2009 Nissan GT-R Las Vegas NV

November 18, 2009   By Jon Alain Guzik, Editor-in-Chief



2009 Nissan GT-R

DriverSide Overview
Few Japanese vehicles manage the kind of clout the indomitable Nissan GT-R brings to the table. The GT-R, known in certain circles by the name of the sedan it was once based on, Skyline, doesn’t need to demand respect, as anyone who has ever run into the legendary badge on the grille knows what the vehicle is capable of. An all-wheel drive, twin-turbocharged monster, the GT-R devours asphalt and offers brute strength and speed at will. Ribbons of highway will evaporate quicker than gasoline on hot asphalt with nothing more than a push of your right foot, and any number of twisties and off-camber apexes are nothing than fodder for the GT-R’s precision-tuned suspension. The GT-R offers supercar performance for a fraction of the typical supercar price. This is the kind of vehicle that frustrates Ferrari and Lamborghini owners the way a successful peasant uprising would enrage a monarch. The Nissan GT-R is a clear shot across the bow of high-performance automakers everywhere, proving that world-class power and precision does not require a world-class price tag and a second mortgage. If you’ve got the money and the inclination for speed, there is no better performance car on the market today.








What's to Like
The power is troublesomely addictive. Plant your right foot and you’ll think twice about doing it again as you are pushed back into your seat, G-forces condensing your innards into goo – we mean that in the best possible way. The launch from 0 to 60 happens so quickly – just 3.3 seconds – that you barely have time to register legal speeds before the car is pouncing on 100-plus. The GT-R offers the kind of oomph that will give you a racecar driver's God complex, in a good way, of course.
 
What's Not to Like
The GT-R’s exterior styling is clearly Japanese and that may or may not be to every one's taste. There’s little that is classically beautiful about the car from the exterior. Instead, it works on redefining what we commonly conceive as gorgeous, and in our eyes, we like what we see. There’s a purposeful look to the car that clearly exudes power, and it should grow on the public after a bit.
 
The Drive:
DriverSide Driving Impressions
Spend any amount of time behind the wheel of Nissan’s GT-R and you become keenly aware of its purpose. The GT-R is built to excel at being fast and it communicates that point in a way that all of the automotive reviews and all of Nissan's' pamphlets never could. The sound of the twin-turbo 3.8-liter V-6 is a symphony of speed, whispering promises of untold tarmac domination. While some may think the suspension is clearly too stiff to endure on a day-to-day basis, the GT-R wasn’t manufactured to compete with the legions of Corollas on the daily commute death march out there. The GT-R was purpose...

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