Any knowledgeable GTR chaps on here?
Discussion
What are the '09 - 10 models like to own these days? There were horror stories early on about the dual clutches, but were they just due to Yanks abusing the launch control?
Also, has the aftermarket come up a good solution to the oft-written harsh ride? A spring / damper kit better suited to real roads?
Are the 12 onwards cars so much better that you will fell short-changed with an early one?
Also, has the aftermarket come up a good solution to the oft-written harsh ride? A spring / damper kit better suited to real roads?
Are the 12 onwards cars so much better that you will fell short-changed with an early one?
Gearboxes on the early cars suffer from a couple of problems, the swarf from the gears sticks to the solenoids, the fix is a set of bigger magnets in the gearbox sump pan. The second issue is the rotation of the solenoids which Nissan fixed on the later cars, this can be sorted with a set of solenoid clips, again easily done by the good independent specialists.
The harsh ride was a characteristic of the run flat tyres, they also cause a few brown trouser moments when it's wet! Most owners who use the car mainly on the road switch over to Michelin Pilot Super Sport which give a much more compliant ride and far safer in damp conditions. Litchfields also have a complete set up comprising of new dampers and springs which many owners speak very highly of, it was developed in conjunction with Rob Huff, the World Touring Car champion.
When looking at the early cars check the brake discs carefully, the OEM discs with drilled holes tend to crack at the drill points, most owners replace with either AP discs or Alcon which are fine. There was a Nissan recall on the steering lock mechanism, check this has been done otherwise it can fail which prevents the car from being started.
I've had mine for three years now, an amazing car to drive and still very practical with a huge boot and comfortable interior. Mines running what is known as Stage 4, consists of exhaust, intakes, set of injectors and a remap, producing close on 630bhp and about 620ftlb. Seriously quick machines for the money they cost nowadays.
The harsh ride was a characteristic of the run flat tyres, they also cause a few brown trouser moments when it's wet! Most owners who use the car mainly on the road switch over to Michelin Pilot Super Sport which give a much more compliant ride and far safer in damp conditions. Litchfields also have a complete set up comprising of new dampers and springs which many owners speak very highly of, it was developed in conjunction with Rob Huff, the World Touring Car champion.
When looking at the early cars check the brake discs carefully, the OEM discs with drilled holes tend to crack at the drill points, most owners replace with either AP discs or Alcon which are fine. There was a Nissan recall on the steering lock mechanism, check this has been done otherwise it can fail which prevents the car from being started.
I've had mine for three years now, an amazing car to drive and still very practical with a huge boot and comfortable interior. Mines running what is known as Stage 4, consists of exhaust, intakes, set of injectors and a remap, producing close on 630bhp and about 620ftlb. Seriously quick machines for the money they cost nowadays.
I'm on my second 2009 car after doing 30k miles in the original one with no issues other than standard servicing.
They are epic cars, not a lot would get past a standard one. Very practical as well.
You do get what you pay for and there is a reason that there are cheap ones out there so search out a low owner, low miler thats been serviced on the button ie every 6 months for 2009-2011 cars.
Very reliable and they command a lot of respect and attention, if i park mine anywhere i always come back to someone wanting to chat to me about it!
They are epic cars, not a lot would get past a standard one. Very practical as well.
You do get what you pay for and there is a reason that there are cheap ones out there so search out a low owner, low miler thats been serviced on the button ie every 6 months for 2009-2011 cars.
Very reliable and they command a lot of respect and attention, if i park mine anywhere i always come back to someone wanting to chat to me about it!
Some great info above.
For using as a road car with a maybe stage 2/4 upgrade, would a facelift be a better prospect than an early car?
I'm mostly concerned with ride comfort and 12 month servicing for more convenience than cost. Arranging the time to to get one car serviced 2/year as well as finding time for the others would drive me round the bend.
For using as a road car with a maybe stage 2/4 upgrade, would a facelift be a better prospect than an early car?
I'm mostly concerned with ride comfort and 12 month servicing for more convenience than cost. Arranging the time to to get one car serviced 2/year as well as finding time for the others would drive me round the bend.
Babw said:
Some great info above.
For using as a road car with a maybe stage 2/4 upgrade, would a facelift be a better prospect than an early car?
I'm mostly concerned with ride comfort and 12 month servicing for more convenience than cost. Arranging the time to to get one car serviced 2/year as well as finding time for the others would drive me round the bend.
