When it comes to unparallelled excitement, there are few vehicles that have maintained the grade as much as the Nissan GT-R.
In fact, just saying those three letters gets petrolkop’s blood running faster, as this car like none other has dominated the scene, especially when it comes to its high performance in our local top-end drags.
To commemorate 50 years of GT-R, Nissan is bringing the 2020 GT-R 50th Anniversary Edition to the New York auto show this year.
The engineers set themselves the challenge of finding new potential. Quite a challenge as the GT-R has been tweaked by tuners the world over, for years.
“A GT-R is about total balance management,” said Hiroshi Tamura, chief product specialist for the GT-R. “It is not about chasing a power figure, but creating a new GT-R, where no aspect has been overlooked. This is appropriate to celebrate the GT-R 50th anniversary.”
PRESTIGIOUS: A few tweaks added to the ride. Photo: Waldo van der Waal.
In short, there are some special items in this celebration of its rich heritage. Exterior gets two-tone combos meant o represent the liveries from the Japan GP series, which the original GT-R dominated. A four-coat, double-heat treatment process ensures a vivid blue with striking highlights and deep shadows, with a return of Bayside Blue.
Inside, the GT-R is resplendent with Alcantara leather, with a grey theme lending an aura of luxury.
The 3.8-litre 550HP V6 powerplant, with its 24 valves and twin turbochargers, is a hard act to beat. But the engineers had a few tricks to bring, including new turbos that increase low rpm response due to an abradable seal, lending 5% more efficiency. This makes the GT-R even more efficient out of corners. The dual-clutch transmission features more aggressive downshifts with gear selection happening during braking, resulting in a more driver-intuitive feel. Suspension has been tuned to provide better cornering stability and a smoother ride.
DRAG DREAMS: Petrolkoppe are going nuts and bolts for the 2020 GT-R 50th Anniversary Edition. Photo: Waldo van der Waal.
The 2020 Nissan GT-R will come in two trim levels in the SA market: GT-R Premium (R2 250 000) and GT-R Black Edition (R2 360 000). In select regions, there will also be the Pure, Prestige and NISMO models.
“The Nissan GT-R has been the icon of our company’s driving performance for the past half century,” says the programme design director for the GT-R. “We were highly motivated to ensure that the GT-R 50th Anniversary Edition stands out.”