Nissan GT-R NISMO: Forever young?

What could the Nissan GT-R possibly have in common with the iPhone, the fifth Harry Potter book and the Lamborghini Reventón? As it turns out, all were first released in 2007. Lots can happen in 14 years and it wouldn’t be fair to say the R35 GT-R hasn’t changed, because it has. However, these changes haven’t exactly been drastic. The GT-R NISMO brought a touch of spice to the line-up in 2013 with its enhanced looks and performance but fast forward to now, even with all of the yearly updates the GT-R remains the good ol’ Godzilla of which we all already know.

However, there is something quite paradoxical about the R35 today. While we desperately desire for something new to happen, the GT-R still brings serious levels of performance to the table and it is still a car that we all look up to. The simple act of knocking on Nissan’s door in 2021 to ask for their GT-R NISMO is sufficient proof that yes, it is still very much a relevant car and it still well deserves its place amongst the others. We took the GT-R NISMO to Japan’s Hakone area to find out what makes this car, forever young.

Having gone through the hands of Nissan’s in-house tuning division,

there is more to this upgraded GT-R than its white, red and carbon fiber styling. On the outside, the NISMO shows distinct aerodynamic upgrades. The wing is visibly more imposing, and so are other parts such as the splitter, the side skirts and the diffuser. In this case, bigger does not mean heavier as carbon fiber is now omnipresent on the NISMO. The bonnet, roof, trunk, diffuser and the front fenders have all been switched to carbon fiber parts and on the inside, each seat is 1.4 kg lighter. All combined, the NISMO saves a total of 30 kg, bringing its curb weight down to somewhere around 1,730 kg. The most noticeable difference may likely be the scalloped vents on the front fenders. Inspired by the GT-R GT3, not only is this visually pleasing, it brings the NISMO a true race car look. These vents are not just here for decoration: they help funnel hot air out of the engine bay while also providing additional downforce onto the front tires.

It is also worth taking a closer look at the NISMO’s Brilliant White Pearl paint. The fine metallic flakes shimmer under the light, bringing out the delicate pearl white of what would seemingly look like a solid white from afar. Quite the contrast for this beast of a car!

In terms of performance, what you see is what you get.

Just like its looks, the NISMO is razor sharp and brutally fast. As you press the start button, the monster within the NISMO roars to life with all sorts of mechanical sounds. Slowly pushing the throttle, you can feel the mass of the GT-R setting into motion. The NISMO isn't the most exciting to drive in the city. While remaining civilized, it is impatiently waiting for you to do one thing: take it out for a proper drive on some proper roads.

“A race car for the road”: that is what the GT-R NISMO is meant to be. The NISMO-tuned VR38DETT (aka the hand-built 3.8L twin turbo V6) engine truly opens up as you reach the open road. There, it will take you less than the NISMO’s 0-100 km/h in 2.8 seconds to realize how light and lightning fast the car feels. The NISMO flies on straights thanks to the 600 hp and 481 lb-ft at your disposal. Its strong race car heritage is particularly noticeable with its turbochargers, which come straight from the GT3 race car. Despite a noticeable turbo lag, the turbos powerfully kick in when you thought the car was already giving you decent power and speed. For an even more dramatic experience, the mind blowing propulsion is accompanied with the turbos’ distinct spaceship-like whistling sound.

When it comes to driving in the city,

The NISMO isn’t a particularly loud car. Its exhaust notes are genuine with satisfying pops and bangs coming out of the exhaust pipes. As the fuel efficiency can at times average the 5km/l, each pop coming out of the exhaust will probably cost you a few hundred yen. The NISMO will fly by your eyes and the violent sounds you hear as it displaces the air is unlike anything else.

The NISMO also excels around corners. The Dunlop tires have their share of responsibility for that, as they now increase the contact patch by 11% thanks to their wider tread and fewer grooves. The set of aluminium rims painted black are now slightly lighter and as you peek through them, you will notice the carbon ceramic brakes that help bring this whole mass to a stop in the blink of an eye. The bright yellow brake pads are not only a surprisingly perfect match for the car’s white paint, they are also the biggest brake pads ever fitted to a Japanese car.

As for Nissan’s four-wheel drive system, it makes the GT-R extremely sharp and it goes where you direct it with incredible precision. Add to this the GT-R’s dual clutch gearbox and you may think this would be the winning combination for an easy going, exciting, Porsche 911-like drive up and down the mountains. As a matter of fact, driving the GT-R is no walk in the park. It is a demanding car that requires your full and undivided attention. When you firmly ask, the car delivers and as you get to understand each other, there is ultimately room for perfect symbiosis. You will need to take the NISMO to the race track in order to fully exploit its potential but there is still plenty to discover and enjoy on open roads.

