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How fast can the Nissan GT-R Nismo go?

2014 Nissan GT-R Nismo prototype

While Matt Prior from Autocar presents a good case for the demise of lap times as a subjective measure in contributing towards a decision to purchase one car over another, Dale Lomas from Bridge to Gantry reports that Nissan is going all out with its latest Nismo GT-R:

The Nürburgring is always being used for something, but the prices to hire the track are so expensive that it’s very unusual to hear only one car going past every 7 or 8 minutes. It’s even more unusual for that one car to enjoy a compliment of safety marshalls and timing beacons in the industry/sport-auto positions (T13 start and end). But that’s what the Nismo GTR has this morning.

The GT-R has always been something of a giant killer at the Nürburgring and when the car was first released pretty much anything with a Porsche badge on it was firmly in Nissan’s sights. Porsche wasn’t always happy about that. At one stage Porsche even claimed Nissan cheated on its way to headline grabbing lap times.

Fast forward a few years and it’s quite something to see Nissan has booked the entire Nordschleife in what appears to be a determined chase for a super fast lap time. We’re not for one moment suggesting this Nismo GT-R will go faster the 918’s 6:57 lap time, but, well, you just never know with these things. As it stands Nissan claims its best time at the Ring with a GT-R is 7:18.

Let’s wait and see what happens next!

[Source: Bridge to Gantry]

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2013 Frankfurt Motor Show in pictures

2013 Frankfurt Motor Show

The lights have been turned off at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show and the mammoth task of dismantling the huge displays has begun. To recap what you may have missed here’s a selection of 120+ pics reminding you what was on show.

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2013 Goodwood FoS in pictures – gallery 2

2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed

This is your second fix of images from the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed. We start with McLaren and take you all the way to Vuhl, plus a few bonus pics at the end.

Stay tuned for tomorrow’s final gallery which is a dedicated set of Porsche images.

See also: 2013 Goodwood FoS in pictures – gallery 1

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Chris Harris and the element of surprise

Chris Harris is a lucky bastard

Here’s your latest Chris Harris fix. Today he’s at the wheel of the highly desirable Audi R8 V10 Plus, the equally wantable 997 Porsche 911 Turbo S and giant killing Nissan GT-R that’s been warmed over by Litchfield.

He tracks the cars around Anglesey, down the Bruntingthorpe drag strip and on the road. Whatever order you think these cars will be ranked at the end of this comparison, think again. Most of all have fun watching the verdict being reached.

Although, the results of the flat out drag race will probably be exactly what you expect to see. And, wow!

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Nissan

VIDEO: Nissan GT-R v Swiss jet fighter

Nissan GT-R v Oris Swiss Hunter

Nissan Germany brings our attention to this drag race between a GT-R and a Swiss jet fighter. Okay, it may not be the most exciting video you will see today but it’s been well made, the scenery is superb and really, what’s not to like about two kilometers of empty runway to play with.

Just one more thing, we think this clip might be a bit of an ad for a watch, see if you can pick up on the very subtle clues.

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Nissan

The man with the golden GT-R

Usain Bolt's golden Nissan GT-R

When you’re the world’s fastest human being it’s fitting that you drive one of the world’s fastest cars. Usain Bolt has been representing Nissan as a brand ambassador for some time and in appreciation of his role Nissan has furnished Mr Bolt with a tailored MY14 GT-R in Bolt Gold paint.

Following a test drive of a GT-R at Nissan headquarters in October last year engineers customised the car to suit Bolt’s driving style. Also added to the special creation are 10-spoke Rays alloys and a “flamboyant white interior”.

It’s only the second gold GT-R in existence. The first, also created in Bolt’s honour, was provided as first prize in an online charity. That car will be on its way to its new owner in the coming weeks.

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Nissan Video

Inside look: Nissan’s clay modelling studio

Nissan's clay model studio

With this video Nissan takes us inside their clay modelling studio in Atsugi, Japan. It’s quite an interesting look at the way clay is still used in the design and development of new cars.

I only wish they spoke a little about what the clay is applied to. I’ve always imagined the models are hewn from a solid block of clay, but know that wouldn’t be the case.