I had an 09 car with just a stage 1 tune and believe me you will not be found wanting more power for road use.For using as a road car with a maybe stage 2/4 upgrade, would a facelift be a better prospect than an early car?
I'm mostly concerned with ride comfort and 12 month servicing for more convenience than cost. Arranging the time to to get one car serviced 2/year as well as finding time for the others would drive me round the bend.
The MY11 cars onwards do ride slightly better but changing to mpss non run flats makes a huge difference in road noise and comfort.
The six month service schedule on the early cars was ridiculous and just another example of the 'GTR tax' to get some money back from having sold the car so cheap in the first place. Funny how when the facelift cars came out costing another £15k servicing suddenly was every 12 months despite being mechanically identical.
Once the cars are out out of warranty all the main specialists and I was even told by Middlehurst Nissan myself to switch to the later cars service schedule. I personally kept it to 6k miles or 12 months as that's about what I did. The later DBA cars service schedule was 9k miles or 12 months.
Good to hear about the 6 month service schedule as being a bit of a farce.
To be honest if the facelift was just a performance upgrade I wouldn't think twice about getting an early car but it will be used as for some long distance trips and fun car. Initially I was looking at 360/F430 and decided on a GTR as I could justify using it as a daily doing about 10k per year.
The ride comfort/quality, interior quality and the slightly improvement in drivability are what's swaying me towards the facelift car. Also I would like to get one with nav so MY09 models are out, the difference between a MY10 and MY11 are about 8K.
They seem to be depreciating at similar rates so the gap between pre and post facelift seems to be staying pretty stable so I'd always get more back for the MY11 than the MY10 when I come to sell in about 3 years.
Would be good to hear from owners/ex owners.
To be honest if the facelift was just a performance upgrade I wouldn't think twice about getting an early car but it will be used as for some long distance trips and fun car. Initially I was looking at 360/F430 and decided on a GTR as I could justify using it as a daily doing about 10k per year.
The ride comfort/quality, interior quality and the slightly improvement in drivability are what's swaying me towards the facelift car. Also I would like to get one with nav so MY09 models are out, the difference between a MY10 and MY11 are about 8K.
They seem to be depreciating at similar rates so the gap between pre and post facelift seems to be staying pretty stable so I'd always get more back for the MY11 than the MY10 when I come to sell in about 3 years.
Would be good to hear from owners/ex owners.
The facelift cars had been out about a year when I bought mine so couldn't really afford one as I only had a £40kish budget.
The thing is,if you've never owned a GTR before an 09 car will be more than enough and still blow your mind. The facelift cars will just do it a little bit more.
If your new to a GTR you will be more than satisfied with either.
The thing is,if you've never owned a GTR before an 09 car will be more than enough and still blow your mind. The facelift cars will just do it a little bit more.
If your new to a GTR you will be more than satisfied with either.
I've got a mid 50K budget but won't go for a non Nav 09 car so the difference is approximately 10k between a MY10 and MY11.
I went in an early car a couple of years ago and the performance was outstanding but the interior rattles, clunks were a little tiresome.
I think I'd be willing to pay that 10K extra as I'd get a portion of that premium back at resale in a few years time but I can't find any reviews of early cars compared to later cars or dealers with both old and new cars available for test drives on the same day.
I know they made some chassis modifications and geometry changes to the facelift cars, have the older cars been updated to this spec?
If it was just a sunday blast car I'd have no hesitation about picking up an older car, same reason why I avoided the E92 M3 compared to my E46 M3, the E46 is a more exciting car in my eyes but I'm going to use the GTR as a mode of transport at times so if the improvements in interior/smoothness/driveability are significant then I think I could justify the later car.
(I also just want to buy one soon before I go mad as there's only so many times a sane person can scroll through the classifieds!)
I went in an early car a couple of years ago and the performance was outstanding but the interior rattles, clunks were a little tiresome.
I think I'd be willing to pay that 10K extra as I'd get a portion of that premium back at resale in a few years time but I can't find any reviews of early cars compared to later cars or dealers with both old and new cars available for test drives on the same day.
I know they made some chassis modifications and geometry changes to the facelift cars, have the older cars been updated to this spec?
If it was just a sunday blast car I'd have no hesitation about picking up an older car, same reason why I avoided the E92 M3 compared to my E46 M3, the E46 is a more exciting car in my eyes but I'm going to use the GTR as a mode of transport at times so if the improvements in interior/smoothness/driveability are significant then I think I could justify the later car.
(I also just want to buy one soon before I go mad as there's only so many times a sane person can scroll through the classifieds!)
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