The interior stays faithful to the GT-R interior we all know of

and this isn’t a bad thing at all. We still love the quality metallic knobs and buttons, the Bose speakers and the same rear seats. We happily welcome back the Polyphony Digital designed screens for all of your driving data. Despite having been criticized for not being so much of a useful feature for the driver, we must say that for the passenger, this is probably going to be a lot more entertaining than any of the current digital screens you’d get just for the sake of technology.

There are also plenty of GT-R and NISMO badges to make you feel proud and special for driving such a car. We must also highlight that speccing a NISMO is a headache free experience as the available options are minimal. The two-tone black and red interior is already decided for you and the priciest option you can get is the ¥140,800 (approx. $1,300; £950) luxurious set of floor mats with their metallic GT-R logo and carbon fiber inserts.

For a car that shares parts with its GT3 counterpart, the interior couldn’t be any roomier. The carbon fiber Recaro bucket seats in the NISMO are incredibly comfortable, nicely padded and they hold you in place even when the G Force tries to push you around. The backseats haven’t been replaced with a roll cage and remain the same as those you’d get in the standard GT-R. This means that yes, you can have race car levels of fun with two extra passengers (ideally not too tall) in the back. The massive GT-R trunk is also present, which is another feature that makes the NISMO a great all rounder and remember, none of the competition provides such practicality and performance all at once.

There was a time when the GT-R NISMO occupied center stage

as one of the fastest production cars out there. Today, the dynamics have changed. With newer high-tech sports cars taking over the headlines, the GT-R NISMO isn’t as shiny and as fast as it used to be. The ¥24,200,000 (approx. $221,000; £160,000) price tag isn’t helping either. For roughly the same amount, the competition will offer you something that is faster, lighter and that feels a lot more up to date with 2021 technology. In the NISMO’s defense, not many manufacturers are generous enough to comprise a set of carbon ceramic brakes amongst other things as standard. Quite the opposite from the competition’s costly and never ending options list.

New cars may come and go, but it feels as if the GT-R could easily go on for another five years without ever losing its shine. So what is it about the GT-R NISMO that makes it just as relevant as it did when it came out? As we drove from dusk till dawn, up and down the Hakone roads, something became quite obvious. No other supercar driving around attracted the attention the GT-R NISMO did. Whenever we would stop for a quick break, people would stop and look. Forget about that McLaren over there, it’s the GT-R with which people wanted to take a picture! More than you’d think, the GT-R (and the NISMO in particular) remains THE car people here in Japan look up to.

With monstrous levels of performance, aggressive looks, practicality points and a successful past to back it up, the GT-R NISMO displays massive amounts of personality that will leave you wanting for more. While performance and usability does have an important say in how relevant you are, it is ultimately character and what you truly mean to people that makes you last. After all, what is the point of breaking records if you don’t have the personality to go with it.

2020 Nissan GT-R : The secret to its timelessness

With Nissan’s latest release of their new all-electric SUV “Ariya,” our heads are filled with words such as “intelligent mobility,” “connectivity” and “e-Power.” The brand new Ariya joins the diverse Nissan family that ranges from small kei cars to kei trucks, without forgetting sedans, SUVs and vans. Yet in the midst of this harmonious and practical family is Nissan’s enfant terrible: the GT-R. Different from the others because of its sporty nature, it is the machine that made the equation of supercar level performance and affordable price possible. The GT-R has become the embodiment of the ultimate Japanese sports car and despite not having changed much since its initial release in 2007, it remains the aggressive looking Godzilla we all adore to drive and photograph. Years go by and the GT-R isn’t getting any younger, so how does it manage to keep its status to such high standards year after year?

The GT-R is as we know it:

large body, angular shapes, aggressive headlights and four iconic circular taillights inherited from the earlier Skyline GT-R. Since the rebirth of the GT-R in 2007, it benefited from a few facelifts and upgrades, along with some special editions over the years to keep the lineup exciting. This new 2020 Nissan GT-R Premium Edition in front of us was less of a new model, but rather the latest revision of the 2017 version. It is similarly just as lean and sharp, erasing the early years’ rounder lines. The silhouette is carved to make space for more air intakes both at the front and back. In short, it is more aerodynamic and more aesthetically pleasing than ever. To complete the look, this Premium Edition was dressed in Wangan Blue (Bayside Blue) like the R34, a perfect match for cruising along the Tokyo Wangan highway.

The interior is as we know it too.

