Drove the Titan

[TresCrows]

Drove a Titan last Friday. As I said once, I am looking at trading my Tundra but was really wanting something smaller--not BIGGER. I just wanted to drive the Titan though. Look, it is a half ton--yep. It is a big truck--yep. It is very powerful--yep. It is also very fast--yeppers. In Popular Mechanics it was faster than all tested trucks. It is also a very refined truck but not as smooth and slick as the Tundra nor does it have the "car" feel of the Tundra. The Titan has all sorts of neat features and options and has Dana limited slip axles front and rear with Active Brake Traction Control and of course ABS.
Again, I hope not to start a flame war, but I have to say that the Titan is the King of the Hill for sporty half ton 4X4 trucks. It was faster in the PM test than the hemi Dodge. Let me say--the Titan will scoot and it also has a nearly 10,000 lb tow rating. The Titan is about 6 inches longer than the Tundra and about 3 inches wider and weighs a bit more as well although all the tested trucks in PM were over 5,000 lbs. as I remember.
If I get a new car, I sure like new cars but hate buying them, maybe it will be a Titan or maybe I just hang with the ol'Tundra. Y'all have a great day. J

 

[RET]

Just got myself the new-design '04 F150; Supercrew, Lariet trim back in mid-November. I absolutely LOVE it. Trescrow, go drive the new F150 and then post your comments on it vs. the Titan. I haven't driven a Titan (wasn't out in November), but I had already decided I wouldn't be interested anyway due to fear of bugs with it being a totally new vehicle from the ground up. Anyway, I loved the looks, both inside and out, of the new F150....I just got the 'bug' and had to go get it. Just for fun, I would like to hear comments from someone who has driven both (I know the F150 is slower, but don't know what other categories one may have an advantage over the other. Specs are VERY close to each other).
RET

 

[Tractors4u]

My wife is wanting a 4 door truck, 4 full doors, not the mini doors like most extended cabs have. We are looking at the 04 F150 and the Titan. I like the looks of the Titan but I have a feeling they are not going to compromise on price as much as I would like. They have an additional window sticker that says "Adjusted Market Price +$695.00". They are jacking up the price because they are a new model. Also I have a problem buying something that hasn't proven itself. I know Nissan builds a good car and truck but this is their first shot at a full size. The only thing other than the price that I did not like was the PLASTIC intake manifold! How well is plastic going to hold up to extreme heat? I know there are different kinds of plastics, but still plastic right on top of the engine? I have a hard enough time with the fact that most cars have plastic timing belts instead of chains. There is no dipstick for the auto transmission. The tube is capped. The salesman said the shop checks it when you bring it in for service. OK, I guess that is 2 things I didn't like about it.

 

[thcri]

Tres,

I got me the new F150 Crew. I had a 2001 F150 Crew and there is no comparison. The new ford has a nicer ride than most cars out there. It is much more stable than any other pickup I have ever owned. I get a new one every 2 or three years. I have had Dodges, Chevy's and Ford's and none of them compare to the New F150. I like the extra hp the 5.4 has and just starting out in town I am getting over 14 mpg. I got the automatic on floor with leather seats, pretty well decked out. My wife has a 2001 chevy suburban and now she would rather take my pickup to town.

I know nothing about the Titan to compare it.
murph

 

[RobertN]

I saw one today. It was the king cab short bed. It looked big, but the format of the bed was tiny(all the king/4-door short beds seem that way). The Titan does indeed have a pretty good overall list qualifications. . With FOUR trucks in the hotly contested full size 1/2 ton class, it ups the ante for sure. It'll be interesting to see how the the "Big-3" respond. It'll also be interesting to see Toyota's next move...

About beating the Hemi Dodge in a race though, it must have been driver error /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif Or maybe it was one of the made in Mexico Dodge's, like mine /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif

 

[RET]

I was looking for 4 true doors too....hence another reason for the '04 F150 supercrew instead of the Nissan.
I am shopping for a travel trailer right now. Wanted a vehicle that would 1) have no problem pulling a ~24-25ft trailer (5-6 klb), 2) plenty of inside room for my family of four on camping trips or just vacation and 3) have a nice, comfortable, good looking vehicle for driving to work or just running around town and 4) good safety features. This 04 F150 fits the bill on all accounts for me.
I think Nissan is coming out with a true 4-door model next year (?). Toyota should have their new 4 door Tundra on the market now. I think it was slated for roll out in Dec. or Jan(?).
RET

 

[RobertN]

The Titan was a full four door; I guess I meant crew cab, not king-cab.

Mostly my comment was about the big truck with crew cab, but an itsy bitsy tiny bed. I need, and use every bit of my full size long bed "bed"; the itsy bitsy bed would not work for me...

I have the Cummins/Dodge quad-cab long bed 4x4. I have a smaller cab, but do have that long bed. I would not have a truck without the full size bed, even though I am on the long side and manuevering in parking lots built for compact cars can be challenging some times.

I know the itsy bitsy bed fits most people fine; I just haul too much stuff, which is part of reason for the 2500 series truck too.

 

[TerryinMD]

RE: the plastic manifold.... I know that Dodge has been using them for a couple of years now. My neighbor had an unforeseen meeting with a walnut tree and the intake manifold cracked. It's a 2002 Dakota with the 4.7 V8. So, I think that plastic is being used in more places than normal.

Terry

 

[ns_in_tex]

All the ford truck buyers out there should be aware of what we learned on TV the other night. There are two 2004 F-150 trucks. New one with better frame & the previous models also. I think they are marked the Heritage. The Heritage was very bad on the crash test, while the new one was very good. I think they said the new one was about 600.00 more.

 

[thcri]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The only thing other than the price that I did not like was the PLASTIC intake manifold! How well is plastic going to hold up to extreme heat? I know there are different kinds of plastics, but still plastic right on top of the engine? )</font>

I guess I would not worry so much about the plastic. I am in the heating and air conditioning business and a lot of manufactures are using plastic for the drain pans on air conditioning coils. This coil sits right on top of the furnace. Carrier/Bryant/Payne use a propelyne plastic type liner on their secondary heat exchanger. PVC pipe is used to vent the furnaces. So I guess I wouldn't worry too much about the plastic.

PS: not sure of the actual terms on the plastic Carrier uses without getting the manuals out but you get what I am trying to say.

murph