i'm mark williams with pickup trucks
com and wherein the heat in Arizona
where we have the chance to talk to the
chief product specialist at nissan truck
rich miller rich thank you for joining
us thank you organize the beer so
obviously our guys are interested in
what you're going to do for the next
generation i know you can't get too
specific but where do you see tight and
sitting in the segment right now it's a
viciously competitive and everybody
seems to be bringing their a-game what
what do you have in store for us we're
definitely the underdogs right now we
are waiting to launch the next vehicle
we have a very capable truck that we
have out there right now but the segment
has moved quite a bit over the years and
got very competitive each of the
competitors are looking to see how they
can satisfy their customers
we're doing the same thing so the next
generation truck as we do is we evolve
with every vehicle it's going to be a
big jump from the one that's going out
to the new one that's coming in is the
strategy set out here
other manufacturers like ram truck have
thrown everything they can possibly
think of out of people new powertrains
new chassis these coil spring
suspensions of ram box that different
technologies the ecodiesel is that
something that you feel you have to
compete with are you going to be a
little more we have to be more strategic
and and we have looked at how we want to
lay out with the landscape that's
already out in front of us and we think
we found a pretty good spot that we want
to fit in with our next generation truck
we've talked before in the past we've
already announced RR commons partnership
with the next generation diesel and we
find that that engine with our truck and
our durability reliability history that
we have going to be a perfect match to
slide right into the segment to our own
little spot to play in
well when you guys came out with the
nissan titan that shook the world pretty
much for the half of all the half-ton
engineers in Detroit specifically about
what you made the announcement about the
relationship that you have with comments
and there's going to be a v8 Cummins in
the next generation tighten it
I think that's still going to force a
lot of people to go back to their
drawing board and figure out what's
going to happen next any any predictions
on what you think might happen once that
commons and Nissan a
gets put together well there will be
some things that have there'll be some
changes happening possibly in the
segment but again we have more up our
sleeves the powertrain is one part of it
we also have some other innovations that
we do with all of our vehicles and
within you mentioned when this Titan did
come out there was a lot of innovations
the spray in bedliner the channel system
the bedside storage system the power
outlets inside the bad and the damp
tailgate all of these things renovations
we brought to the half-ton truck segment
as we move in with the next generation
we're looking at where can we find where
can we add more innovations to help the
customer we don't just put bells and
whistles on the trucks just to put them
on their say oh we have this or we have
that it all goes back to what is the
customer need in one and once we find
out that unmet need or that something
that they want that sets them apart from
the other trucks that's what we want to
put on our on our next gen trap now
we've been told that at that next north
american international auto show you
guys are going to have something for us
to look at that's where we're going to
get our first chance to look at whether
it's a concept or a concept that's very
close to the actual truck we don't know
but how how long after that are we going
to be able to see our dealers clamoring
to get something right away or do you
think you have a little bit dealers are
always clamoring for something new and
and we're listening to them and we're
going to get something as soon as we
can't the quality is the number one
thing for us and we have to launch this
truck right we did announce know Andy
Palmer has mentioned that we will be
announcing something special it at the
north american auto show in detroit so
there will be some some big news big
happening there but when it comes to
launch in the truck we're gonna launch
when it's right and we have our time
frame and all the engineers are set up
to hit that is there anything about the
segment that's catching your eye is
there is there some issues or
technologies that you think your segment
is going to have to worry about or
anything that's being dealt with
appropriately that that stands out in
your mind you know that the surprising
thing about the segment and I've been
looking at this segment for 20 years
with Nissan it's just that now it seems
like the segment seem to go and kind of
one direction but now each of the
manufacturers is kind of taking their
own path or before they were all kind of
leading down a similar path so there's a
lot to look at now
have different power trains that are
coming out we have different chassis
that are coming out we have different
interior nighty information technology
systems that are coming out connected
services so a lot of the stuff that's
coming in the truck world that was kind
of in other segments before now we have
all these manufacturers going out there
and it it it makes it a point for the
planners we have to figure out umbrella
all that and see which of these items
are the most important for the customer
how we're going to bring them in
I was just as steward of the of the
segment it gets kind of tough seeing and
trying to predict where everybody else
is going to go but then keep focused on
our travel how we're going to actually
it's going to be a lot of fun from our
side of the fence to watch what you're
going to do and how that's gonna shake
up the entire half time segment we look
forward to it thanks for your time thank
Mark appreciate it
so that's it for our conversation with
nissan truck guy rich miller for more
information about the next generation
nissan titan or any other pickup truck
related issue go to pick up trucks . com