New GTR: Its unbelivably good! But...

DTMracer

DTMracer

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Being in Hong Kong for a business trip + Holiday at the moment, I got to test drive the new GTR thanks to my friend being hooked up with someone who works at a dealer with one in stock.

To put it simply, its phenomenal. The acceleration is extremely rapid, great steering and good body control. I'm not a big fan of the gearbox, nor do I like the interior, which just doesn't feel that special for something with such incredible performance. The ride is unbelievably hard, especially on really rough Hong Kong roads, but I guess that's something you get used to. The stereo sounds great (Bose, by the way), the seats are very supportive, but the overall design is what really bugs me.

I had some trouble getting used to the brakes and how hard they bite, but by the end of my very brief drive it was a minor issue. The steering, though not as heavy as an F40, is quiet magnificent though I would want just a tad more feedback.

I personally think the GTR deserves a manual gearbox, as I've never been too big a fan of paddle shifters. The gearstick feels really cheap, though the paddles are placed well for shifting.

It is my believe that although I had barely pushed the GTR to its limits in my brief drive, I believe this thing is going to upset many rich playboys out there in 911 turbos and Ferraris. Its got so much potential just waiting to be unleashed, and its just such a shame that Nissan did what I think is a pretty crap job with the interior design. I'd rather have them spend less time on the pretty LCD screen and more time on getting the basic overall shape right. The materials were, I think, quiet cheap, but then you buy this car to drive, not to show off. If I put an order down for one, I'd strip most of the interior and unnecessary gadget out of it. Perhaps the coming V-Spec will me more my thing. Put it this way: The new GTR is like the new M3. Its still a great drive, but slightly lumped with too much gadgets as a concession to everyday use. What I'm really excited over is the coming "CSL" version of the GTR, which will build on the strengths of the standard car.
 
im surprised you didnt care for the gear box much.
ive read more than once that everyone who drove it believed the gearbox to be the strong point of the car. but it seems everyone is going paddle shifters these days.

the look is really growing on me, even the front end..which at the start..i didnt care for at all

Top Secret jpn, Powerhouse Amuse, Mines, Impul, and Sunline have already started tuning/modifying them.

im really looking forward to what parts will be offered for these.
 
So...it's incredibly amazing but the interior is crap. That sounds familiar. :p
 
Interesting........ maybe the V-spec will make us forget about the shortcomings :)
 
BlaRo said:
So...it's incredibly amazing but the interior is crap. That sounds familiar. :p
Click to expand...


You mean the one with the roflspringz ? :whistle: :wicked:
 
The interior/exterior design, the engine sound, the gearbox, and most of all, the ludicrously extensive hype have very much dissuaded me from liking this car. I would prefer a 911 Turbo (there is always Ruf, techart, evolution, and promotive :) )
 
Interiors are for passengers anyway ;)

Like any supercar, this is only a dream for me unless I win the lottery tomorrow :)
 
when you drive this car the right way you have sweat on your forehead and dont DARE to look at the interior because you are too focussed ;)
 
starfox07 said:
The interior/exterior design, the engine sound, the gearbox, and most of all, the ludicrously extensive hype have very much dissuaded me from liking this car. I would prefer a 911 Turbo (there is always Ruf, techart, evolution, and promotive :) )
Click to expand...

I'm sure most of us would, if we were given a car as a gift and had to choose between the two, but, price wise, the GT-R vs. the 911 Turbo is like the M45 vs. the M5. The cars are in completely different price classes. I'd say the fact that their performance is close enough for people to consider them competitors is pretty impressive on Nissan's part. :)
 
D-Fence said:
when you drive this car the right way you have sweat on your forehead and dont DARE to look at the interior because you are too focussed ;)
Click to expand...

This has been my policy with all the complaints of a certain other fast car with shit interior ;)
 
Hong Kong is a place where they use R35 GTR at a driving school for beginners. I am not kidding.

More or less an advertising gimmick, but still pretty awesome :cool:

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SWWmzyA6-s[/YOUTUBE]
 
amdforever said:
Hong Kong is a place where they use R35 GTR at a driving school for beginners. I am not kidding.

More or less an advertising gimmick, but still pretty awesome :cool:

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SWWmzyA6-s[/YOUTUBE]
Click to expand...

Don't cars cost a shitload in HK though?
 
D-Fence said:
when you drive this car the right way you have sweat on your forehead and dont DARE to look at the interior because you are too focussed ;)
Click to expand...

1/5 reasons, and probably the least important. I need 3 pedals in a performance car, I don't like the car doing the downshifting for me, takes the fun out of it!
 
I don't know if I can get around the looks and the paddle shifters. The problem is that while the DSG is insanely fast at shifting it just doesn't have the same fun to it as pushing in the clutch and manually changing a gear. It makes you feel alot more in control and as a part of the experience. I've also heard rumours that it will not be possible to tune it, it's supposed to be locked by Nissan somehow. Not sure about that one but I do hope it's not true as the lure of the old GT-R was in the fact that you could tune the hell out of it.
 
FATMOUSE said:
Don't cars cost a shitload in HK though?
Click to expand...

Yes, cars cost an absolute fortune in Hong Kong due to heavy government taxes. Its probably not as bad as Singapore, but it still one of the highest in the world.

The main reason is that the government doesn't want too many people owning cars. Public transport here is excellent and really frequent, and its not too expensive. Also, the roads are congested enough already, and adding even more cars to it would just cripple the current infrastructure.

Anyway, back to the GTR. I think my big problem with the car is that whilst its a really good drive, its trying to be all things to all people (kind of like the 911 turbo). I think Nissan needs to focus the car more on the performance driving aspects rather than making it an everyday car because ultimately the people who buy these things will already have another more practical car in the garage.

As for the gearbox, I'm not a big fan of it mainly because it takes away some of the interaction with the car. It deserves a good manual gearbox, and I hope that will become an option sometime down the line. Then again, its probably too difficult to engineer a good manual gearbox due to the thing being mounted right at the back, which would make it incredibly difficult to tune a good shift mechanism. The DSG was probably just an easy way out for the Nissan engineers.
 
I absolutely hate to think what a GTR is going to be like if/when they bring it to aus, our roads are pretty crappy and can only imagine what it will do to your spine :p
 
Awesome with a crappy interior, sound like a Corvette.

The looks of it have grown on me but it's not as nice as the old Skylines.
 
The one I drove was in a dark grey/black color, and I actually think it looks quiet nice.

Still not as good looking as the concept though.
 
after seeing it at the Detroit auto-show i have warmed to it, also the fact that the current engine sounds so much more lively (still not unbelievably amazing) really helps. Sad to hear about the crappy IP (instrument panel, in engineer speak)
 
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