Filed under: Audi, Lotus, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Porsche, Subaru
Inside Line pits the Nissan GT-R against The World
Click either image for a high-res gallery courtesy of Inside Line.
Inside Line has done what all of us have dreamed about at some point in our lives. They've contacted the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and had a 1.8-mile section of twisting mountain road closed off for the explicit purpose of running some of the hottest machinery in the world in the Mother of All Performance Tests.
What machines could be worthy of such a fantastical feat? Let's start with the Nissan GT-R and follow it up with the Audi R8, Mitsubishi Evolution X MR, Porsche 911, Subaru Impreza WRX STI and Lotus Elise SC. Josh Jacquot's engaging prose is coupled with some stellar photography to make this incredible story come to life. But no serious performance test would be complete without hard numbers, so the crew at Inside Line equipped each vehicle with a Racelogic VBOX to log everything from 0-60 sprints (both from a standing start and a one-foot rollout) to timed laps of both the mountain road assault and a run around the Streets of Willow Springs. Which machine reigns supreme? Click here to find out.
[Source: Inside Line]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 5)
Damian 10:17AM (5/28/2008)
The GTR proves itself to be an awesome car once again. The most shocking part to me was how much better the Evolution X's lap and mountain road time were compared to the STi.
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xpolarx 12:37PM (5/28/2008)
I too am blown away by how badly the STI was beaten by the Evo. I guess it goes to show, numbers are nothing -- the real story is track/road course times. Subie needs to beef up the sway bars (more so in the rear), stiffen the steering bushings and increase the caster angle, re-valve the dampers and re-work the synchros for a smoother shift...THEN, I might buy one over an Evo.
Kappy 4:04AM (5/29/2008)
I have only 1 problem with this test: Their decision to use a base 911. They argue that their prices are the "same," but we all know that that is simply not true. The dealer markup on the GT-R is so large that to actually buy one would cost you the same as a turbo or GT3, maybe even a GT2, or a really fast AMG, or an M6, or a ZR1. My point is simply that comparing it to the base 911 just isn't fair. Pay attention to the real world Edmunds!!!!!!!!!
Big Rocket 1:21PM (5/29/2008)
Kappy: Are you trying to say you can get a top-of-the-line Porsche, Mercedes, etc without huge dealer markups? Funny how you ask Edmunds to pay attention to the real world, when you don't do it yourself.
Alex 10:23AM (5/28/2008)
The Evo X MR looks like an unbeatable value...
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Franz 11:10AM (5/28/2008)
Yeah, for me that was the biggest surprise. The automotive press seems to be completely smitten with the MR's SST tranny as well. Also, that the MR is down on power, but manages to lap quicker than the lighter, more powerful STI is a testament to it's incredible handling.
As a side note, I'm really surprised that neither Dodge nor Chevy wanted the Viper or Z06 to come out and play. If there weren't any press cars available, they'd probably have said so but it looks like they just flat out said no. Self explanatory I guess......
Kwesi 10:01PM (6/05/2008)
I totally agree. I am so proud of Mitsubishi as it pertains to their EVO! Based on its reviews, it Mitsu say, made a 3000gt to compete, with the EVO as a guidline, the totally hyped gtr would have a serious run for its money..anyone dissagree? considering that the evo is like half the cost of the gt-r
DCragtop 10:25AM (5/28/2008)
Are we STILL talking about this Nissan? Uhhhh. We get it, great car. But this is about the = to Paris Hilton. And they both look about the same.
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Allan 10:33AM (5/28/2008)
Ya, except that Paris Hilton has no value. Doesn't do anything. Shouldn't be famous.
Godzilla, OTOH, destroyed an entire country. He killed thousands of Japanese. He's a legend. And he's awesome.
Oh ya, and the GT-R? That's hot.
rouse42 10:26AM (5/28/2008)
no vette or viper. haha.
didnt wanna end up in the bottom of the list i guess.
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Ayrton 10:38AM (5/28/2008)
Or the coverage is sponsored by Nissan?
Anyway, it's a pity that the course is too short.
zamafir 10:40AM (5/28/2008)
Viper's not going to do well here, z06 should give the GT-R and R8 a run for their money akin to the 911 if previous reviews which already pitted the z06 vs the GT-R are any indicator.
All in all, a nice smattering of cars. I appreciate quality reviews that toss an Elise, EVO and STI into the mix to give people in the 30-60k bracket an idea of what their money's buying in regards to performance.
Honestly, I'm most surprised at how well the R8 stood it's ground.
rouse42 10:44AM (5/28/2008)
to short?
did you read the article? it was 22 miles and 402 turns of mountain road.
chevy and dodge said no. it wasnt that nissan didnt choose to use those cars.
edmunds should of reached out to the public for a fresh stock vette and viper to use.
somebody surely would have thought that there big muscle cars would have won.
boy would they have been upset.
Tai 10:54AM (5/28/2008)
Yeah I'm really disappointed the two cars didn't come out to play. Especially with all the talk about Z06 vs GTR.
Lee Gibson 10:54AM (5/28/2008)
More like didn't want the Viper to wind up in the bottom of a ditch...
Although I do think the Vette would have been a good addition.
zamafir 11:06AM (5/28/2008)
"edmunds should of reached out to the public for a fresh stock vette and viper to use."
... ever loaned a car to them?
Mobius_1 11:49AM (5/28/2008)
Read the article:
"Fact is, we asked Chevy for a 2008 Corvette Z06 and we asked Dodge for a 2008 Viper SRT10, but both refused to loan us their cars — presumably because we'd be testing their best metal against the almighty GT-R.
Sniff, sniff. Does somebody smell chicken?"
Wow, that is some serious rep for Nissan
James Sonne 11:52AM (5/28/2008)
@ rouse42 , Actually, the segment of the track and road course they ran the cars on was each only 1.8 miles. Twenty-two miles in two minutes and change is something an F-22 Raptor would have issue with (1,300 mph max speed at altitude).
MoonRover 1:31PM (5/28/2008)
Frankly I wouldn't give Edmunds the sweat off my balls, that is one worthless organization in my opinion, and I'm sure the General and Chrysler felt they would get a raw deal as always.
Beastage 10:38AM (5/28/2008)
Nice read...
But of all the stats the one most amazing is the braking ability on the GTR... how can it be lower than the R8 or the Elise?! amazing.
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