Benchmarking is a common practice in the automotive world, and for good reason – in this hyper-competitive market, automakers must keep tabs on what their competition is doing, and also make it a point to try and stay one step ahead. In that regard, it’s no surprise that many automakers have benchmarked the Ford F-150 over the years, as it’s a perennial best-seller and America’s favorite pickup. Just last month, Ford Authority spotted Toyota benchmarking a Ford F-150 Limited PowerBoost Hybrid, and now, Nissan has been spied doing the same exact thing, with a truck that looks essentially identical to Toyota’s that was spotted leaving a Nissan facility in Michigan.
Fresh off benchmarking a Ford Mustang Mach-E, it seems as if Nissan is taking a closer look at the Ford F-150 PowerBoost Hybrid now, though why is a bit of a mystery. As Ford Authority reported last June, the automaker’s own full-size truck and F-150 competitor – the Titan – will reportedly be discontinued in either 2024 or 2025, as the company currently has no successor or even a refresh in the works.
Such a move seems to make a lot of sense given the fact that Titan sales have lagged far behind the competition for some time now, ranking dead last with just a few thousand sales in Q1 of last year, while the F-Series dominated the competition over that same time period with 140k sales. However, perhaps this sighting is a sign that Nissan is reconsidering that decision.
The Ford F-150 Limited spotted here is powered by an electrified powertrain – the twin-turbocharged Ford 3.5L V6 PowerBoost, which produces 430 horsepower and 570 pound-feet of torque. The hybrid combination also offers up fuel economy ratings of 25 miles-per-gallon in the city, highway, and combined, as well as a max payload of 2,120 pounds and a towing capacity of 12,700 pounds.
As for the Nissan Titan, it continues to chug along with one engine option – a naturally-aspirated 5.6L V8 that churns out 400 horsepower and 413 pound-feet of torque, paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission. It logs fuel economy ratings of 15/21/18 in the city, on the highway, and combined, with a max payload capacity of 1,402 pounds and a towing capacity of 9,052 pounds.
We’ll have more on everything Ford’s competition is up to soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for 24/7 Ford news coverage.
Comments
Why any True Blooded American would buy any vehicle off a country who wanted us dead in WW11 is beyond real. Might as well piss on a WW11 vets grave to show your appreciation of why your breathing oxygen..
🙂
Where are your clothes made?
Truth is that, as far as trucks are concerned, Ford is the benchmark. I have seen this in RAMs latest electric truck the RAM REV, they just copied the F-150, tweaked it and called theirs the ‘best in class’. I was surprised that they did not go ahead with the work center console that they also copied in their concept. They could not help it with the power frunk and its accessories though as well as the electrified bed, they also copied the fact that you can use the truck to power your house, and they called it ‘best in class’ again :). GM went as far as copying the infotainment layout and the taillight of the Lightning, so you see benchmarking the F-150 is no surprise to me 🙂