For more than a decade, the Nissan GT-R has been one of the world’s most popular and fastest performance cars. The history / heritage of the GT-R is a sight to see and an achievement to remember. Very few cars in the entire auto industry have a longer, richer, more successful, and universally loved lineup than mighty godzilla. When the first production model hit the roads in 2009, people were amazed by this “Supercar Killer” in a sports car price segment.

But over the years, it has gone further and further from its original price of $ 70,000 and entered low-budget supercar territory at around $ 110,000. And while its performance has seen a slow but steady rise through each successive model, it has remained largely the same. A lot of people claim the car looks stale and ugly while a lot of people think its fan base is ugly. Either way, one thing we are sure of is that today the R35 GT-R has gathered quite a diverse and fairly divided audience, with half of them believing it’s still the best. sports car and the other half who think it’s not as good as it used to be or not worth the price. Let’s see how it happened and why they think this way.

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Stunt acceleration

One of the best features of the GT-R R35 is its acceleration. The twin-turbo V6 engine (more on that later) generating 565bhp at 6800rpm may not be the most powerful among the same-priced rivals, but the AWD system and launch control are where the GT-R shines the most.

There’s a reason you can see tons and tons of videos where a Nissan GT-R (usually stock, but sometimes modified) races Lambos, Ferraris, Audis, Porsches, similar faster supercars. and leaves them behind with relative ease. Even the standard 2022 GT-R has a 0-60 mph time of just 2.9 seconds, not to mention someone getting inside a Nismo and coming to a stop.

Related: Watch: Red Bull F1 Racer Take On Lambo Huracan And Nissan GT-R In Drag Race

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Cheaper than rivals

We’ve mentioned before that the GT-R isn’t the $ 70,000 supercar killer it used to be. But supercars these days have also gone faster than they were back then. Priced at $ 115,000 and faster than its previous models, the GT-R remains a great value car.

This is one of the reasons you see many popular YouTubers and other successful social media stars having one in their garages. Simply put, it’s faster than similarly priced cars and cheaper than similarly paced cars.

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Powerful and robust V6 engine

At the heart of this beast is the VR38DETT, a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6. And the engine is a masterpiece in itself! Four specially trained mechanics called “Takumi Craftsmen“Manufacture the engine with their hands on a special line at the Nissan plant in Yokohama. Their names are also engraved on each engine.

The special factory is called the “clean room” where even the smallest particle of dust is prohibited from entering. This is dedication and craftsmanship at its best. 565 horsepower at 6800 rpm and 467 lb-ft of torque at 3300 rpm is powerful enough to make the GT-R worthy of Godzilla’s heritage and a true track killer.

Related: Ranking The Best V6 Engines Of All Time

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Continue and elevate the GT-R heritage

Nissan has been making the Skyline since 1968. The Skyline is actually older than that, debuting as the Prince Skyline in 1957. But Nissan started developing it from its 3rd generation. And since then we’ve got some of the best sports cars in history.

From the 1968 Skyline 2000GT-R, the R30 RS, the Godzilla-named R32, the underrated R33, the popular R34 and now the ever-faster R35, they’ve kept on growing. ‘improve and improve. Keeping the racing heritage intact and going so far as to elevate that heritage with its powerful performance, the GT-R is totally worthy of the Skyline lineage.

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The Nismo Edition is a real trail killer

Speaking of its racing performance, we can’t afford to overlook the Nismo edition of the GT-R. While the normal GT-R is pretty quick on its own, the Nismo cranks things up to eleven. Nissan makes the GT-R and then gives it to the folks at Nismo. Then these guys modify the car by tuning the engine, changing a few body parts here and there, adding racing components and the Nismo badge.

What you get is a lighter, slightly shorter, more powerful 600bhp beast of a car that can outrun most, if not all of its rivals on a track. But this improved edition will cost you around $ 212,000! Still, it’s less than the cheapest Lamborghini.

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Noisy powertrain, especially at low speeds

Now we know how amazing the car is. But, like all iconic features, it’s not without flaws. One of the first things you notice when driving the GT-R is its noise. The automatic transmission is tuned for high-speed racing, so cruising the city streets at normal speed won’t be much of a cinch.

When a car is developed on the track, it very rarely excels on urban roads and low-speed cruises. And it’s not one of those times. And the sound of the engine and transmission is really not pleasant to hear too.

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Lack of advanced driving aids or technological features

Although Nissan has made improvements over the years, it still lacks the facelift / design it needs to stay fresh. The infotainment system is outdated and the navigation is not as precise as the current ones. Additionally, the voice control is not up to the task and although it has Apple CarPlay, Android phone users will miss the Android Auto connectivity.

In terms of driver assistance features, you get absolutely nothing other than front and rear parking sensors and a rear view camera. Not at all what you’d expect from a $ 110,000 sports car in 2021.

Related: 10 Slow Cars We Would Buy Just For Their Crazy Interiors

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Comfort and ride quality

Once again, the racing vision of GT-R development hampers the accessibility and convenience of the car off the track. Nissan has generously given us the Comfort Mode which makes the car as comfortable as a typical sports car and not what you would expect from what Nissan calls a “luxury sports car”.

The suspension cushions potholes and rough pavement, but the rear seats (yes, the GT-R now has 4 seats!) Are cramped and only suitable for a child. The sitting position is upright and the lumbar support is positioned to require a break every two hours.

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No major changes from the original

We got the GT-R in December 2007. It was over 13 years ago. And the one we get today is the same for the most part. The appearance has more or less remained the same, the engine (which is superb) has received some upgrades and tweaks but is still the same, the interior has not changed much and it is basically still the first generation model. .

Now we think it’s about time we got a GT-R R36. We’ve been waiting for so long that even a facelift and new interior design will do the trick at this point. The 2008 GT-R and 2018 GT-R in the photos above are proof of this.

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Not available in the manual

Perhaps the biggest complaint the GT-R has received is its lack of a manual transmission. Most of the other things that keep the GT-R from being perfect have something to do with comfort, convenience, or looks. But this problem bothers some of the people the car is made for!

We have no issues with its splendid automatic transmission, but we really miss the inclusion of a gear lever in such a special and amazing car.

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