50mm = 2"). If I get a sunroof so be it (can live without it) and I can always add steps and cover (either genuine or aftermarket) if necessary.

 

[FishnAlaska]

Cars for Sale: Certified 2015 Nissan Titan in PRO-4X, Indiana PA: 15701 Details - Truck - Autotrader

 

[Jerry Helton 2]

Welcome my brother from down under! I live in Nashville Tennessee. I'll just give you a little history on a Titan. If you do get one , at least make sure it's an 08 or newer. I would recommend a 10 or newer. By 09 they finally fixed ALL the weak links.The Pro 4 X is going to be a little pricey. The LE is going to be pricey also. Of course you'll get all the bells and whistles on these trucks. I think you'll find the SE will satisfy your needs whether it's a 4 WD or 2 WD. I'd flip a quarter between the big tow or a standard Titan. I just don't like the big ugly mirrors that the big tow comes with. No matter what you are going to buy, you can NEVER go wrong buying a Titan. Welcome to the club.

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

Thanks Jerry for the welcome, and the warning on the earlier models. While poking around here I saw a few things mentioned that had been changed/improved over the years, and in any case because it will cost me 30k to convert the truck to right hand drive there is no point buying a cheaper truck in the first place.

Oh and that link is interesting FishingAlsaka...because the only '14-15 King cab Pro4x with Luxury pack was here: (Car Gurus) and is the same actual truck you posted; it got me concerned that I was looking for an unusual spec which might make it both hard to find and pricey. And therefore I wanted to make sure I understood the various specs properly.....I hate hunting unicorns!

 

[ninnemannk]

Welcome to the group! You don't see too many King Cab fully loaded Pro-4X. But good luck on the hunt! Maybe keep your options open to looking at some Crew Cab.

 

[1AAuto.com]

Welcome to the site
Tony :hi:

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

Thanks for the welcome guys. So far I'm still poking around researching problems/common repairs and anything I should add to the truck before it leaves your shores (eg rear cover, steps, bullbars) because shipping would be a killer on large items.

Will be buying in the next few weeks though, and I'll keep the group updated on the work involved to drive on the wrong side....

 

[TX8STEP]

I drove Toyota trucks for 13 years, and I have to say my Titan is awesome. It seems that every weakness of the Titan has an amazing upgraded fix. It is at a small price of course!��

 

[TX8STEP]

The big tow mirrors grow on you, but I definitely prefer the 3.36 gears that come with the tow package. Who cares about gas prices? It's $1.90 for now anyways!

 

[Smccarty3]

What do they do about the interior, when they switch to right hand drive? My understanding is the titan is only sold in America, so there wouldn't be any production parts for the swap, unless they pull from a similar vehicle and make it work. Sorry if it's a dumb question, but I guess for 30k maybe it's custom. Kudos to you for taking it on. I paid 31k for a new 15 cc sv, so I hope it works out for you with that kind of investment. That aside this is my second titan, I had an 06 before this and just love these trucks. The only downfall I have found is aftermarket support is lacking compared to domestic vehicles here. The exhaust manifolds will eventually Crack, so maybe you might want to look into some jba headers, but you would have to get uprev and tune to go with them. If your buying from a dealer (I'm not sure if that's the case), I'm sure you could have them install step bars and tonnoue before shipping (maybe if it doesn't have them already you could get them to throw them in).

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

lol $1.90, I guess you mean per gallon, right? It's currently about $1.25/litre here or about $5 per gallon.....

What do they do about the interior, when they switch to right hand drive? My understanding is the titan is only sold in America, so there wouldn't be any production parts for the swap, unless they pull from a similar vehicle and make it work. Sorry if it's a dumb question, but I guess for 30k maybe it's custom. Kudos to you for taking it on. I paid 31k for a new 15 cc sv, so I hope it works out for you with that kind of investment. That aside this is my second titan, I had an 06 before this and just love these trucks. The only downfall I have found is aftermarket support is lacking compared to domestic vehicles here. The exhaust manifolds will eventually Crack, so maybe you might want to look into some jba headers, but you would have to get uprev and tune to go with them. If your buying from a dealer (I'm not sure if that's the case), I'm sure you could have them install step bars and tonnoue before shipping (maybe if it doesn't have them already you could get them to throw them in).

Yep the conversion to right hand drive is the super expensive thing; I've imported other cars to Oz from Japan and they have been under $5k to comply with Oz standards, this is 6 times that....

I don't have a full list of exactly what they do in the conversion at this stage, I guess I will collect the details as we go. They've only done 1 Titan before, here are their after pics to weird you guys out

While things like the dash and controls come to mind first, there would be way more complex engineering, I assume they cut out and replace the firewall with something RHD (maybe Navara), move ABS, Brake Master Cylinder, Steering Rack to the other side too, and of course anything that is now in the way of them gets moved somewhere. All the wiring under the dash has to be on the opposite side so lots of swapping over to be done.....

 

[Smccarty3]

Yeah that appears to be quite a job. It looks good though. Good luck in your endeavour.

 

[Blackbeauty]

One suggestion I might have is to look for "dealer demo" trucks. They are trucks that the dealer options up to the hilt and either he, his wife, his kid or some dealership higher up drives for a limited amount of mileage. 99% of the time they max out the options as they want to use the ride as a cushy personal vehicle while they have it as well as a showpiece to try to sell vehicles (but mostly because they are pampered little babies who want all the creature comforts...). :lol: They usually come with somewhere less than 3500 miles on them and are STILL sold as new vehicles with FULL warranty. They come with reduced (from new retail) pricing... but may also come with some minor wear and tear. As mentioned before, these are usually top end vehicles, and you may only find the Crewcab options in this category. But I assure you, they will have every option available (usually).

I know this because my current truck and my previous car were both dealer demos that the dealership was very willing to drop considerable money off sticker to get rid of. After wrangling a deal, I showed them all the items I wanted fixed/replaced and in both cases, they were more than willing to do so to sell the vehicle. Some of the repairs included repaint of certain scratched body panels, so nothing is beyond requesting if you really want it.

Good luck, and keep us updated. That RHD interior just looks... strange. :lol:

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

Thanks mate, good call, we have the same thing with demos here too.

One question to you guys; what is/are the best site/s for buying a Titan; I'm having a lot of trouble finding a late model king cab with leather....but I don't know if I'm searching in the wrong places.....

 

[SwedeTitan]

Hi and welcome from another non U.S. member
Just wondered if you have considered a long wheelbase crew cab? It might be easier to find a full equipped one than a king cab. The bed is 50 cm longer than the short one and if you fold up the crew cab rear seats you get a large storage area.

Awesome car collection btw. What a brutal sleeper that Stagea has to be.

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

Yeah mate the Stagea is awesome. looks like a volvo, goes like a modified GTR But she is getting a bit old and tired so it was time to upgrade, plus the Titan should take the towing weight much better.....sadly they both get about the same MPG when towing though....

And thanks for the idea about LWB...I'm discussing price on a KC at the moment but if that falls through I might go back to a LWB CC, that would work out the same in the end

 

[OnTheWrongSide]

So another quick question for those with local knowledge....is there a reputable company that does pre-purchase inspections?

The truck I'm looking at is "Nissan Certified" and 2015 so quite new, but I suspect it's the dealer who "certified" it and I'd rather get a 3rd party to check it out. State is PA if that makes a difference?