While Nissan can deliver ultra sleek interiors with wide screens and minimal dashboards as we’ve been shown with the Ariya, the GT-R stays faithful to its bulky Recaro leather seats and metallic control knobs. For such a sporty and energetic car, it is a pleasant surprise to open the doors into an inviting and luminous light grey interior. The leather is trim and of good quality and the seats are meticulously hand-stitched. Considering how everything you need comes in as standard, your final bill will be much more pleasant to look at compared to an option-packed European sports car. Leather colour change being one of the rare available options, it’s worth spoiling yourself with this ¥550,000 (approx. $5,000; £4,000) upgrade. The quality and sturdiness of all the metallic buttons and the carbon fiber centre console do show that no details have been left aside. The interior holds such high standards that your eyes do not stumble upon undesired plastic bits that would normally bother you in another car.

Though not the most high-tech, the car comes with a few necessities such as Apple CarPlay, an 11-speaker Bose sound system and a rear camera that will assist your parking capabilities to a certain extent. To fulfil its “Grand Tourer” expectations, the GT-R comes with two rear seats and a reasonably large trunk. Though the rear seats do look spacious and will accommodate two adults, it remains a challenge to sit straight and neck pain will likely ensue. As for the trunk, it may have the depth of a water well but it will definitely fit quite a few bags. All of these features allow the GT-R interior to be a much more comfortable environment for you to enjoy your urban lifestyle.

When it comes to driving in the city,

the GT-R does its best to adapt. “Comfort” and “Save” modes are available, which allows the suspensions and transmission to be softer and therefore allowing fuel economy to be a little friendlier… but with an average of 5.5km/L, the engine still drinks gallons and despite the comfortable Recaro seats, the bumps and vibrations coming from the road will resonate all the way to your fingertips. Turned into the wrong road? You will need to carefully evaluate your surroundings and decide whether the large turning circle of the GT-R will allow you to make this U-turn or not. As Godzilla cruises down the highway at 100km/h, the engine revs at a minimum of 2,000 rpm on its highest gear of its 6-speed gearbox. More than cruising, the car seems to be running an exhausting marathon and we simply wish a 7th gear was available in order to make the fuel consumption more efficient and the overall ride easier on all of us. The city constrains the GT-R from expressing itself freely, but if you can win this game of patience, rewards are absolutely gratifying.

The true nature of the GT-R

reveals itself to you as you finally reach the open road. It’s been impatiently waiting for it. Push all the switches up to initiate “R” modes, put your foot down and the magic happens. The GT-R jumps off the line and does not bother waiting for you as it instantly releases all of its power. 2.9 seconds is only what it takes to go from 0-100km/h when launching it. Though it does go fast on a straight line, the GT-R knows one thing better than the others: how to handle curves.

This GT-R Premium Edition hosts a 3.8L twin-turbo V6 engine, meticulously hand built by 1 of 5 master craftsmen in the world. As for its power, it spits out 565 hp and 467 lb-ft to all 4 wheels. Because it is an electronically controlled AWD system, Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC) provides power to the wheels that need it the most in order to avoid over or understeering.

Gear shifting is beyond satisfying because the GT-R’s swiftness does not leave aside the mechanical feeling to the drive. The magnesium paddle shifters provide a gratifying “click” as you upshift and downshift. You can also hear the car going through the gears from inside the cabin, as you downshift. It feels mechanical and absolutely satisfying. 

In R mode, suspensions are now much stier too. The steering wheel felt sensitive in the city but it is now enhanced and more responsive than ever. Every Inch of the road surface can be felt at the wheel, which creates a unique connection between you and the road. The hydraulic steering allows the wheel to steer more effortlessly and with more precision for impeccable cornering. With these 3 modes combined, the GT-R grips to the tarmac and helped with its curb weight of 1770 kg, the g-force can be felt through your bones.

The GT-R may have aged, but it does it so well.

From 479hp in 2007, this 2020 Premium Edition has grown to almost 100hp above it. While keeping all of the design and performance features that make a GT-R what it is, it also improved to make the overall ride more comfortable than it has ever been. The GT-R can adapt to your daily routine of commuting and shopping but it still has a long way to go to reach a proper level of comfort. That isn’t what the GT-R is truly aiming for anyway. As most cars turn into an electrified version of what they were, rare are those that still maintain their true “driving machine” spirit. It stays faithful to itself and to its sporty nature. It remains the representation of Japanese craftsmanship and a detail oriented machine that isn’t arrogant and overpriced. For the amount of detail and performance that you get, a price tag of ¥13,319,900 (approx. $125,000; £96,000) including options almost seems like a bargain. 

The GT-R manages to create a real - almost intimate - connection between you, the car and the road. We can only imagine what it’d be like with the Nismo. The GT-R does not try to embellish the driving by overcoating your performance or road surface with an excessive amount of computer tricks. Instead, it gives it all to you in a sheer and intense manner. Because the GT-R keeps it so real, that attitude simply never goes out of style.