The final piece in Nissan's full-size pickup truck strategy has fallen into place: The half-ton Titan and Titan XD King Cab — known as the extended cab in many other pickups — is now being produced in Canton, Miss.
We recently had our first chance to get behind the wheel of a 2017 Titan XD Pro-4X King Cab equipped with the spunky 5.6-liter V-8 gas engine and found it to be a credible and energetic pickup.
There's plenty to like about the XD King Cab gas version, not the least of which is value: It can potentially save buyers several thousand dollars when compared to the crew-cab or diesel engine XD options. Our gas XD Pro-4X (base priced at $45,440) came with the Pro-4X Utility and Audio ($1,400), Pro-4X Convenience ($3,290) and Pro-4X Luxury ($1,510) packages for a total of $52,835 including destination.
We especially like the Pro-4X trim because it comes equipped with Bilstein shocks, which deliver a controlled ride during empty and loaded driving. They can handle off-road punishment as well.
We found the rear seats of the King Cab relatively comfortable and nicely reconfigurable for cargo, with both lockable under-seat storage and a foldout shelf to allow for a flat rear floor for awkwardly sized cargo or gear. The King Cab doors open a full 180 degrees with the help of a stout set of dual-pivot hinges that create a wide-mouth cab opening.
During our unofficial around-town empty fuel-economy testing, the XD's trip computer hovered around 14 and 15 mpg, depending on how much babying we did. Throttle response, even in this 6,660-pound pickup (we weighed it on a truck scale), was quick and energetic. We never had any trouble weaving through traffic, climbing hills or merging onto freeways. Interestingly, the lighter gas-equipped Titan XD King Cabs have gross vehicle weight ratings that are slightly lower than their diesel counterparts, but they offer much better payload numbers. Our test vehicle had a calculated payload capacity of 2,140 pounds. That alone will make the King Cab a more attractive choice to buyers who don't always need the larger seats a crew cab affords.
Wondering how the XD King Cab compares to the crew-cab version? We can shine some light on that. One of the competitors in our 2017 Monster Factory Off-Road Challenge was a diesel-equipped crew-cab Titan XD Pro-4X. It weighed almost 750 pounds more, had almost 600 pounds less payload capacity and cost almost $8,000 more. That could make the King Cab a for some buyers.
Here's a close-up look at the 2017 Nissan Titan XD Pro-4X King Cab and a few of its standout features.
Cars.com photos by Mark Williams
