(photo by Kurt Niebuhr)
"Do the reprogram."
"Come on, for the sake of investigative journalism?"
"Don't do it. You all are responsible enough not to ruin this car." ( Says you.)
"I vote no.
Use the car the way you bought it."
We went back and forth internally for about 5 minutes on this one. On the one hand, launch control is awesome, and with the GT-R it'll dig four troughs in the asphalt before shifting to 2nd and hitting 60 in under four seconds. It's a parlour trick we just can't get enough of.
But then there's every other reason we should get the transmission "recalibrated:" It's what most owners (probably) will do. We'll be less likely to blow up our GT-R. You get the idea.
The debate came to an end on Friday when we got the call from our local Nissan dealer that they had the update. This is despite the Letter to Dealers we published that said GT-R owners would be notified on the 16th. We jumped at the chance. It would allow us to get new performance numbers and let other owners know what to expect. It was a no-brainer at that point.
Turns out the release was available well before this (as some people have already run some quick times post-mod), but then pulled back and re-released. We're not sure what they did in that downtime, but owners who had it done prior to last Friday might want to check back with their dealership. We have the final release.
Our GT-R took the new tune without an issue and was in the care of Nissan of Santa Monica for about two hours. Ours was the first customer car re(de?)tuned.
The new transmission calibration came in lockstep with the new tires we had ordered from Stokes Tire Pros here in Santa Monica. A new set of Bridgestone Potenza RE070R size 255/40ZR20 showed up Saturday morning and were mounted that same day. The total cost was $853.90. The manual says that all four tires may need to be replaced at any time. Ours did not. The rears are still in great shape.
Stay tuned for post-recalibration test numbers.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant @ 16,389 miles
s1gins says:
06:46 PM, 02/ 9/09
So...what are the numbers!
HybridMT says:
10:22 PM, 02/ 9/09
good luck with the test, but you're on the slower tires :-(
johnnyr3 says:
03:27 AM, 02/10/09
Yeah, why didn't you guys get the Dunlops?
jaguar36 says:
04:31 AM, 02/10/09
Seems like different tires will have just as much effect as a re-programed launch control. So much for apple to apples comparison.
I wonder how the reprogramming will effect the resale value.
g8gtnorth says:
07:06 AM, 02/10/09
The rears were great but not the fronts? Hmmm
s197gt says:
08:52 AM, 02/10/09
well, they rears are fine now... but what happens when the rears are bald and the fronts are still good?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WPYBArQQVAE
to the inside line testers, since most of you are "spirited drivers" you may want to bookmark the following:
http://www.fishtail.tv/wrongful_tire_installation.html
edmunds.com has opened itself up to some legal liability!
i am constantly amazed at how bald you guys let your tires get. i know it's cali and sunny 90% of the time, but man, i drive a company car, and my company would NEVER let the tires get as bald as you let your tires get. BEFORE they hit the wear bars they are being replaced on my car.
s197gt says:
09:15 AM, 02/10/09
this was a decision based on $$$, not safety. you could argue that you will replace the tires when they wear down more but i have a couple of issues with that. 1. it may be too late. 2. as i stated above we all have seen how far you guys let tires wear down.
my last real problem with this is that you guys aren't just "car guys and girls" but you are journalists. i think you have a responsibility to do things "properly". not just poo poo the manual but keep the car maintained as suggested by the dealer. you are always defending paying extra at the dealership (instead of DIY) cause you want to report the true cost of ownership but now you are taking the cheap route.
and it comes down to money, don't even say it doesn't.
as journalists you are perpetuating (implicitely) the myth (that is alive and well) that you can put new tires on the front and not have serious adverse handling affects. it causes oversteer (see video above) which is much harder to control and recover from then understeer.
i can provide links from goodyear, michelin, pirelli, dunlop, falken, bfgoodrich, cooper, thetirerack.com, discounttire.com, and the tire industry association that says at worst new tires should go on the rear (regardless of drivetrain) and that at best you should replace all 4.
rant off.
wahsingku says:
10:35 AM, 02/10/09
+1
I'm with s197gt
it even says so in the damn manual... tsk tsk
you tested the OLD launch control with good tires, why not the new one?
desmolicious says:
01:18 PM, 02/10/09
The tyres are deliberately being mismatched as an excuse for the upcoming disappointing perf numbers.
Conspiracy theorists unite!
;p
1speedbike says:
07:03 PM, 02/10/09
i approve of the reprogram. part of the point of long term testing is to review a vehicle over a long time based on what the average driver of that vehicle would act/do. i'm assuming the average gtr driver wouldnt want his/her car blown for failing to upgrade.
desmolicious says:
01:11 PM, 02/12/09
@ me..
gimme a hat to eat, I left mine at home.