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Nissan

MY11 Nissan GT-R does 0-100 in 3.0 seconds

Nissan GT-R

The arse end of a Nissan GT-R is all you’re likely to see if the driver chooses to plant their foot. When details of the updated 2011 GT-R were released performance data was not published. But when you have a trump card like this up your sleeve, why not make a song and dance about it.

Nissan completed their testing in Japan during mid-November and recorded two 0–100km/h runs of 3.0 seconds on consecutive days. The weather was fine and sunny, with temps in the mid-teens.

Three seconds flat! Surely, the Nissan GT-R has to rank as one of the best bang for buck cars you can drive off a showroom floor.

[via autoblog]

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Nissan

Nissan GT-R – MY11 specs released

Nissan GT-R

Nissan has just confirmed details of the MY11 changes made to its all-conquering GT-R. No car can show its face these days without LED daytime running lights, you see.

Of course, Nissan’s engineers went further than that, also trimming 10kg from the GT-R’s portly weight. Fuel consumption has been improved, along with a reduction in CO2 emissions. Minor tweaks have also been made to Godzilla’s suspension and brakes. These are complemented by new forged alloys from Rays.

Inside gets a once over, as well. Usual stuff like a revised instrument panel and nav display have been thrown in. But there are big changes, too. The steering wheel emblem now has “a new velour-like coating, expressing a glossy texture”. Amazing!

Outside has seen some cosmetic tweaks, notably the front spoiler can now feed in more air. These revisions also increase downforce by about 10%. Two new exterior paint colours—Jet Black and GTBlue—have been added to the colour palette.

However, the big news is more power. Quite a bit more actually. At its initial launch the GT-R had 353kW/588Nm. Well, now the little (big) Nissan that can boasts 390kW/600Nm. That’s quite a significant increase.

Australian deliveries for the MY11 model are expected from March next year.

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Nissan

Nissan improves Godzilla

Nissan GT-R

For the 2010 production cycle Nissan have introduced a number of updates to its hero GT-R model. A bunch of interior equipment has been refreshed, including the satellite navigation system. But, really, who cares about that. What about performance, have they made Godzilla any faster?

Nissan’s engineers have increased the flow of the catalytic converter, fiddled about with the suspension and nicked the cooling ducts from the rear diffuser of the Spec-V model. They have also improved cooling for the hard-working transmission.

“The Nissan GT-R continues to appeal to perfection-seeking motoring enthusiasts in Australia,” said Dan Thompson, CEO of Nissan Australia, “And the arrival of the finessed 2010-11 model GT-R makes this amazing motor car even more desirable. It truly is a modern classic.”

There’s no power or torque increases, but there has been a rise in the GT-R’s asking price. List pricing now starts at $158,800 for the base model, while the Premium model, which includes two-tone leather a flash stereo and 20″ wheels, is now priced from $162,800. So far 260 GT-Rs have been sold in Australia and these modest price increases of 1.9% are unlikely to hurt sales at all.

More from Nissan after the break.

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Nissan 370Z versus rivals at Tsukuba Circuit

The Nissan 370Z has the pedigree and the statistics to give its German and Japanese rivals some serious wasabi heat. But that’s all theory, how will the 370Z really stack up in practice?

Well, luckily for us the Japanese crew from Best Motoring have gone to the trouble of finding out. I trust you’ll enjoy this clip, filmed at the 2km Tsukuba Circuit in Japan (similar to Wakefield Park). Here you will see how the 370Z compares against the Honda S2000, BMW 135i, Porsche Cayman S and Porsche 911 Carerra.

Enjoy!

Source: The Motor Report

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Motor Shows News Nissan

Nissan 370Z UK specifications

Nissan 370Z

Okay, the UK specs of Nissan’s stylish 370Z may not be of great use to Australian readers, but the car looks pretty damn good and these details will give an indication of what to expect when the new Zed hits the Australian market in May.

NOTE: Australian readers can see the 370Z for themselves at the upcoming Melbourne International Motor Show (27 February–9 March).

The 370Z is 32kg lighter than the outgoing 350Z and with a smidge over 240kW it isn’t likely to hang about once you press the loud pedal. As to be expected with any new Japanese sportscar there is some pretty nifty technology inside the 370Z. New features such as Synchro Rev Control, which matches revs automatically on gear changes for the 6 speed manual, are sure to delight the boy racer inside all of us. The 7 speed auto also has a similar feature, well actually, it’s probably pretty much the same thing, but Nissan have called it something new anyway, Downshift Rev Matching. While those opting for the optional 19″ RAYS forged alloy wheels will encourage nods of approval from the JDM crowd.

