CHICAGO — Nissan took the wraps off its Titan King Cab pickup truck and Mitsubishi introduced its Outlander Sport Limited Edition on Thursday. Those were two of the debuts from the first media day of the 2017 Chicago Auto Show.
Nissan has cemented itself as a serious player in the truck segment. They are looking to compete with best-selling vehicles such as the Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and RAM 1500. The Japanese automaker now has five pickup trucks in its current line-up.
“Our new baby is this King Cab, we’re very, very proud of it,” said Fred Diaz, division vice president and general manager, North America Trucks and Light Commercial Vehicles at Nissan North America, Inc. “The great thing about the King Cab is that its got clamshell side doors. It gives you 172 degrees of opening. You can fold the seats down creating a flat space to carry your cargo there as well.”
The TITAN XD King Cab comes with 4×4 and 4×2 drive and three grade levels – S, SV and PRO-4X. Two engine choices are available: the 390-horsepower 5.6-liter Endurance® V8 or a powerful Cummins® 5.0L V8 Turbo Diesel producing 310 horsepower and 555 lb-ft of torque.
“We are now legitimately in the commercial business of selling trucks and vans,” Diaz added. “We couldn’t say that before because we had great van offerings, but we didn’t have the trucks. We have a complete line-up for our business customers to take advantage of.”
Nissan has designed its Titan trucks in California, engineered them in Michigan, tested them in Arizona and assembles them in Mississippi. The automaker is now offering a 5-year, 100,000-mile bumper-to-bumper warranty on its trucks and commercial vans.
Pricing and availability on the Nissan Titan XD King Cab have not yet been announced.
2017 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport Limited Edition
Mitsubishi Motors is celebrating its 100th anniversary at the Chicago Auto Show. The automaker has given its best-selling Outlander crossover vehicle a refresh with updated styling and advanced technology.
“You have to admit, it looks like it belongs on the street right now,” said Alex Fedorak, public relations manager for Mitsubishi Motors. “We’ve taken our lowest trim model, the ES model, and added $2,000 of value into it for about $1,000 more.”
The new Outlander Sport Limited Edition comes with black painted door mirrors and 18″ alloy wheels, fog lamps, HID headlamps, a rear view camera and a Limited Edition badge. Interior features include black fabric and red stitching on the steering wheel, shift knob and brake lever exclusive to the LE trim.
“It comes with either two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive or our patented all-wheel control system, which I think for those of you who have to go back east, wish you had one waiting for you at the airport. It’s our No. 1 seller. We sell about 36,000 Outlander Sports a year. It continues to be our best-seller.”
Other interior features include aluminum pedals, heated front seats and a display audio system with Smartphone Link for Apple CarPlay™ and Android Auto™.
Look for the 2017 Mitsubishi Outlander Sport Limited Edition to arrive in U.S. dealerships at the end of February. Pricing starts at $21,995 and goes up from there.
Stay tuned for more of coverage from the 2017 Chicago Auto Show…
