The first round of reviews hit the 'Net yesterday in what was apparently a Euro-only embargo on driving impressions of the Nissan GT-R. The jurors from AutoExpress, Car and the Telegraph all came away from the drive with one resounding statement: this thing is fast! Adding that the brakes are the most impressive of any production car currently on sale. Lofty praise, no doubt.
While Car could barely contain its enthusiasm, AutoExpress and the Telegraph seemed to provide a more honest critique of the GT-R as a whole. AE's Oliver Marriage and Car's Gavin Green had some diverging viewpoints on how the GT-R handles low-speed cruising, but both recommend that jaunts around town are best when the seven-speed gearbox is left in "D." AutoExpress' scribe and the Telegraph's Andrew English were less than impressed with the ride quality of Nissan's new supercar, despite the dampers being set to "comfort" mode, with English saying that "even a Porsche 911 GT3 rides better."
A few other choice quotes include Green saying that the GT-R is "quick enough to make a Porsche 911 Turbo feel unexciting," continuing, "Quite simply, the new GT-R is the world's most multi-faceted supercar... An M3 beater? Easily. M5? Think higher. This car is faster, more high-tech, sharper, more capable."
We absolutely, positively can't wait to get behind the wheel.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 6)
Tim @ Dec 1st 2007 11:10AM
Awesome. Best of all it is cheaper than any of the other performance cars save the M3.
Paul P. @ Dec 1st 2007 11:22AM
Sticker price is cheaper, but good luck getting one without a huge markup. At least not for the first two years.
Matt @ Dec 1st 2007 2:45PM
It's a shame all of the other cars are incredibly more refined.
Typical Nissan "quality," for you.
zamafir @ Dec 1st 2007 2:51PM
More refined? did you even read any of the reviews? (that's a "no"). This car is insane. Enzo acceleration, fastest production car on the ring, and it'll seat four people and take your luggage in the trunk. I have nothing but incredible respect for what Nissan achieved. I'm more of an R8 guy, prefer the looks and the interior, but there's no denying the power of this car.
Matt @ Dec 1st 2007 2:54PM
REFINED does not mean "more fast" or "has room".
Here is the dictionary definition of refined:
"freed or free from coarseness, vulgarity, etc.: refined taste"
The ride quality is unrefined. The engine feel is unrefined. The road noise (less important, but still at issue) is unrefined.
Learn2read.
Mike I @ Dec 1st 2007 6:41PM
Matt: I do believe that the "vulgarity" of the car is a large portion of the car's appeal. This unrefined sense is tuned to the point at which the car to most people is a car which will not be driven daily. This causes a problem for many buyers. However, Nissan's relatively low price for this vehicle allows buyers to purchase the car as an addition to their garage, instead of as the sole focus of the garage.
JD @ Dec 1st 2007 3:30PM
Lol, Zamafir, none of the things you listed make it more refinded, haha. Big engine=big engine. four seats= four seats. Trunk= luggage space. Refinement= BMW. Or Porsche. (Just off the top of my head, don't hate on me for the companies I listed) Drive a Porsche of BMW, and you know you've driven refined. Drive a Nissan, and you know you've driven a Nissan.
The devil's in the details, and that's where refinement lies, not in the power, the passenger space, or the trunk.
Refinement is how the engine sounds as you start it, how it feels as you rev it. How the key feels in the ignition as you turn it to start the car. It's how nicely the doors close, how solid the door handles feel. It's how nice a noise the trunk makes when you slam it shut. The GTR probably has the engine parts I listed down, so it's probably a refined engine. But I guarantee you the other things I just said aren't there. It's a cool car, no doubt. But not refined.
And there's no "Enzo like acceleration" here. Close? Sure. But 3.5 doesn't equal 3.14. There's a pretty big difference there, and the Skyline has AWD, so it's tough to compare RWD. They're just very different. If they're both rolling already, say, going 100, chances are the Enzo would trounce the GTR to 150.
why not the LS2LS7? @ Dec 1st 2007 3:51PM
zamafir: it did not run as a production car on the ring. First of all, it wasn't a production car as the car wasn't in production yet, and second it wasn't running street tires.
Also, it doesn't have Enzo acceleration. No way a 3800lb car with 3/4 the HP can match the Enzo on acceleration. Even if it has turbos and AWD.
zamafir @ Dec 1st 2007 4:02PM
My aside's weren't meant to qualify a list of 'refinements' I've tracked the R8 many times, I'm well aware of what a refined car is, hence it's inclusion in my comments. The question pertaining to reading comes from any and all of the reviews which indicate in several places that it's a comfortable car when set in the right setting - I'll give you that, comfort and refinement are two different qualifiers.
