Should you pay £29k for a 1998 Nissan Sunny?
Labour is back in power and Oasis are reforming - just how deep into '90s nostalgia are you prepared to go?
Group A rallying may have felt a step down from the fire-breathing Group B monsters of the '80s, but it doubtlessly spawned some mighty road-going specials. With the ruleset requiring teams to run cars closely linked to their civilian counterparts, manufacturers spent millions developing machines that could win in the WRC before toning them down ever so slightly for us lot to muck about in. Without it, we’d never have had all-wheel drive greats like the Mitsubishi Lancer Evo, Subaru Impreza WRX and Lancia Delta HF Integrale.
Of course, those are the ones that took home the most silverware during Group A's golden era in the '90s, but for every championship winner there is a whole heap of homologation specials that never cut the mustard. For instance, the Escort RS Cosworth may be one of the great fast Fords even if it only managed a handful of wins in the WRC. On the more obscure side of things, Mazda created a barmy version of the 323 with well over 200hp on tap, while Volkswagen made its Mk2 hatch even boxier with the Rallye Golf. Both were a bit rubbish at rallying, but otherwise made immensely cool homologation specials that collectors would bite your arm off to own.
However, as cool-yet-unsuccessful rally hatches go, few hold a candle to the Nissan Pulsar GTI-R. Dubbed the Sunny in Britain, the GTI-R was a radical transformation of Nissan's woefully boring family hatchback for an assault on the WRC in '91. Chief among the upgrades was a 2.0-litre turbo engine developing 230hp, sending it along with 210lb-ft of torque across both axles via a five-speed manual gearbox. It’s said that a 0-62mph sprint could be achieved in just 5.5 seconds, which is almost identical performance to the 30 years newer Toyota GR Yaris.
Impressive performance for a Sunny, so little wonder Nissan wanted to make a song and dance about it. The GTI-R is famous for its outlandish body kit, comprising chunkier bumpers, a massive boot spoiler and a non-ironic bonnet bulge thanks to the positioning of the intercooler directly above the rally-prepped engine. And while interior tweaks were kept on the light side, the dials feature the GTI-R graphic and there are high-bolstered sports seats to stop you flailing around while charging down a tarmac stage.
If that’s not an invitation to hoon, I don’t know what is. And hoon is what many, many GTI-R owners tend to do in their homologation special, with some spending thousands on premium Japanese aftermarket upgrades to extract even sillier amounts of power. Nissan made nearly 15,000 of them, including those branded Sunny here in the UK, though finding one these days is incredibly difficult, let alone one that hasn’t been tuned to within an inch of its life. That makes this JDM-spec GTI-R a bit of a unicorn, remaining in completely stock condition over the last 26 years and 42,000 miles.
Every inch looks immaculate, with no reported scuffs or faded paintwork, while the engine bay looks as fresh as the day it left the factory. It even comes fitted with some rare factory extras, such as a tri gauge cluster in the centre console and a very '90s passive radiator speaker (or DDPR in Nissan speak) in the parcel shelf. A suburb example of a cult rally hero, and as such there’s a mighty sizeable asking price. The seller’s looking for £28,995, and while GTI-Rs don’t come cheap, they can certainly be had for less than this. But this isn’t any old GTI-R, it’s as close to a box-fresh example as we may ever see and would be a fantastic addition to any rally fan’s collection. So what’ll it be: this, or a lightly used GR Yaris?
They really weren't that great standard, which is why so many were modified. Even then, they were woefully unreliable. The gearbox in particular was made of chocolate, so good luck attempting that 0-60 time without having a spare in the garage.
This one has been off the road since 2020 according to it's lack of MOT so it's almost certainly going to need work if you want to drive it anywhere.
Yes, it's almost a unicorn in this condition but this is one of those occasions when you really want one that's been breathed on to actually enjoy it.
Purchases, like this are not based on the ability of the purchase, but more about the memories/feeling they evoke. Why would you want a Ferrari 246 GTS, a Fiesta ST is quicker.
Purchases, like this are not based on the ability of the purchase, but more about the memories/feeling they evoke. Why would you want a Ferrari 246 GTS, a Fiesta ST is quicker.
I gather tuned ones were a different animal tho but as said gearboxes will struggle.
Wheels are tiny as well , I think they are 14's, and even back then they looked too small.
Purchases, like this are not based on the ability of the purchase, but more about the memories/feeling they evoke. Why would you want a Ferrari 246 GTS, a Fiesta ST is quicker.
I gather tuned ones were a different animal tho but as said gearboxes will struggle.
Wheels are tiny as well , I think they are 14's, and even back then they looked too small.
Agreed about the wheels too, just too small.
Hardly high is it, 4200. and it would be barely used, quite likely with a lot of hidden issues that would manifest if you used it.
Like a deisel, prefer one that has been used as intended somewhat.
It needed a clutch as it was stolen two years prior... no sight or sound of it until my mate drove past it and thought "I used to have one of those"... for it to actually be his, albeit with the badges and spoiler removed.
He had to steal it back, but promptly found the clutch was knacked.
I only drove it briefly after I did the clutch, remember it feeling very analogue, when the boost hit it felt quick!
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