As more and more info/testing pop up, this car keeps looking better and better. Not only is it the most powerful GT-R by about 200hp, it's the fastest car to ever come out of Japan (473 hp, 434 lb-ft). It will do the quarter in 11 and change, 0-60 in 3.5 seconds, and we all know the infamous 7:38 at the Ring.
Not only does it go like hell, every review so far claims that the GT-R sports THE best brakes of any production car ever. With 15in two piece rotors, forged monoblock six-piston in front, four-piston rear, this thing should stop as fast as it goes.
A true manual will always be my first choice, but I can safely say, this is the only car in existence that I will settle for a dual-clutch paddle shifting unit (probably because there is no other choice). Carbon fiber driveshaft, rear mounted transmission, 0.2 second upshifts, rev-matched downshifts, this thing is just packed with cool stuff.
All of this should be old news by now, but the car is just so badass, I feel the need to reiterate simply because I want one... badly. For the money, it just does not get any better, even though there is no way I can afford one. Sure the C6 Z06 might be better bang for the buck (just ran 10s on stock tires) and houses arguably the best V-8 ever produced, but its still a GM and its best time at the Ring is 7:42. In the end, can you live with the cheap-ass interior, flimsy body panels, and poor build quality? I'll take the GT-R over a Chevy any day. There is just so much more technology packed into the new GT-R.
If for some fluke that I win the lottery, or start getting paid a whole LOT more, this would be the only car I would consider. I wouldn't touch a thing on it, keep it bone stock. The only thing that I might consider would be smaller, lighter wheels, but even then, I would not want to mess with something this good out of the box. 70 grand gets you one of the most capable super cars out there, period. It would also be nice to have a car that passes smog and can be registered with ease. Even though all of the reviews thus far have been from overseas, it's only a matter of time until Godzilla storms the US.
I want this car, period.
Here are some quotes from recent reviews:
Jeremy Clarkson - Top Gear
"The GT-R hasn't just moved the goalposts, it's obliterated them. For all-round ability, I have no doubt the Nissan is the best car I have ever driven."
UK magazine "CAR"
"It's automotive heaven..."
"Quite simply, the new GT-R is the world's most multi-faceted supercar. There is no fast car so easy to steer, none so forgiving, no car that has more armoury in its quest to go fast and keep you out of trouble.
Just as that old GT-R resets the standards for front-engined coupes, so the new one lifts the bar ever higher. An M3 beater? Easily. M5? Think higher. This car is faster, more high-tech, sharper, more capable. Faster than a 911 Turbo on the straight. Or on the circuit. And all for normal 911 money. Genius."