Jeremy Clarkson on the Nissan GTR

Same as any other review, incredible engineering, absolute snooze fest to drive.
 
I don't think it's a driver's car anymore...maybe not a car at all...just a way for Nissan to prove that they're faster than everyone else...
 
He's pretty much mirroring what every other review has said - the car has incredible abilities & performance levels, and can make an average driver look like a pro, but it's not as involving as it should be.
 
The thing I always never got was that both the 911 Turbo and the GTR are basically AWD supercars. They are both six cylinder engines with two turbo chargers. Why is it that the Japanese car is the one without any soul or passion. Is it because it is a Porsche, a car with the same amount of technology and driver aids, then the engineers don't "engineer the fun" out of that? He pretty much said the same thing about the 911 on Top Gear, and people still seem to like it.
 
I don't get it. People complain that supercars are fast and spectacular but too hard to deal with for every day use. So nissan build a car that is fast, cheap and easy to drive and then people complain it is not exciting enough.

I doubt it is possible to build a car that would meet everyones individual criteria.
 
His complaint isn't that it wouldn't be fun to drive at the limit, it's more that it's so composed and competant that no mere mortal will ever get to its limit. Sort of like the opposite of what he was saying about the CLK Black, which he felt could throw him off the road and kill him at any moment. The latter is more exciting to drive fast. I understand that. The GT-R has never concerned itself with being anything other than the fastest, it's just what the car does.
 
Quadrax said:
I don't get it. People complain that supercars are fast and spectacular but too hard to deal with for every day use. So nissan build a car that is fast, cheap and easy to drive and then people complain it is not exciting enough.

I doubt it is possible to build a car that would meet everyones individual criteria.
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The GTR is not a supercar. It's a high performance car. Any car that's practical, comfortable, and easy to live with, is not a supercar in my book. To me, a supercar is the most uncomfortable, difficult, and unpractical car you can buy. A supercar sacrifices anything that doesn't increase performance.

To me the epitome Ferrari supercar will always be the Ferrari F40.
 
fbc said:
He's pretty much mirroring what every other review has said - the car has incredible abilities & performance levels, and can make an average driver look like a pro, but it's not as involving as it should be.
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Kind of like the Lancer Evolution....

TomCat said:
The GTR is not a supercar. It's a high performance car. Any car that's practical, comfortable, and easy to live with, is not a supercar in my book. To me, a supercar is the most uncomfortable, difficult, and unpractical car you can buy. A supercar sacrifices anything that doesn't increase performance.
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I have no opinion of the above statement, but....

You poked sticks into hornets nests as child, didn't you. :|
 
Maybe Nissan is preparing for an upcoming alien invasion in pursuit of a car capable of their driving abilities? Since he claims this car isn't designed for our species...

Supercars are more of an emotional thing than something objective. Some people respect a certain design scheme, others respect something entirely different. It all comes down to an emotional reaction. You can't control who you love, and you certainly cannot control what cars get you excited.
 
jayhawk said:
You poked sticks into hornets nests as child, didn't you. :|
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Nope, that was my cousins' job. I just sat back and laughed. :p

I don't even consider the Z06 and ZR-1 to be true supercars, to be honest. I think it's just the level of performance that people look at when throwing that word around. But to me it's always the primary focus of a car. I can't view cars like the 612 and 599 Ferrari's as true supercars, not when they're as practical as they are. Because you know that if those practicalities are removed, you can increase the performance greatly. But that is usually left to special track versions of the car, which they'll of course charge more for.

I see the Lotus Elise/Exige as being more of a supercar then a F430, GT-R, or Gallardo.
 
jayhawk said:
Kind of like the Lancer Evolution....


I have no opinion of the above statement, but....

You poked sticks into hornets nests as child, didn't you. :|
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um no, what TomCat said is correct, the GT-R is NOT a supercar, it has too much utility and practicality on a day to day basis. It's a practical sports car with supercar level performance. if ppl get butthurt and upset by that statement, that's their problem.

i don't buy the whole 'emotional response evoked by the car' arguement either, because ppl have different tastes in car and some may have just as passionate reaction to a Fiat 500 or luxury limo but not sniff twice at some fast supercar, because its something that simply doesn't interest them.

it really is about purpose built speed, impracticality, and outrageousness. a true supercar should have any pretense of being used for any other purpose than driving fast. which is a reason i'd have no real interest in owning a supercar.
 
So from what I understand here, a supercar is just a really fast car thats difficult to live with and expensive, in contract to just a car thats has supercar performance (Stock abit).

:|
 
dj.TAKA said:
So from what I understand here, a supercar is just a really fast car thats difficult to live with and expensive, in contract to just a car thats has supercar performance (Stock abit).

:|
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Pretty much.

You ever see those videos on streetfire.net where some dumbass driving an old Eclipse with a massive turbo that runs on pure nitrous races a Lambo/Ferrari on the freeway and pulls away from him? Well, that old Mitsubishi isn't a supercar just because it's faster then one.
 
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GT-R is a GT car that just happens to be faster that some supersports cars or supercars.
 
Quadrax said:
I doubt it is possible to build a car that would meet everyones individual criteria.
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No shit sherlock :p

Wizegui said:
Is it because it is a Porsche, a car with the same amount of technology and driver aids, then the engineers don't "engineer the fun" out of that? He pretty much said the same thing about the 911 on Top Gear, and people still seem to like it.
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The reasons people complain about lack of driver involvement with the GT-R is because it has just that issue, the steering isn't as good as it should be, and the engine may sound good compared to Ford Fiesta, but its nothing compared to a uncorked Lambo. At the same rate, the fact Nissan has made a car that has a comfortable yet unbelievably fast, composed and well balanced suspension deserves muchos applause.



As for JCs point of view, i'm confused as to if he liked it or not, he definitely seemed to get the ending wrong. I don't think its that Michael Schumacher's couldn't exploit the car, i think its that a toddler could get within 95% of Michael Schumacher's time.
 
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