If you want to knock around looking at more pics, downloading stuff and checking out official videos then take a look at www.nissan-370z.co.uk. In the meantime you can enjoy plenty of pics and read the Nissan UK press release below.

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News Nissan

Nissan GT-R hit by falling Aussie dollar

Nissan GT-R

According to a report on the GoAuto website new buyers of the Nissan GT-R will be stung for a price rise if they don’t already hold an order. While nothing official has been released, it seems as though the falling Australian dollar is behind Nissan’s economic revision. The increase will take effect before the GT-R’s Australian launch in April.

Original pricing from Nissan Australia was released in October last year, and at that point, the pricing was set at $148,800 for the entry level GT-R, while the Premium model would be an extra $4000. Now, though, those prices are expected to be just over AU$150K and AU$154K respectively.

Nissan Australia spokesman Ross Booth claims they have 140 orders for the GT-R on their books, and despite the economic downturn, none have been cancelled. Existing orders will not be affected by the price rise.

In relative terms this rise is very minor and one can’t imagine it would deter any prospective purchasers. Certainly wouldn’t stop me, that’s for sure!

Source: GoAuto

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Motorsports News Nissan

Nissan GT-R to lead touring cars, again

R35 Nissan GT-R

The good old days of the Nissan GT-R leading the best Australian touring cars in the land are coming back. The GT-R will be leading the way for the V8 Supercar field during 2009 after signing on to fill the vacant Safety Car position following the departure of the Chrysler 300C.

I know what you’re thinking, and no, the GT-R probably won’t be quicker than the purpose built racing Falcadores. That said, it’d be kinda fun if we were given a chance to see just how close a $150K Nissan would go against cars from the premier Australian racing category.

Rumours that Jim Richards will be driving the Safety Car in 2009 remain unconfirmed (more info after the jump).

Source: CarAdvice

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Nissan

Nissan GT-R Spec V details announced

Nissan GT-R SpecV

Details of Nissan’s GT-R Spec V were released today, as reported on AUSmotive in early December. Full marks to the chaps who originally broke that story, even their predicted date for today’s announcement was bang on!

While some details have been confirmed today, nothing official has been mentioned on increased power figures.

The modifications made to the Spec V that can be confirmed are, the addition of plenty of carbon fibre bits—including leather covered Recaro bucket seats, lightweight 20″ forged aluminium wheels, carbon brakes and, of course, a titanium coated exhaust. Until we get confirmation otherwise, we have to run with the 9kW increase mentioned in December’s leak. The increased power will be accessible from a boost control device, which increases boost for greater torque at mid-high revs. Interestingly, the press blurb doesn’t actually say this makes the car faster, but rather “a more powerful feeling of acceleration”.

To aid the weight loss program the rear seats have been removed. Erm, so why didn’t they lose the massive rear speakers too?

The GT-R Spec V is available in the usual GT-R colours, but also gets a unique hero colour called Ultimate Black Opal, as featured in the bulk of these pics.

At this stage the GT-R Spec V is only scheduled for Japanese sale, so that rules Australia out obviously. Japanese buyers will have to visit one of seven specially selected dealers in February to get their hands on a ‘V’. When they get there they’ll need to shell out a lazy Â¥15,750,000. On today’s exchange rates that’s about AU$242,00—remember the regular GT-R, available in Australia in two specifications, starts at AU$148,800 or AU$152,800 for the GT-R Premium.

I wonder how long we have to wait until Nissan torments Porsche by revealing GT-R Spec V’s best time around the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

Extensive image gallery (click on each pic to load a 2000px super image) and Nissan Australia press release after the jump.

Update: Make sure you check out AUSringers for this video of the Spec V in full flight around the Nürburgring.

Update 9 February: You can also access information about the Spec V from Nissan Global. If your Japanese is up to scratch, why not go directly to the GT-R Spec V page on the Nissan Japan website.

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Nissan

Nissan GT-R Spec-V details leaked

Nissan GT-R Spec-V

Another day, another leak. This time details of the Nissan GT-R Spec-V have surfaced on the net. The details are claimed to be confirmed specifications and suggest an official reveal for the Spec-V (or V-Spec, whatever tickles your Godzilla bone) will be 8 January 2009.