Jomil @ Dec 1st 2007 5:27PM
yeah, because enzo does 0-60 in 3.4 secs, it isnt enzo acceleration. it was pre-production trim, since it was being produce yet, but it was how it was going to be in full production spec. why don't u jsut accept the fact that is better than ur god corvette? change ur cotex or something dude..
tekdemon @ Dec 1st 2007 7:17PM
I don't think the GTR was ever meant to be a refined vehicle...the R35 is already pretty refined looking compared to the R34 before it...
The only point of the car is to have such insane performance that it'll put far more expensive cars to shame, while cramming insane levels of technology under the hood (or, really, into the all wheel drive system).
tekdemon @ Dec 1st 2007 7:28PM
@Mike I
Yeah, most of the wealthier people I know tend to be pretty comfortable and secure, and don't feel any particular need to rub it in other people's faces. Except (of course) for the one person I know who's spent the last 5 years in Los Angeles, lol.
But seriously though, even when I'll be able to afford a Lambourghini I don't think I'd ever buy it just because it'd be so over the top.
One of the wealthiest people I know drives a Volkswagen Rabbit around. Yeah they have a Black Amex and a really really really sweet snowboard setup, and a nice Logitech Dinovo keyboard, but you couldn't tell that it was a super expensive keyboard or snowboard unless you already knew a lot about keyboards or snowboards, and they never point it out.
zamafir @ Dec 2nd 2007 3:04AM
@JD, according to ferrari.com, the ezno hits sixty in 3.65 seconds. Now that's according to Ferrari, who makes the car, and it doesn't quite match the 3.14 you've indicated. I find it's helpful to compare manufacture's specifications when comparing cars, because they... you know.. build the cars?
Temple @ Dec 2nd 2007 9:44AM
Whole argument on "refinement" is absurd, being that the original article doesn't use that word. Also, the Telegraph review wasn't written by an auto-journalist its written a Lawyer from a California-based firm that used to own an old BNR33 GT-R. Which in Japan is a dime a dozen. Also the Autoexpress review merely says the ride is harsher then a 911 or M3.
People should read that articles before making wide-ranging accusations and implications.
Big J @ Dec 3rd 2007 9:57AM
To all the GT-R haters:
I am so sick of hearing how it's not refined compared to a car twice its price and all the other crap. I am in no way a GT-R lover but face it, the performance speaks for itself. If you really want a nicer interior than buy a GT-R, gut the interior and have a custom one put in. It would probably be cheaper than purchasing any of the other cars listed here. Let's just agree that it is not the second coming of God but for the price it's a great performing, damn good car, and leave it at that.
JD @ Dec 3rd 2007 12:19PM
Zamafir-
Wikipedia. They quote Motor Trend's 0-60 time of 3.14 seconds. Link here:
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupe/112_0308_2003_ferrari_enzo/specs_price.html
And also, some manufacturers are notoriously conservative in their performance claims, Porsche for example. They consistently under-promise on their cars 0-60 times. Better than the opposite, I think. For example, Porsche's website declares 0-100km for the 997 GT3 to be 4.1 seconds. Magazines have tested this and gotten a much faster 3.9 seconds. Just do some extra research first. Manufacturer's aren't always the best source.
Jeff @ Dec 1st 2007 11:15AM
More reviews are being posted today.
http://www.nagtroc.com/
HotRodzNKustoms @ Dec 1st 2007 11:21AM
I still think this thing at $70k will have a hard time finding buyers. It's fan base, for the most part, are people living in apartments playing their playstation that will not be able to afford a new one of these anytime soon. The people who can afford these usually do not sit around playing Grand Turismo all day. These are the people who have always viewed buying a new 911 as a sign of success. So I think that the GT-R will have a hard time finding people willing and able to pay the price of ownership at least until that kid playing playstation wins the lottery.
Andrew @ Dec 1st 2007 11:25AM
To an extent I agree. Although I do not know Nissan's sales strategy, I'm not sure they're trying to move high volume with this vehicle. I'm under the assumption they're trying to make this their Corvette (which still has pretty high sales). I know one thing, I'd certainly take this over the 'Vette any day.
Grain @ Dec 1st 2007 11:56AM
Where are the statistics to show that the majority of this car's fan base are those living in apartments and playing playstation? I am tired of people linking this car to video game fans. The GTR has been around for decades and has an awesome racing history in Japan. It is way more than just the video game icon that you guys keep making it out to be.