Nissan GT-R Part 1: Design Review

The dictionary defines the word "Icon" as a person or thing regarded as a representative symbol of something. Well, Nissan's phenomenal GT-R, a car that represents the best automotive technology Japan has to offer, definitely qualifies as an icon.

But beyond its status as a symbol of national pride, the GT-R is iconic due to its larger-than-life image and performance in the digital world. A mega-star in Playstation's Gran Turismo games, the hype that has surrounded this car for years is massive. Even more impressive however, is that unlike most things, the GT-R more than lives up to its hype.

We first got a glimpse of what we were in for when Nissan showed the GT-R Concept at the Tokyo Auto Show in 2001. Opinions were mixed then, as that show car seemed a bit clumsy. At the Tokyo Auto Show four years later however, Nissan gave us a more accurate idea of what the production GT-R would look like in the form of the GT-R Proto. To say that the GT-R hopefuls were stunned would be an understatement. Chief designer Hiroshi Hasegawa claimed at the time that the show car was a 90 percent accurate representation of the production car, but it was hard to believe him as the stunning concept was such a departure from past GT-Rs. But sure enough, when the production car arrived it looked just like the GT-R Proto with a few minor details cleaned up and made more production feasible.

You'd never call the GT-R a beautiful car, its look being more purposeful. In my opinion though, its one of the best car designs in quite some time for numerous reasons. For one, its looks and performance are a perfect match: both are brutal - and I mean that as a positive. There's also the fact that a large part of the shape and its subtle details are dictated by aerodynamics.

We can see two examples of this in the clean break of the Kamm tail and in the C-Pillar, with its curious kinked surfacing which is intended to redirect air toward the rear wing for increased downforce. It also happens to lend the GT-R a slightly boxy look that links it to past models.

The car pulls off this aero-sophistication mixed with brutal performance brilliantly, looking something like the automotive equivalent of an F-22 Raptor stealth fighter.

We can find more parallels to jet aircraft at the back of the car where we see massive exhaust pipes that look more like afterburners. While they might seem comical on some cars, they happen to work rather well on the GT-R, with its signature circular taillights and its thick rear body section.

The front of the car is supposed to be a reflection of its performance potential, according to Hasegawa. And you have to agree with him when you see the sinister front end of this thing staring at you coldly, like a soul-less robotic killing machine.

It's a unique face that's an evolution of the GT-R's traditional aggressive and blunt style, but it looks completely fresh. This car's most unique angle, however, has to be its sideview. In profile, we see two very distinct elements of the new GT-R in the front fender and in the side glass. The front fender's distinctive shape begins as the trailing edge turns sharply downward to form the leading edge of a heat-extracting vent, before going horizontal to form a beautifully sculpted highlight running through the bottom of the door. It works perfectly with the downward slopping greenhouse that adds to the GT-R's unusual, yet successful profile.

An icon in the virtual world of pixels, Nissan's new GT-R is equally successful in the real world of sheet metal. Its design is at once technologically advanced, fast and furious, fresh and unique, and very Japanese. Combined with its epic performance capabilities, the GT-R lives up to the hype that has surrounded it for years and is completely deserving of its iconic status.

Watch the video
Read Part 2: Interior & User Experience
Read Part 3: Performance

Nissan GT-R

Performance
- Acceleration: UN-FREAKIN-BELIEVABLE! The aggressive launch control delivers 0-60 in less than four seconds and 11 second 1/4 miles
- Handling: Physics defying all-wheel-drive system blurs the line between virtual reality and actuality
- Braking: Quite simply the most impressive production car brakes on the planet

Design
- Exterior: Not pretty, but brutal, aggressive and perfectly appropriate - an extremely successful design
- Interior: Good material quality, but the design is less inspiring than the exterior's

Utility
- Comfort: Decent when suspension is in comfort mode, but just barely - hard to hide its mission as an all-conquering affordable supercar
- Space: Acceptable for front occupants, ridiculous for rear passengers - trunk doubles as an oven (seriously)

Safety
- Dynamics: If you manage to crash this car, you're an idiot - foolproof in every way
- Technology: Airbags are all there, but the drivetrain is your biggest ally

Value
- Price: Considering its performance, an absolute bargain
- Mileage: You must be kidding... Actually, not bad given the performance

Emotional Appeal
- Heart thumpin' factor: Heart rate accelerator just sitting still - heart attack inducing on the fly
- Fun to spank: Given a racetrack, its nothing short of amazing - on the street, its limits are too high to enjoy safely

SPECIFICATIONS

Layout: Front engine / All wheel drive
Engine: 3.8 liter, twin-turbocharged V6
Power (SAE): 480 hp @ 6400 rpm
Torque: 434 lbs-ft @ 3200-5200 rpm
Redline: 7000 rpm
Gearbox: 6 speed dual-clutch
Curb Weight: 3920 lbs.
0-60 mph: 3.4 sec.
1/4 mile: 11.6 sec. @ 122 mph
Top Speed: 193 mph
Mileage: 17 city / 21 highway
Base Price: $76,840
Competitors: Porsche 911 Carrera S, Chevrolet Corvette Z06, Saturn V liquid-fuel rocket