From what we can see on the GTRblog website there’ll be lashings of carbon fibre, lightweight 20″ forged aluminium wheels, carbon brakes and a moderate 9kW power upgrade, among other things (full list after the jump). Surely that power increase can’t be right, but that’s what the GT-R experts are saying, so we’ll run with it for now.

We probably won’t get the Spec-V in Australia at all, or for a very long time if we do. But the predicted base price in Japan is Â¥15,750,000 (approx AU$265,000). That’s over AU$100,000 more than the GT-R’s Australian list price. Ouch!

Source: GTRblog.com

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Nissan

Video footage of Nissan’s new 370Z

Following Nissan’s release of three images, here is some video footage of their new 370Z. The footage was captured at an enthusiast get together prior to its, now somewhat obsolete, official unveiling at the LA Auto Show.

The new ‘Zed’ looks pretty good to me, although the overtly agressive head and taillights may prove to be an aquired taste. The side repeat indicator is, perhaps, as obvious as it is cool. Overall, a thumbs up from where I sit. In fact, after seeing the first official pics a couple of weeks back, whenever I see a 350Z now, it looks too angular and a bit compromised.

Source: autoblog

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Nissan

Nissan GT-R V-Spec just weeks away

Nissan’s Nordschleife-busting R35 GT-R is about to get better. The upcoming V-Spec has been confirmed by Nissan and speculation suggests February 2009 for an official release, although nothing has been officially announced. It has been suggested, though, that the GT-R V-Spec could be revealed at the 12th annual Nismo Festival to be held at the Fuji Speedway later this month.

Shown above testing at Germany’s Nürburgring Nordschleife back in April, the V-Spec is expected to include the goodies from Nismo’s upgrade package, which has already been released for standard GT-Rs. The package includes undertray aerodynamic enhancements, light weight alloys and a titanium exhaust. The V-Spec will also employ carbon fibre body panels to help reduce overall weight and power is said to be increased by as much as 75kW. Such an improvement would take the GT-R V-Specto around 430kW (approx 575hp).

The regular GT-R retails for AU$148,800 and with speculation the V-Spec could be as much as Â¥15M, Australian pricing could begin around AU$240,000. That’s assuming the V-Spec gets an official Australian release.

The V-Spec looks like being an astonishing car. Porsche must be wondering what on earth they have to do next!

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Top Gear Australia

Top Gear Australia – Series 1, Episode 7

Top Gear Australia - Series 1, Episode 7

Lots of good content in tonight’s episode, the Nissan GT-R package was the highlight for me. Shooting the dark silver car through Sydney’s city lights at night looked stunning at times. The clips driving past the Ferrari and Porsche dealerships also worked well. Kudos, too, for Steve getting access to the new stretch of Highway for the high speed runs. That would have been ‘grouse’ fun, as Steve would say. The Top Gear Australia guys also stoked the GT-R v 911 fire by setting an ultra quick lap around their test track in a Porsche GT2. Like their UK cousins the GT2 has been faster on their test track than the GT-R. Although, to be fair, the Australian crew reckon the GT-R they used in Episode 1 was speed limited. Not sure that the difference of an unlimited GT-R would make up the 2.62 second gap set by the GT2, however, that’s for another time. For now, pencil in the GT2 as being the quicker car.

Steve got all the toys this episode, also having a fair old crack in an Impreza WRX STi. He was a bit contradictory when complaining of big understeer, while complimenting the car’s ‘massive’ grip. Apart from the understeer, he reckons the car is not too bad, although a lot softer than previous STi offerings. They also set a challenge to outrun Australia’s Army, who were behind the controls of a Tiger helicopter. This segment had some great sequences, but it was not as strong as it could have been and was a bit too contrived. Still, it was entertaining viewing all the same.

Greg Murphy and James Courtney were the guests this week and they were decent enough entertainment. Their lap times in the Bog Standard Car were quite impressive too, some 3 seconds faster than James Morrison, the quickest celeb to date. You could really see where the tin top racers were pushing harder, using all the road, and showing great commitment and aggressive lines around the track.

The show closed out with a Volkswagen Golf 2.0 FSI (petrol) v 2.0 TDI (diesel) comparo with Charlie and Warren. The clip itself was fine, but, again, we were given no real quantification as to the tests they supposedly undertook. We were led to believe the concept behind the test was to see which car would use the least amount of fuel on their test route. However, all we got was a throw away line at the end that the diesel used $5 less fuel, without actually being told how many litres each car used. Oh well…

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