New GT-R bursts from virtual reality to reality

The GT-R’s monstrous brakes are supplied by the fashionable Italian house of Brembo and, for those comparing specs at home, feature six pistons in the radial-mounted front calipers and four pistons in the rears, with 15-inch full-floating rotors front and back. Those are the specs, but the real-world experience is of brakes that exhibit a nice touch in around-town driving, without grabbing.

At racetrack speeds, when street cars routinely roast their brakes, the GT-R withstood hours of use while providing excellent stopping distances and a firm, fade-free pedal. There were wisps of smoke from cars entering the pit lane and the smell of burned brakes, but beyond these superficial symptoms, the brakes held up fine.

It will be tough to argue logically that there are many better high-performance cars than the GT-R. Its 480 horsepower twin-turbo V6 engine and paddle-shifted dual-clutch manual transmission channel the power through all four wheels to produce a manufacturer-estimated 0-60 acceleration time of 3.5 seconds. That makes the GT-R quicker off the line than any new car but the uber-expensive and finicky Murcielago, leaving behind would-be rivals such as the Porsche 911 Turbo, Lamborghini Gallardo, Ferrari F430, Dodge Viper and Corvette Z06.

And unlike some of those cars the GT-R can click off one run after another at that pace with an average driver at the wheel because the computer-controlled transmission and advanced all-wheel-drive systems apply the force of internal combustion with the mathematical precision of TurboTax (and about the same level of excitement).

But the GT-R distinctly misses in few couple areas. The Nissan’s superb V6 delivers immense power and has a sound that is agreeable but subdued for a supercar. It surely falls short of a unique aural signature or a mechanically produced call to battle. Cars like the Corvette and the F430 seem worth the price of admission just for their intoxicating exhaust notes.

The cabin is adequately but not opulently outfitted, which is surely a tradeoff most enthusiast drivers are willing to make, even in a $70,000 car, in exchange for the GT-R’s otherworldly performance. But they might not be able to enjoy that performance for very long because of the distinctly cheap and uncomfortable bucket seats, which lack adjustment for lumbar support.

The front seats are at least better than the rear seats, which border on useless. Here again, the GT-R is similar to the 911, with its for-display-purposes-only rear seats. While some coupes have snug rear buckets that are difficult to clamber into and out of, but which are tolerable once the occupants are in place, the GT-R’s rear seats are purely decorative for adults, with some occupants’ heads touching the rear window glass.

Utility is not the reason people buy cars like the GT-R, though by measures such as the ability to drive the car in foul weather, the GT-R can even stake a claim to utility even if the back seat is pointless. 

Some customers buy performance cars for their charisma, sound and visceral experience as much for the times they can put on a stopwatch, and for those customers the GT-R will be an aesthetic disappointment. But for those who worship results above all, and who crave the opportunity to pore over computer data from the car and match specs with online rivals, the GT-R is a dream come true.

Unless, that is, you dream of built-in saw blades.

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