Nissan GT-R still the boss: Tell Me I'm Wrong
Eight years on Dan reckons the GT-R's ability to shock and awe hasn't diminished - is he right?
Where this particular GT-R story begins...
The flight home beckons and I should be sorry to be leaving New York. But I'm not. Because I know waiting for me when I get back is a GT-R Track Edition, a four-day public holiday and a pass to drive Anglesey with a Bookatrack event running on Trac Mon's full International Circuit. Mood? Chipper.
Feeling brave?
Full explanation of where the snappily named GT-R Track Edition engineered by NISMO sits in the R35 lineage can be found in my first, all too brief, encounter with it on a very damp Stowe circuit at Silverstone. Suffice it to say a small track, big puddles and a very short leash from the chaperone didn't reveal too much. Other than two thick brown lines through the turf left by the previous incumbent of the driving seat. Matched, I'd wager, by similar ones in the undercrackers of both driver and instructor.
Frankly I wouldn't have wanted his job. Because if there's one thing the GT-R proves, it's that an awful lot of rubbish is spouted about this car. Mainly concerning the myth it drives itself and is no more demanding or risky to operate than its many videogame representations.
Nonsense. The GT-R will happily shatter your ego faster than it'll lap the 'ring or sprint from zero to whatever. Just drives itself? Like hell it does.
And that's what I love about it. So much of the GT-R hype rests on its supposed ability to make mortals look like driving gods. But having reached a corner after deploying that incredible straight-line speed how many are able to master what they've unleashed? Not a huge number, going by the track day stereotypes. Indeed, a tactful request for drivers in 'cars that are quick in a straight line' to accommodate those willing to go quickly round corners is as much a fixture of the modern circuit briefing as overtaking rules and flags.
Yep, it's raining again!
Conscious all eyes are on the big, white GT-R outside the cafe as this line is rolled out during the briefing I'm determined to prove that, yes, big Datsuns can be quick in the corners too.
First impressions of the Track Edition on the sodden track rather underline why many adopt the 'nail it up the straights, potter round the corners' approach though. The power this thing deploys in a straight line remains extraordinary, even when spinning all four wheels on rain-soaked tarmac. Turbos get a bad rap on PH these days but I love the fact the GT-R celebrates all that is exciting about forced induction, from the whoosh of induction air to the scenery blurring rush as the boost kicks in.
The problem comes when you then reach the corner carrying at least 10 per cent more speed than you intended. You stamp on the brakes. You try to turn in. Not much happens. Desperately you apply more lock. Stability control chunters angrily. The car makes the bend. You breathe a sigh of relief and then wait until the car is fully straight before repeating the exercise.
You're missing out.
Abilities are freakish in the wet...
Because the real magic of the GT-R is not its technical wizardry or raw acceleration. It's the playfulness and adjustability in the corners, the way it defies expectations its thick-necked simpleton image carries with it.
Critics write the GT-R off for being a computer simulation of a fast car. Ironically in the eight years it's been on sale it's become an unexpected beacon of raw, mechanical interaction. The digital car turned analogue hero. The 911 Turbo it's often benchmarked against packs far more electronically controlled hardware but flatters you through its smooth-talking calibration into thinking its performance is all down to you.
In a GT-R the diffs graunch, the gearbox thumps eagerly through its short ratios, the turbos howl and the hyper alert steering sniffs out cambers and surface changes, constantly twitching and wriggling in your hands as it does so. The damping is just brilliant too, seemingly uncompromised in any of the settings, assuming you accept low-speed urban roads are not its comfort zone. With the space to stretch its legs driving a GT-R quickly is among the more demanding, immersive and driver-focused experiences you can have though, Godzilla happy to bite big chunks out of your ego if you're not up to the job. This with all the systems on too. For this and for being the anti-911 Turbo in everything from looks to character my love for this car remains undiminished.
... but it's staggering in the dry too
This is demonstrated perfectly on Anglesey's fast first turn. There's a dry patch on the outside just long enough to scrub enough speed for the turn-in. Attempt a point and squirt and the understeer will have you begging for mercy. Trail the brakes though and the Track Edition's NISMO chassis settings rotate the car around its vertical axis. A late apex has suddenly become an early one. Hold the wheel straight, deploy full power - having got on the throttle early to get over the lag - and let the wheels spin up on the standing water. The diagonal line to the exit is both eerie and thrilling, the razor sharp connection between throttle and steering permitting minute adjustments to attitude, angle and chosen exit point. The Track Edition is very keen to rotate into oversteer if you want it but the really satisfying bit is holding that balance of proper four-wheel drift and ability to place the car exactly where you want it.
This is no blunt tool; it's a beautifully balanced, richly communicative and entertainingly playful car. That then warps time taken to reach the next corner where it does it all over again, this time a gear up and going faster still. If there's an intimidation factor it's in the speeds all this takes place and the knowledge that if it does end up on the grass no amount of braking or - indeed - tyre wall will seemingly prevent you ending up in the cold, dark sea just beyond the track limits.
That it then does exactly the same thing at higher speeds on dry tarmac a few days later at Blyton Park just underlines the point. Still scary fast. In a good way. And still the boss.
See the Anglesey lap here.
NISSAN GT-R TRACK EDITION BY NISMO
Engine: 3,799cc V6 twin-turbo
Transmission: 6-speed dual clutch auto, four-wheel drive
Power (hp): 550@6,400rpm
Torque (lb ft): 466@3,200rpm-5,800rpm
0-62mph: 2.8sec
Top speed: 196mph
Weight: 1,740kg (without driver)
MPG: 24 (NEDC combined)
CO2: 275g/km
Price: £88,560 (OTR, before options)
With thanks to Bookatrack
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Photos: Sim Mainey
Jethro Bovingdon of EVO has always reckoned that the GTR is a very mechanical thing to be in and to drive, considering it's a heavy, four wheel drive, paddle shift, Godzilla kind of car. It also offers an insane amount of performance for the money, even if it's £10k more than it was at launch when you account for inflation.
I'd love to drive one or even own one at some point. I'm also interested in seeing what Dan's reasoning is behind calling it The Boss still, it's got some stiff competition these days hasn't it? Although said competition probably still costs a lot more.
Everyone who does bring a GTR to a circuit is convinced it's the fastest thing in the world but then gets overtaken by the aforementioned pair.
I'm sure it's because they appeal to a certain type of person but always made me wonder. Do you need to be a racing driver to actually pedal one quickly anywhere that's not the M1?
Going back to the R34, I remember it being criticised for the computer-based driving experience and not as "pure" as European rivals.
Now look...every major performance car is riddled with systems to improve or limit performance.
Arguably in my mind the Japanese seem to have ideas probably a decade before European acceptance, and when they make a high end performance car, it tends to be head and shoulders above most competition, IMO.
The GTR is an example of this. It biggest flaw and asset is actually its size. But just means more room for taller drivers like me!
How exactly?
They are hugely fast, and to this day one of the fastest cars I've driven. But it is more akin to an RS6 in character than a sports car. The flappy paddles are also the worst I have Used, and I understand Nissan has seen fit to change them on the 2017 model. Then there's the engine, hugely capable but generally dull in character.
As far as outright performance goes, it really is amazing. But in many respects it was a retrograde step over the previous RB26 engined cars.
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