Nissan Dongfeng Z9 hits production

The Nissan Dongfeng Z9 is a 5.5-meter (18-foot) long pickup truck for China. The petrol and the diesel version are already in production, with a high-end hybrid scheduled to arrive later.

The Z9 benefits from an all-new body-on-frame design and features a five-seat crew cab (no other cab designs available). It is 5,520 mm (215.6 inches) long, 1,960 mm (76.6 inches) wide and 1,950 mm (76.2 inches) tall with 3.3 meters (129 inches) between the axles.

A look at the interior shots reveals two LCDs and a dual-spoke steering wheel. Several physical buttons can be seen below the climate vents, but most controls seem to be digital.

For the engine, buyers are choosing between a 2.0-liter petrol turbo with 258 PS (254 hp / 190 kW) and a 2.3-liter diesel good for 190 PS (187 hp / 140 kW). Both use an eight-speed automatic transmission. The high-end hybrid spec is rumored to output 435 PS (429 hp / 320 kW) to the wheels and cover 1,100 km (683 miles) per tank. These numbers remain to be confirmed, though.