John Mellor's Auto News Article

[The Baron]

Transcript of thios mornings article in John Mellors Auto News (Industry Type Journal)<<<<<<

GTAaaah!

Nissan finally takes the covers off its GT-R supercar

- due here in about a year with an expected bargain price of $150,000

By BYRON MATHIOUDAKIS in TOKYO

FORGET its awesome 310km/h top speed,

ballistic 0-100km/h sprint time of 3.6 seconds

and Porsche 911 Turbo-equalling 353kW of

power … 150,000 is the number in Australian

dollars that may yet excite GT-R fans the most.

This is the price that Nissan Australia is

hoping to stick on the twin-turbocharged V6

all-wheel drive four-seater R35-series GT-R

coupe when it arrives here in the first quarter of

2009 – or even late next year if all goes well.

Over four years in engineering gestation, the

production car known in Australia as “Godzilla”

was finally unveiled today at the Tokyo motor

show, six years after it first appeared as the GT-R

Concept at the same event, and two years since

that initial show car morphed into the GT-R

Proto concept. Japanese buyers will pay around

$A78,000 when sales commence in December.

Consider also that the latest version of a

series started by the Prince Motor Company

as the Skyline GT-R in 1964 – and briefly

imported into Australia in R32 guise in the

early 1990s – delivers 588Nm of torque (32Nm

short of the Porsche) and can lap Germany’s

hallowed Nurburgring Nordschliffe racetrack

in seven minutes and 30 seconds, while pulling

g-forces of ‘2’ (side) and 1.8 (braking).

In fact, Nissan defines a supercar as a

vehicle with a power-to-weight ratio of 4kg/hp

(0.75kW), having a top speed capability on a

public road of over 300km/h and being able to

lap the Nurburgring in eight minutes or less.

Yet despite the massive capabilities on offer,

Nissan has dubbed the R35 GT-R – an all-new

and bespoke vehicle which has the job of being

its technological showcase for future models –

as the “Multi Performance” supercar, declaring

that it is a year-round proposition that can be

driven anytime, anywhere, and by anybody.

To prove the GT-R’s docility and accessibility,

Nissan filmed an 18-year-old woman in Japan

– with an automatic-only licence – driving

the car and obviously enjoying it. She duly

pronounced it as feeling “great”.

Part of that lies in the GT-R’s debut GR6

dual-clutch six-speed gearbox, which features

a three-mode “A” automatic mode as well as a

two-speed “M” manual sequential paddle and

floor levers that – in “R” racing mode – can

shift up or down in real-world conditions in 0.2

seconds.

Nissan’s engineers claim they had

commenced work on the gearbox – in

collaboration with BorgWarner – almost five

years ago, and had the idea for it before the

Volkswagen Group launched the conceptually

similar DSG dual-clutch transmission in 2002.

GR6 works in conjunction with Nissan’s

ATTESA all-wheel drive system that now

features an electro-magnetic clutch instead of

a hydraulic one, a heat exchanger for reduced

heat build-up and lower friction, a 1.5-way

mechanical LSD limited slip differential, and

dry-sump lubrication.

Torque is usually apportioned 100 per cent

to the rear wheels, but up to 50 per cent can be

diverted to the front wheels.

The engine is Nissan’s all-new VR38

60-degree angle V6 of 3799cc capacity, a

compression ratio of 9.0:1 and a bore/stroke

of 95.5mm x 88.4mm. Its 353kW peaks

at 6400rpm, with the rev limiter cutting in

at 7000rpm. The 588Nm plateaus between

3200rpm and 5200rpm. And the official Japanese

combined cycle fuel-consumption average is

12.2L/100km. This powerplant also rates a US

ULEV Ultra Low-Emission Vehicle status.

Its integrated twin-turbocharged induction

system features electronic boost pressure

control and a secondary air-injection system

for cleaner emissions and improved fuel

economy.

One senior GT-R engineer revealed that

discarding the decades-old tradition of inline

six-cylinder engines for the more common V6

design was not a point of debate, especially

when it became clear that the latter would be

far better suited to achieving the performance,

packaging and weight distribution targets that

Nissan had set out to achieve.

