8 WHAT’S NEW
Nissan GT-R Nismo
Enhancing the Nissan GT-R’s dynamics may seem like gilding a lily, but
when Nismo and ‘Mr GT-R’ apply kaizen principles, the result is a series
of incremental improvements that combine to create a stunning eff ect
ABOVE: The GT3
GT-R racecar
inspired the front
fender design. They
sport louvres that
increase front
downforce by 7kgf
without creating
additional drag
›The Nissan GT-R is a favourite
car of the Vehicle Dynamics
International team, and this year
sees Nissan (and us) celebrate 50 years
of GT-R heritage. The MY2020 GT-R
is launching, beginning at £83,995
(US$108,000)for the ‘entry level’ Pure
570 model, but for an extra £91,000
(US$118,000) the Nismo version is
available. The price delta is remarkable
– more remarkable than the 30PS power
hike from 570PS to 600PS – so what
makes the Nismo version compelling?
In essence, Nissan’s in-house tuning
arm, NISsan MOtorsports International
(Nismo) has applied the Japanese
kaizen philosophy of continuous
improvement to the GT-R, which meant
the development team examining
every minute detail of the already
hugely capable platform, seeking tiny
improvements in each component which,
when combined as a whole, add up to
a supercar that is faster, lighter and
sharper, akin to a racing car for the road.
“The 2020 GT-R Nismo has evolved into
a balanced, yet extreme, performance
car,” explains Hiroshi Tamura, chief
product specialist for the programme,
known more informally as ‘Mr GT-R’
to his colleagues at Nissan, where he
has worked for more than 30 years.
“Pursuing driving pleasure is the most
important concept behind GT-R, and the
new Nismo’s performance suggest it is a
car that belongs on the race track – but
is also at home on the open road.”
There are a few slightly more
aggressive-looking styling tweaks to
the Nismo, all of which are completely
functional, increasing cooling of key
areas like the engine bay and brakes,
all without negatively affecting the
drag coeffi cient value of 0.26. As one
might expect, several elements of the
VehicleDynamicsInternational.com • November/December 2019
/VehicleDynamicsInternational.com