Nissan Titan 2021 Review

All right, so with your best Don LaFontaine (the famous movie trailer announcer) voice, say: "In a world where all of the light-duty pickups are thoroughly modern and highly customizable, there was one that stood up to resist the change: the Nissan Titan." Catchy, right? You'd watch that, or at least catch it when it came out on Netflix. Alas, the 2021 Titan might be better as a movie than a pickup you'd want to buy.

Although Nissan rolled out a variety of updates last year, this is still pretty much the same truck that hit the streets back for the 2016 model year. So it's not surprisingly behind the times in regards to capability and configuration flexibility. True, a V8 comes standard, but you don't get any choice if you want higher fuel economy. Also, the Titan's towing and hauling numbers, while decent, are quite a ways off from what you can get from a Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150 or Ram 1500.

Overall, it's hard to recommend the Titan considering how good the competition is. But you can learn more by reading our in-depth Expert Rating.

Which Titan does MatoCar recommend?

The 2021 Nissan Titan is available in five trims: S, SV, Pro-4X, SL and Platinum Reserve. There are two cab sizes to choose from: the extended cab (Nissan calls this the King Cab) and the crew cab. The extended cab is only available in S, SV and Pro-4X trims, while the crew cab is available in all five trim levels. Every Titan is powered by a 5.6-liter V8 (400 horsepower, 413 lb-ft of torque) and paired to a nine-speed automatic transmission. The feature highlights include:

S The base S starts off with:

• 18-inch wheels
• Heated side mirrors
• Two USB ports (one standard USB and one USB-C)
• 8-inch touchscreen display
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration
• Six-speaker stereo with satellite radio
• Trailer sway control (helps stabilize a towed trailer while driving)

The S also comes with Nissan's Safety Shield 360 suite of driver aids. It includes:

• Automatic emergency braking (warns if a front impact is imminent and applies the brakes if you don't respond in time)
• Rear automatic braking (brakes if sensors detect an imminent collision with an object behind the vehicle)
• Blind-spot monitoring (alerts you if a vehicle in the next lane over is in your blind spot)
• Rear cross-traffic alert (warns you if a vehicle behind you is about to cross your vehicle's path while in reverse)
• Lane departure warning (alerts you if the vehicle begins to drift out of its lane)
• High-beam assist (automatically turns the high beams on and off)

SV The SV trim is similar to the S but has:

• Front tow hooks (with 4WD)
• Adaptive cruise control (adjusts speed to maintain a constant distance between the vehicle and the car in front)

You can also get the SV with the following packages:

SV Convenience package

• Parking sensors
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• Automatic dual-zone climate control
• Remote engine start
• Keyless ignition and entry
• Heated front seats
• Power-adjustable driver's seat
• Power-sliding rear window
• 9-inch touchscreen display with navigation
• Extra USB and power ports

SV Tow package

• Tow mirrors
• Trailer brake controller (allows adjustment of a trailer's brakes from the cab)
• Class IV receiver hitch and four-pin/seven-pin harness connector

SV Utility package

• Cargo tie-down system
• 120-volt power outlet in the bed
• Rear bumper step
• Electronically locking tailgate
• Automatic wipers

Pro-4X The off-road-focused Pro-4X features a number of upgrades that include:

• Most features from the SV Convenience package
• Standard four-wheel drive
• LED headlights
• Bilstein off-road shock absorbers
• Electronic locking rear differential
• Hill descent control
• Two-speed transfer case with 4-Hi and 4-Lo
• Radiator skid plate
• Spray-in bedliner

The Pro-4X's packages include:

Pro-4X Convenience package

• Leather upholstery
• Surround-view parking camera system (gives you a top-down view of the Titan and its surroundings for tight parking situations)
• Power-adjustable front passenger seat
• Heated front seats
• Power-adjustable heated steering wheel
• Driver-seat memory settings

Pro-4X Utility package

• Combines the SV Towing and Utility packages
• 12-speaker premium audio system

SL The SL loses the 4X's off-roading hardware but maintains most of its features. It also adds:

• Features from the Pro-4X Convenience package
• 20-inch chrome wheels
• Chrome exterior and interior trim
• Running boards

Platinum Reserve The top-of-the-line Platinum Reserve adds to the SL trim with features such as:

• Premium leather seating
• Wood trim on the dash, doors and steering wheel
• Leather-wrapped center console
• Heated and ventilated front seats
• Heated rear seats

Other Titan options include:

• Rear-seat entertainment system
• Panoramic sunroof
• Nissan's Titan Box in-bed storage