NISSAN TITAN PRO 4X

LLooking for a macho towing machine? If so, you’ll love the Nissan Titan.

The bold grille, aggressive all-terrain tires, and rumble of the Endurance direct-fuelinjected, all-aluminum 5.6L V-8 tip off everyone to the towing capabilities of this halfton. While the brand might be Japanese, Titans are built with American muscle in Canton, Mississippi.

The 2018 Titan Pro 4X towed our 6,500-pound boat/ trailer with ease. Even while towing, it displayed headsnapping acceleration. The seven-speed automatic transmission with tow/haul mode helps keep the engine revving in its power band and minimizes gear hunting on grades.

We were pleased with the ride. It proved comfortable whether towing or not, and the 600 pounds of tongue weight from our boat/trailer barely deflected the rear end. The easily activated four-wheel-drive system helped us pull up on a slippery ramp.

The big, extendable sideview mirrors on our Titan integrated turn signals, auto dimming, and heating to defeat frost and fogging. Each has an independently adjustable conventional mirror, plus a wideangle mirror at the bottom. This sounds like a great idea, but it’s sometimes confusing and takes some getting used to. Adding to the safety factor are blind-spot warning and rearcross traffic-alert systems.

Inside our Titan Pro 4X crew cab we found a wealth of luxury appointments and high-tech features, including NissanConnect services, intelligent around-view camera monitors and trailer-light function check.

Among all the trucks in this group, the Titan had one of the best sound systems. The Rockford-Fosgate premium audio system featured 12 speakers with a subwoofer under each front seat. Now that’s music you feel.

On the more practical side, we loved the LED under-rail truck-bed lighting system for loading and accessing gear in the pre-dawn hours, which is when much of our tow testing began each day.