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Nissan

2013 Nissan GT-R: world’s fastest snowmobile?

2013 Nissan GT-R

Nissan has released a 20 minute video to YouTube that illustrates the virtues of its 2013 model GT-R when driven snowy conditions. They compare it against a 370Z and an Infiniti SUV.

It’s not the most entertaining video we admit, but it does go to some lengths to explain some of the factors and research that went into creating the 21st century Godzilla.

Oh, and if you ever thought the GT-R was a heavy car (it’s 1740kg), think again. The correct term is “optimised weight”.

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2013 Geneva Motor Show in pictures – part 2

2013 Geneva Motor Show

You can have your fancy pants limited-edition Lambo, or your stonking new LaFerrari, even the McLaren P1; we’re not really interested. The car of Geneva, for us, is the Porsche 911 GT3. That’s the one we’d like to take home and get intimate with. And so begins the second and final part of our Geneva Motor Show image gallery. There’s over 120 new  images to see and enjoy.

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New vehicle sales report – December 2012

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A round of applause for Australia’s car buying public who achieved an all-time record of 1,112,032 sales in 2012. It’s only the fifth time Australians have bought more than 1 million cars in a calendar year. Last year’s results represent an overall increase of 10.3% (103,595 sales) compared with 2011.

FCAI Chief Executive, Tony Weber, explained demand for a wider range of vehicles helped to fuel the record result. “Reduced tariffs as well as changing consumer preferences have contributed to making the dynamic and innovative automotive industry that we have today,” he said.

“The 2012 sales result bears that out. Customer demand has been high and the industry has responded with a wide range of vehicles powered by a range of different fuels.”

When you read the material after the break it seems that almost everyone’s a winner except Holden and Ford. The General returned a 9.1% drop in sales compared with 2011, but managed to hold its position as the country’s second-best seller. Although, Mazda is snapping at its heels. Meanwhile, Ford held station, to a degree, returning a 0.9% drop in sales against 2011.

However, when you consider market-leader Toyota increased its annual sales by 20.1%—coupled with strong improvements from other top 10 selling brands like Honda (+18.9%), Mazda (+17.6%), Nissan (+17.4%), Subaru (+18.2%) and Volkswagen (22.6%)—we can’t imagine there’s too many smiles in the boardrooms at Fisherman’s Bend and Broadmeadows.

Individually, the Mazda3 managed to top the charts for 2012, notching up 44,128 sales. Close behind were Toyota’s HiLux (40,646) and Corolla (38,799).

It used to be that one in every four cars sold in Australia was either a Commodore or a Falcon. Not anymore. The Commodore was the fourth-best selling model (30,532 sales), while the Falcon didn’t even make it into the top 10.

Despite 2012’s record result Tony Weber expects a small drop in annual sales for 2013. “During this election year, and with production now having caught up with back orders, FCAI forecasts a national automotive market of 1,075,000 for 2013,” he said.

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Nissan

Tracing the roots of the Skyline legend

1964 Prince Skyline GT

Some may think the Nissan v Porsche rivalry started when the R35 Skyline GT-R was released and began to stick it to the 911 around the Nürburgring. The truth is, the battle began back in 1964 when a plucky little Nissan (née Prince) Skyline GT took it up to the gorgeous Porsche Carrera GTS (904) at the Japan Grand Prix.

Nissan has kindly made a short film about that day, when the little Skyline that could, overtook the best Germany had to offer. Really, it was a humble beginning not borne from victory, but from belief.

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New vehicle sales report – November 2012

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Well done Australia, for the first time on record you’ve bought more than 1 million new vehicles before the end of November. The year-to-date figure at the end of last month was 1,016,605, a 10.9% increase compared with the same time frame last year.

As always, string demand for SUVs in the private sector has fuelled the growth, but so too has a resurgence in sales of passenger vehicles.

Meanwhile, Government fleet sales have dropped off by a total of 35.1% compared with November 2011 and by almost 21% since the start of the year.

The top three selling brands in November were Toyota (19,312), Holden (10,354) and Mazda (8,732). While the three best selling models were the Toyota Corolla (4,190), the Mazda3 (3,703) and the Toyota HiLux (3,059).

Congratulations to Mazda, too, who has recorded its best ever annual sales results, with a month still remaining in the year.

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