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R35 Might be coming to Australia..

pushead

By pushead,
in Victoria

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pushead Veteran

pushead

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Sorry for the one's who have read this:

'Godzilla' set to roar again

By Cameron McGavin

The Age

Thursday February 6 2003

Nissan's revival gathers more speed, reports Cameron McGavin.

NISSAN will go head to head in a power war with the world's top sports-car manufacturers when its new GT-R sports coupe makes its debut this year -- and it could be heading to Australia.

Speaking at the Australian launch of the 350Z sports car this week, Nissan chief product specialist John Yukawa said the upcoming GT-R would break through the unofficial 206kW power limit, which Japanese manufacturers have adhered to for decades to appease their government.

And it won't be by a nose, either. Yukawa's benchmark for the new GT-R is Porsche's 911 Turbo, which pumps out 309kW and is regarded by many as the best sports car in the world. Expect to see a power figure of about 300kW when the GT-R is revealed at the Tokyo motor show this year.

"The GT-R will exceed 206kW (the Japanese limit)," said Yukawa. "The Porsche 911 Turbo has about 400hp -- we're aiming for that. Porsche is my ambition."

Japanese car makers have long been suspected of exceeding the self-imposed power limit and then simply quoting 206kW (or 280hp) to keep officials happy. Now that the decision has been made to abandon the agreement, Japanese performance-car makers can get serious about challenging their European counterparts.

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The new GT-R is expected to be powered by a twin-turbocharged V6 engine.

The rest of the GT-R package is a secret, though there have been clues. The styling is likely to show influences from the rakish GT-R concept car shown at the 2001 Tokyo motor show. Meanwhile, four-wheel-drive -- a signature of the model -- is a certainty.

Price is another unknown, although suggestions are that it will not be cheap, stretching beyond $150,000.

Previous GT-Rs have been built purely for the Japanese market, although 100 of the original -- and, some would say, the best -- R32 model were sold through Nissan dealerships between 1991 and 1993.

The new car, however, is designed with foreign markets in mind as Nissan continues its much-publicised revival under the guidance of leader Carlos Ghosn.

Leon Daphne, managing director and chief executive of Nissan Australia, said the new GT-R was on his wish list, though he stressed that any decision would come from Japan.

"When it's available in right-hand-drive, we'd like to take it," he said. "But it would be in very limited numbers."

The GT-R name has a glorious history in Australia, despite no presence in almost a decade.

The legendary R32 GT-R earned the nickname "Godzilla" for its performances in Australian touring car racing; it was ultimately ruled out of the competition through fear of upsetting car makers Ford and Holden.

Road-going models, many of which have been privately imported over the years, won similar favour for their explosive performance and excellent handling.

Sitting below the GT-R in Nissan's planned three-tiered sports-car line-up is the 350Z, which went on sale this week for less than $60,000.

Ironically, the arrival of Nissan's new Z-car comes just as its sweet-driving 200SX sports coupe sibling bows out of the Australian market because of problems meeting future emission regulations.

But fans of affordable sports cars need not fret, because a replacement is already under development.

Nissan's John Yukawa confirmed that a new 200SX was on the way and that it would stay true to the philosophy of its predecessor. Don't be surprised, then, if the 200SX replacement is another compact, rear-drive, turbocharged coupe.

"The 200SX is an entry car for the young guy, the Z-car is a car for the macho guy and the GT-R is a car for the enthusiast," said Yukawa. "Nissan is always seeking to provide fun-to-drive cars for the customers, especially for enthusiasts. This is the Nissan way."

06god2.jpg

06god3.jpg

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predator Grand Master

predator

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-- and it could be heading to Australia.

Yup, its an old article. I would really read too much into this - "could" inserted by the jouno isn't really worth any more than the paper its printed on.

And that shot is a promo shot from the protype concept car shown 2 years ago. Word is that the final version won't look much like that at all. All shall be reveled at the Tokyo Motorshow in October when the final version will be shown.

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rs73 Grand Master

rs73

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Nissan better stay away from bathurst v8, otherwise if the Falcons n Commodores not happy abt the R35 GT-R kicks their ass, then another heavier ban of imports for the next 10 yrs!!!!

R33 & R34 being forced into grey market is the proof of the V8 boys retaliation to R32... coward chickens! bokkk.... bokkk....

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inark Grand Master

inark

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yeah once again eric ur dwelling in the past... its ok... ur from Telstra :(

nah from what ive heard they have about 4 versions which are going to be released and it wont be til about 05/06.

They were going to only bring an N/A V8 here to AUS in auto form as most of u hillbilly aussies prefer to drive auto cause using a clutch and changing gears takes to much thought. (obviously not aimed at anyone from here as most of us drive manuals)

wish they kept the original idea of the V8TT :) that would have been awesome

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inark Grand Master

inark

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in short eric...

yes lol

this is like a rehashed write up from the article from a couple of months ago on some other car website... cant remember which one right now

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SmoothLine Grand Master

SmoothLine

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Originally posted by inark

yeah once again eric ur dwelling in the past... its ok... ur from Telstra :D

nah from what ive heard they have about 4 versions which are going to be released and it wont be til about 05/06.

2006? wtf? thats like 3 and a half more years!!!

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KamikazeR33 Grand Master

KamikazeR33

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Originally posted by pushead

Sorry for the one's who have read this:

'Godzilla' set to roar again

By Cameron McGavin

The Age

Thursday February 6 2003

"When it's available in right-hand-drive, we'd like to take it," he said. "But it would be in very limited numbers."

arent cars in japan right hand drive?

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R31Nismoid Grand Master

R31Nismoid

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Originally posted by pushead

The GT-R name has a glorious history in Australia, despite no presence in almost a decade.

No presence?

what an fuc*ing retard.

There are GT-R's all over the place. Stock/modified

street driven - race track/rally driven

But i can't see it coming here.

And if it does... it will be so heavily de-tuned that it will be a dissapointment.

i wouldn't believe a word in the papers... anything to sell a few more papers these days.

As for that front end... that will have to be changed.

Very Ugly.

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