Nissan’s most infamous car, the GT-R, will roar into the Johannesburg International Motor Show next week. Nissan aficionados will be elated to know that Nissan SA will launch Godzilla onto the South African market sometime in 2009.
By Kelly Lodewyks
A local launch for the GT-R has been the subject of much speculation in recent months, and according to Nissan SA’s general manager, Wilhelm Baard, the decision to bring the GT-R to SA has been a long time coming.
“We are truly thrilled to confirm that the Nissan GT-R will come to South Africa. It’s an extraordinary car, a showcase for Nissan’s engineering talents and a technological flagship that demonstrates the brand’s passion for cars,” said Baard.
Final specification details about the SA-bound GT-R have not yet been released, but something to look forward to would be the hand-built VR38 twin-IHI-turbo engine, claimed to be the most potent production powerplant ever produced in Japan. This unit is no longer a straight six, as in Skyline GT-R models. The new unit is a 3,8-litre V6 that delivers 353 kW at 6 400 r/min, while 588 N.m of torque is available between 3 200 and 5 200 r/min.
Mated with a six-speed paddle shift transmission, the GT-R goes from zero to 100 km/h in a claimed time of 3,6 seconds before maxing out at 310 km/h.
In a driving impression in the February 2008 issue of CAR magazine, editor John Bentley explains the technical aspects of the GT-R. “Mounted well back in the engine bay, the engine’s mass up front is balanced by a rear-mounted six speed manual transmission supplied by Borg-Warner. Nissan calls it an ‘independent’ transaxle by virtue of the fact that engine and transmission are connected by a ‘double jointed’ carbon fibre driveshaft, with another shaft running forward from transaxle to drive the front wheels”.
The interior of the GT-R driven by Bentley in Japan featured bucket seats, an instrument panel with easy o read graphics, a high-speed, high- capacity CARWINGS navigation system, with a 30GB hard disk drive, operated by a touch pad as well as traditional buttons. Entertainment comes in the form of a Bose entertainment system with a Music Box hard drive, DVD and CD player, and Bluetooth audio functions.
While many of these bells and whistles will be lost across the ocean before the GT-R gets here, it wouldn’t be complete if it wasn’t equipped with the obligatory cabin mounted G-meter to record both longitudinal and lateral forces.
How the GT-R will be priced is still unknown, but bear in mind that when this beast arrives, only certain Nissan dealers will be able to service it. The equipment needed to keep all the components of the GT-R in check will carry a heavy price tag for dealerships. Here’s to hoping we don’t have to sell our houses to get our hands on one… (although living in my GT-R doesn’t sound like a bad idea)!
View a video of the GT-R for a taste of what to expect when it arrives in SA.
For wallpapers of the GT-R, click here.
