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Jeremy Clarkson Reviews Nissan GT-R: The problem is ... it’s out of this world
The last time Nissan did a GT-R, it was based on the old two-door Skyline saloon. The company couldn’t do that this time round because the current Skyline saloon is too ghastly. So instead, a small team, in a hermetically sealed factory, set to work on a ground-up, handmade machine that would take the laws of physics and simply break them in half.

The attention to detail has been extraordinary. For instance, the GT-R’s tyres are filled with nitrogen because ordinary air expands and contracts too much. And each gearbox is specifically mated to each handmade engine.

It goes on. Japanese car companies rarely buy equipment from the round eyes. They always feel they can do better themselves. On the GT-R, though, you’ll find Brembo brakes. You’ll find a chassis that was developed initially by Lotus. You’ll find the best that Europe can offer mated to a computer control system that could only be Japanese.

On the road, then, this £53,000 car – with its rear-mounted double-clutch gearbox and its handmade 3.8 litre twin turbo motor and its infinitely variable four-wheel-drive system – is quite simply, how can I put this . . . very underwhelming. The noise it makes is normal. The ride is normal. The steering is normal. You can adjust all the settings as much as you like but it’ll make no difference. It still feels like a big Sunny.

It’s not pretty either. I know every shape and every crease serves an aerodynamic purpose but it’s like free-form poetry. It’s like it was conceived by Bartok.

Annoyed that Nissan could have lost the plot so badly, I drove it a bit harder. And then a bit harder still. And still it refused to reveal its hand. It was like driving a car that had fallen asleep. Like there was nothing that me, a mere human being, could do that would cause it to break into a sweat.

There were no clues that I was driving something that could lap the Nürburgring faster than a Koenigsegg or a McLaren Mercedes. That I was in a car that can stop just as fast as a much lighter, ceramic-braked Porsche 911 Turbo.

Even when I found a mountain road and went berserk, the GT-R remained utterly composed, absolutely planted. Occasionally, you’d catch a faint whistle from the turbos or maybe there’d be a little chaffinchy chirrup from the semi-slick tyres. But that was it. There was absolutely no drama at all. No sense that I was in something incredible. And the brakes, even after I’d pummelled them for half a day, were still ice cold and sharp.

This, then, is an extraordinary car, quite unlike anything I’ve driven before. You might expect it, with all its yaw sensors and its G readout on the dash, to feel like a laptop. Or you might expect, with all that heavy engineering, for it to feel like a road-going racer. But it is neither of these things. It certainly doesn’t feel like it could do a 7.29minute lap of the Ring. Even though I’ve seen a film of it doing just that.

I dare say that if Michael Schumacher were to find himself in the eye of an Arctic blizzard, escaping from an exploding volcano, he might discover 10% of this car’s abilities. But you? Me? Here? Forget it.

Nissan, then, has done something odd. It has built a car for a time and a place and a species that simply don’t exist.

Vital statistics

Model Nissan GT-R
Engine 3799cc, six cylinders
Power 473bhp @ 6400rpm
Torque 430 lb ft @ 3200rpm
Transmission Six-speed automated manual
Fuel CO2 23.2mpg (combined cycle) n/a
Acceleration 0-60mph: 3.5sec
Top speed 193mph
Price £52,900
Road tax band n/a
On sale Order now, delivery from March 09
Verdict Unfathomably good Read Article



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utahnkidutahnkid - 6/8/2008 5:00:38 PM
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Haha the comments on that other site are radicals. The only thing they got from Clarkson's review is that the car is somehow "boring". I'm sorry but doing the ring in sub 8 minutes would be anything BUT that. Just because it can take whatever you put at it, doesn't mean it's boring.

And that's true what he said about the cars there. I was in Okinawa and Nagasaki and EVERY car I saw was some type of mini car besides the occasional Supra.

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BostonBiosafetyBostonBiosafety - 6/8/2008 6:10:44 PM
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I may be going out on a limb here, but Jeremy likes cars with character (he owns a GT40). He often states cars can be too refined and lack a wow factor. Maybe this is true for him in this car.

It's only his opinion just like anyone that writes an article. If the car is a dud for him, he has the audience to listen.



EvoAudiEvoAudi - 6/8/2008 9:09:19 PMView My AgentSpace
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He sold his GT 2 years ago since it never worked when he wanted it to.


utahnkidutahnkid - 6/8/2008 10:13:32 PM
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Did you smoke a lil somethin on that limb? I was talking about the COMMENTS.. not what clarkson said. He loved that car


S4cabriofoxoneS4cabriofoxone - 6/9/2008 1:17:37 AMView My AgentSpace
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He has a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder now, and perhaps a 997 Turbo.