Suspension is by an independent double

wishbone set-up at the front, and a multi-link

arrangement at the rear. It includes Bilstein

electronically adjustable dampers for improved

ride characteristics.

Brakes are by Brembo, and have big

drilled fl oating rotors, aluminium monoblock

callipers (six-piston at the front, four-piston at

the rear) and a large-diameter master cylinder,

for repeated non-fade stopping performance

capabilities. Tests show a GT-R braking from

200km/h to 90km/h can create a 1.5g-force.

Runfl at tyres are used, and are 225/40ZRF20

97Y at the front and 285/35ZRF20 100Y spec

at the back, ensconcing lightweight 20-inch

alloy wheels.

Stylistically, the GT-R will only come as

a two-door coupe. Designer Masato Taguchi

pointed to the front mudguard’s “aero grade

fender” blister and feature line – which also

contains a vent housing designed to help with

airfl ow and brake cooling – as his favourite

styling detail on the car.

Other high points for the designer include

the rear-quarter view, which imparts the GTR’s

strength and angularity of line, as well as

the horizontal crease in the C-pillar, there to

help the fl ow of converging airfl ow at speed

for aerodynamic optimisation. The overall

silhouette is meant to recall previous Skyline

models dating back from the 1960s, while the

“Single Power Intake” grille – incorporated

purely for air-fl ow function – also connects the

latest GT-R with its R34 predecessor.

Three main materials are used in the body

– steel, aluminium (mainly for the bootlid,

bonnet, front suspension strut and seatbelt

housings, door panels and some underbody

bracing brackets), and carbon fi bre, which is

found in the front underbody sheeting area.

There are also various plastic compounds.

More raw numbers: the GT-R’s kerb weight

is 1740kg, while front/rear weight distribution

varies according to equipment levels, but it is

mostly about 53/47.

Developed over three years in Japan and

Britain, underbody shielding under the

GT-R’s nose and tail helps deliver far

more racecar-style downforce while

improving aerodynamic effi ciency – rated

at 0.27Cd.

The interior has been specifi cally

designed to be driver-orientated, evident

in the high-up eye-line placement for all

instrument and monitor displays.

The latter is a multi-function meter

that has a vast array of vehicular motionrelated

tech data inspired – and created – by

Sony’s Polyphony group that is behind the

Gran Turismo PlayStation phenomenon.

With today’s GT-R, life is imitating art that is

imitating life, it seems…

However, pimply teenagers will obviously not

be the target customer group, nor will the wealthy

banker, lawyer and advertising agency types that

drive 911s today. Instead, Nissan is counting

on Baby Boomers: aged over 50, and also over

the superfi ciality of brand image. The GT-R’s

outstanding value and performance balance,

uncompromised usability, unparalleled aftersales

care and uniqueness among cliche choices should

reel them in, the company reckons.

To help lure penta- and sexagenarians,

Nissan is making much about some of the

R35 GT-R’s handmade aspects as a point of

differentiation against its more mainstream

competition. This includes such things as a

Nissan-fi rst engine assembly process that is

overseen by one specialised technician working

in an environmentally controlled “clean room”

to ensure highest-possible quality and control,

craftsmanship levels of build quality that would

not allow even a 0.1mm gap discrepancy, and

chip-resistant paint fi nishes, to name a few.

Second-to-none customer service is another

hook to make buyers feel special. Nissan is

introducing a global maintenance regime that

will see specially trained technicians servicing

the GT-R from its 1000km service through to

the 12-, 24- and 36-month check-ups.

>>>>>>>

[Wink]

Summary of article - "GTR is awesome"

[Bliksem]

Hell yes!

Wonder how many GTR's will be on our shores at a price of $78,000 before the Australian delivered $150,000 versions arrive?

[Angus Smart]

Japanese buyers will pay around $A78,000 and then $150,000 is the number in Australian dollars that may yet excite GT-R fans the most..

i guess we'll have to wait and see nissan australias real figures,

but f**k there is an extra 72k in there,

Can someone get on the ball and apply for this on the sevs regester A.S.A.P!!!!

[GTS-t VSPEC]

For $78k I'd buy one today, for $150k I think I'll wait