Nissan GT-R full details

By Ben Barry

First Official Pictures

24 October 2007 05:50

So the car they called Godzilla is back?

It is indeed. We’ve been waiting for Nissan’s supercar scarer to return since the concept was unveiled back in 2001. And when the GT-R Proto teased us with near production car styling in 2005’s Tokyo show, we hoped it’d be with us before too long. But even though the GT-R goes on sale in Japan this December, it now won’t reach the UK until March 2009 according to Nissan UK. This time, however, big changes are afoot. Yes the new GT-R looks as brutally functional as the old R34 Skyline, and it’s still got twin turbos and four-wheel drive, but the GT-R’s straight six engine is gone, as is the old four-wheel steer HICAS system and the manual gearbox. New for this generation is a transaxle, a six-speed auto gearbox and a V6 twin turbo. And the GT-R will finally go international, left-hand drive models coming on stream in 2008. Most surprising of all, the Skyline badge has disappeared, Nissan wanting to distance the GT-R from the base Skyline models (Infiniti G models in the US) that still exist in Japan.

Exactly. When we visited Nissan’s Hokkaido test track in Japan during the final stages of development, engineer Akira Nagai told CAR that the old 2.6-litre RB26DETT engine couldn’t meet upcoming emissions regulations, but countered that the new engine is smoother, more instantly responsive from low down and much more economical. It’s also far more powerful, with 473bhp delivered at 7000rpm compared with the old model’s 320bhp or so – R34’s always making more than the claimed 276bhp. Peak torque is 433lb ft and all of it's on tap from 3200rpm to 5200rpm, although the 1740kg kerbweight does rather spoil the power-to-weight ratio. The 3.8-litre V6 is distantly related to the naturally aspirated VQ engines found in the 350Z and Infiniti G37. Codenamed VR38DETT, the cylinder bores are plasma-sprayed to keep temperatures down, the turbos are by IHI and – long-standing internet rumour has it – Cosworth played a large role in the engine’s development.

By Ben Barry