EvoAudiEvoAudi - 6/8/2008 5:53:43 PMView My AgentSpace
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I wonder if he ever set it in "R" mode. Clarkson has made these kinds of mistakes before.

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miracle113miracle113 - 6/8/2008 10:55:00 PM
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um, doing the ring in sub 8 min doesn't mean the car can't be boring. An elise can't do it in 8, but would you say it is boring?
GT-R is a marvel for sure, but it is just too computer to me. IMHO of course.

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w209w114w209w114 - 6/8/2008 11:33:54 PMView My AgentSpace
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Its a matter of opinion and everyone is entitled to just that. The Audi R10 got a great review from him despite not being the best at what it does. Ultimately Jeremy is won over by how the car makes him "feel" and he has even stated this at times.

Quite simply the GTR is not my cup of tea either and if I were in the market for something in that segment my money would be put elsewhere. This car is a step up from a "supped up" nissan 350Z or 350Z aficionado, and a step down from say a Porsche. Nissan needs to understand that what matter the most isn't the 0-60 time but how the quality of time spent in pushing its vehicle to the edge makes the driver feel.

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_43LE_43LE - 6/9/2008 10:56:31 AM
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I think that Nissan's goal of making the GT-R car that anyone could drive is the problem, maybe it's too easy.


Designer1Designer1 - 6/9/2008 2:57:43 AM
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Simply said, the GT-R rules!!!!!

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ABONHONareHTABONHONareHT - 6/9/2008 7:20:03 AM
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In Australia where GTR's are as common as a 3 series in N.America I now understand the strong following that this car has with it's overall perfomance and style not to mention that it doesn't seem to be "packaged" as an extension of your genitals.

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ILikeLamboILikeLambo - 6/10/2008 2:16:58 AM
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thats the thing about living in Oz, you see them everywhere


M35MTM35MT - 6/9/2008 8:17:06 AMView My AgentSpace
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He's mad that Britain couldnt build it.

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almadyalmady - 6/9/2008 2:21:51 PM
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it’s a matter of taste.. forget it guys.. I lost few valuable munities reading this Article

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gsh23gsh23 - 6/9/2008 4:30:23 PM
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before it was "you pay so much more because the porsche goes so much faster" now its "you pay so much more because the porsche makes you feel 'better'." some people will never accept that nissan has built a car that many people have been waiting for. a super fast car at a low price point.

maybe because its nissan. maybe because its japanese. some people name their balls "bmw" and "porsche". whatever the reason is irrelevant.

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gsh23gsh23 - 6/9/2008 4:49:02 PM
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btw, i tried reading the article backwards and it makes much more sense. give it a try...


Agent63Agent63 - 6/9/2008 7:12:12 PMView My AgentSpace
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I can see all that Jeremy has said about the GT-R. It's technically a marvel but I think all that Japanese computers on board dampens all the fun and the character the GT-R should have. I guess it's going to take some after market parts to make it come alive to the ear.

As much as you fan boys disagree I think a "super car" should be loud and howl like no other. In terms of looks and sounds The GT-R simply is not. The numbers however ARE.

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gsh23gsh23 - 6/9/2008 7:28:01 PM
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well what do you want? do you want to go fast? or do you want to go slow but have all the sounds and looks from the movies? i know there are two types of drivers (i am of the latter) but i still appreciate the fact that nissan is upping the speed ante.

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Agent63Agent63 - 6/9/2008 8:49:19 PMView My AgentSpace
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Does a Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Pagani Zonda have the looks and the sounds but go slow?

I don't know about you I would rather go fast and go loud.


quizzquizz - 6/10/2008 1:22:14 AM
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Agent63, there is only so much "fast" you can go unless you track your car. If you drove a 911, GTR and F430 in SoCal streets, you would be unable to tell the difference in speed.

These cars are great in theory because potentially, it can beat another car on the "Ring", but in real world driving, 99% of the drivers rarely push an M3 to 80% of its limits.

So what is left are looks and comfort. I love the feel and drive of the Porsche 911 and despite knowing full well that the GTR can kick its ass, the Porsche just feels so right to drive all the time no matter the conditions.


Agent63Agent63 - 6/10/2008 5:32:34 AMView My AgentSpace
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I do agree with your comment.

In your SoCal streets as a scenario, I would rather go slow and still loud. Is that better? : P

I've driven Porsche's and an F430 on my streets here in Vancouver, BC, Canada. No one here but the fanboys and fans of playstation GT games will be wow over a GT-R. The people who can afford the Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, Porsche's still won't care too much. However they would still second look the GT-R to see what company made it.
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