2009 Nissan GT-R to get 5-hp bump and tweaks in Japan

Click above for a high-res gallery of the 2009 Nissan GT-R (U.S.-spec)
The Nissan GT-R will benefit from a few engineering and cosmetic tweaks for the 2009 model year in Japan, beginning with a slight bump in performance that brings output up from 480 to 485 PS (just under five hp). Other modifications include a larger fuel tank – expanded from 71 liters to 73.8 liters – a slight increase in fuel economy (about .3 km/l), "Nissan" replacing "Brembo" on the brake calipers, a new mounting location for the front license plate and a new paint code for Storm White (changed fro QX1 to QAB).
Pricing will also increase by another 5% in 2009 and it's expected that most of these changes will be adopted on U.S.-spec vehicles when the "Series II" production run begins next year.
Gallery: Review: 2009 Nissan GT-R
[Source: GTRBlog]











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
BigMcLargeHuge 2:22PM (11/13/2008)
I'll bet they just gave them all 510hp so they could advertise a 5hp bump every year for 6 years without having to do anything.
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KingCy 2:26PM (11/13/2008)
works for me!
ken_aisin 6:43PM (11/13/2008)
Since when are manufacturers being honest and accurate with HP and Torque numbers. They are always either higher or lower for their convenience.
Bryan Dever 2:14PM (11/13/2008)
I wonder when they are going to just start shipping spare transmissions in the trunk of the car.....
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CarbonBlack 7:57PM (11/13/2008)
I'll still take a Version 1!
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Polo08816 2:19PM (11/13/2008)
Did they fix the transmission? Hopefully it doesn't shatter like glass.
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happy_penguin 3:29PM (11/13/2008)
I don't know about "shatter like glass" but I don't understand why the low ranking for suggesting the truth. The GT-R transmission problems are well known:
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=nissan+gtr+transmission+failure&btnG=Search
RJ 3:31PM (11/13/2008)
Or put a damn limiter on the number of times it can be used!!! Simple as that.
I mean, how stupid is saying: oh, our car has a wonderful feature that allows for faster takeoffs, but, you can't use it. We put it there for magazine testing purposes only.
Red 2:20PM (11/13/2008)
A 5ps bump is what exactly in Nissan R35 GT-R speak? They tell you you're getting 485ps, but really it's like, a trillion...
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OkGO 2:28PM (11/13/2008)
So I dont get it, "Nissan" is replacing "Brembo" on the brake calipers...so does that mean Nissan makes better brakes than Brembo?
Cause if they are going to do this for the GT-R, what about the other Nissan's that have Brembo packages?
Will it all trickle down in the 09/10' models?
Alot of questions, not enough answers haha
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416Hammy 2:34PM (11/13/2008)
I think you read it wrong...
They're putting a "Nissan" sticker on the Brembo calipers in place of the "Brembo" sticker.
Jj 2:35PM (11/13/2008)
Sounds like it's still a Brembo brake package, they just changed the logo on the caliper.
Amien 5:05PM (11/13/2008)
Not really a lot of questions to be honest.
I don't think a lot of people realize how difficult the birth and conception of Nissan's Supercar was. After just bringing the company into profit from monumental debt, Carlos Ghosn mandated a 911turbo benchmark and the revival of Nissan's most iconic brand ever. 5 long years and yet, the final design was confirmed just months before its completion. Countless hours of testing in the wind tunnel and on the 'ring, and a host of many many more problems that are hidden from press releases. It was a similar story as the Veyron, only with much, much more strict budget constraints. Yet, you see nothing but the very best, brakes by brembo, bilstein shocks, a body that slices through the wind in a way that puts $300k supercars to shame, the world's first independant rear-mounted transaxle and frankly, a truely awesome hand-built engine with two IHI turbos.
The brakes are still bermbos, Nissan feels it fit to have their own name on their halo car, what's wrong with that?
You're probably going to argue that they could've done this from the beginning, and that's true, but they're honing and refining their product now and i don't see anything wrong with it.
Nissan is no Porsche, it doesn't make as much money, the difference in prestiege of the two brands is immense, but they're trying to get there.
Support the underdog.
PS: I was tempted to reply to all the "glass tranny" comments, but then decided not to comment on non-existant issues.
dukeisduke 2:32PM (11/13/2008)
At first glance, I thought the picture was of a Chevy Cobalt. Ouch.
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dkw 3:09PM (11/13/2008)
@ dukeisduke
I hate to admit, but you're not the only one who thought that for a short split second!
Franz 3:10PM (11/13/2008)
Every time one of you guys say this, I literally bust out laughing. I'm amazed at how many people can't differentiate between designs just because of simple similarities: in this case, round tail lights & a wing.
A Cobalt looks nothing like a GT-R. It's taller, narrower, the tail lights are smaller and further apart. The GT-R's lights are LEDs, the inner lights on the Cobalt are actually in the trunk lid, Cobalt wing has no center upright... not to mention the four enormous exhaust tips on the GT-R. I could never confuse the two... not even at a glance.
happy_penguin 3:30PM (11/13/2008)
So, the ass end of the GT-R looks nothing like this?
http://www.cardata.com/spoilers/images/DAR_Spoilers/abs-304_chevy_cobalt_ss.jpg
Could have fooled me...
Franz 3:49PM (11/13/2008)
Like I said, simple similarities:
They both have four round tail lights, but the lights themselves, their size and their placement are nothing alike IMO. They both have fairly large rear wings but the Cobalt's has prominent end plates and no center support... again, I wouldn't confuse the two. The Cobalt's whole rear end is body colored while the GT-R has that black rear valance/diffuser (with those very prominent quad exhaust tips I mentioned earlier), and the GT-R is a helluva lot wider than the Chevy.
I'm not saying you guys don't find them similar... obviously you do. I just find it amusing because there's no way... not even in the darkest night... I would mistake one for the other.
dkw 4:35PM (11/13/2008)
@ Franz.
Easy there, killer! I said, for a very split second that's what it looked like. I've seen 1000's of Cobalts, and am just conditiononed that when I see those taillights, that's what first comes to mind. They do have similiarities, you said that yourself. Seeing them drive down the road, I wouldn't ever confuse the two. Perhaps it was just the angle that the first picture was taken.
nuff said.
montoym 7:45PM (11/13/2008)
I used to confuse Camaros with Geo Storms back when Geo and the Storms were around. They had a similar front end look to me.
Then again, I was also basically still a kid then.
Some pics for reference,
http://www.dragtimes.com/images/2724-1990-Geo-Storm.jpg
http://media.motortopia.com/files/1563/vehicle/459bba67c0fcb/z06_rims_photo_shoot_009_Blured_window.jpg
Hmm, I had almost forgotten what the Storms looked like, haven't seen one in years.