You've read the tests. You've read the blogs. And by now, you've even read the Long Term Wrap Up.
Now, click through and read our Parting Shots and submit your own. You won't have the big Nissan to kick around anymore; give us what you've got.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'll never forget the first time I booted the GT-R's throttle the day we closed Glendora Mountain Road, with CHP officers working either end to stop traffic. The crush of all-wheel drive acceleration from this surprisingly large car was wholly unexpected. I could never justify owning one myself, and would probably be thoroughly frustrated at it if I did, but the few times I took the GT-R out onto various back roads for a for a quick blast were stunning. I miss it already.
Dan Edmunds, Director of Vehicle Testing
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Our Nissan GT-R recalibrated my sense of speed. I have never felt so comfortable traveling at such a high rate of speed (on a closed course) for such a sustained period of time. But there's nothing labored or beautiful or melodramatic about it. Being in the cockpit of our GT-R, I imagine I might feel the same way if I was driving a Nozomi shinkansen train in Japan or the French TGV."
Erin Riches, Senior Editor, Inside Line
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey GT-R, your family still owes me one Valentine's Day and one Super Bowl Sunday. Ok, so I can forgive you for Valentine's Day. But the Super Bowl? Never."
Mike Schmidt, Vehicle Testing Manager
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Before the financial meltdown, I was seriously considering the GT-R as a replacement track-day car. Looking back, I'm glad I wasn't able to afford it. After seeing firsthand how fragile the GT-R is, and how expensive repairs and maintenance are, I'm pretty sure I would've stressed plenty of components past their breaking points and driven myself into the poor house.
"That said, the GT-R is stupid quick and I wish I had the opportunity to pilot it at Willow Springs Raceway or Laguna Seca." Mark Takahashi, Associate Editor, Edmunds.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"This car was oddly invisible to most people on the road except to those car geeks who, when they saw it, were thrown into an immediate lather of near-fatal maneuvering to either race it or photograph it."
Philip Reed, Edmunds Senior Consumer Advice Editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"One of my fondest memories of driving the GT-R will always be the first time I took my wife out in it. "What's WRONG with this thing?" was her immediate reaction to the clunking and lurching from the transmission in low-speed traffic. If I had been trying to impress her, and we hadn't already been happily married for 35 years, I would have been devastated. "
Kevin Smith, Editorial Director
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"If you like the idea of piloting a land-bound F14, the GT-R obliges with its high-tech cockpit displays, Turbofan-like soundtrack, and spine-compressing acceleration. I happen to really like that idea."
John DiPietro, Automotive Editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Drove it twice and that was enough. Awesome performance, zero character (other than the jet-plane engine note). The GT-R is a video game for the street - replete with readouts by the GranTurismo guys - except your couch is quieter and doesn't ride like a skateboard. It's a numbers car, unlike its iconic R32-34 Skyline GT-R ancestors with their ripping inline-sixes and proper manual transmissions. "
Josh Sadlier, Associate Editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I'd love to put its engine in a different car. Nothing else is quite like it -- that insane thrust, that jet engine noise. The rest of the car? I could do without. It has truly impressive handling capabilities, but I can't come close to its full potential on a public road without worrying that I'll have my license suspended or that I'll vaporize an unsuspecting raccoon. All the while, there is a certain disconnected feel to it. The ride is also abysmal. Even though it has the room in the cabin and trunk for a nice, long road trip, you wouldn't take it because your back would ultimately join that raccoon in the great beyond. No thanks, I'll take a used 911 instead."
James Riswick, Automotive Editor
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Though I only drove it once, I enjoyed driving the GT-R and it became something real to me- more than just a car in a video game. Now I know what all the fuss was about and I'm over it.
It's an undeniably fast car, but too high-maintenance for my taste.
Ron Montoya, Consumer Advice Associate
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"My high hopes for Nissan's opportunity to redefine the supercar were dashed by mechanical issues and, more surprisingly, maintenance costs that turned this "budget exotic slayer" into a Ferrari with Nissan badges -- and styling."
Karl Brauer, Editor-in-Chief, Edmunds.com
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"I'm going to miss the car that made me young and hot again. I know the illusion was broken as soon as I opened the door and stepped out. But while I was in the driver's seat, I was once again in my twenties and stopping traffic.
I'm also going to miss the feeling of superiority on the road. When you drive a BMW 3 Series, an M3 will pull up next to you. When you drive an M3, a Ferrari could pull up next to you. But when you drive the Nissan GT-R, it doesn't matter what pulls up next to you because you've got them beat."
Donna DeRosa, Managing Editor.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A completely tough, no-nonsense car, which I love. But just too big, more like a two-door sedan than a GT car. Like the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, it's an amazing technical exercise that's just no fun to drive except at maximum intensity.
Michael Jordan, Executive Editor Inside Line
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Who can say this car doesn't have character? It's fast, it's weird looking, it breaks a lot, you need a specially-trained technician to work on it...that's what Ferrari guys have been saying character is for decades. It's got a lot of character, but it's not for me. Not quite.
I don't need the coupe's top speed or Nurburgring times and I don't need its useless back seat and poor rearward visibility. What I do need is something that looks and drives like this with four-doors and, most importantly, this engine/transmission. What a combo-- crazy-like-the-future noises, imperceptible shifts, acceptable fuel economy. It's just that, like Jordan said above, this isn't sporty enough to be a racecar, and it's not supple enough to be a GT. I want a GT GT-R.
But then again, I also want a station wagon with the GT500 engine/transmission, so maybe I don't count.
Mike Magrath, Vehicle Testing Assistant and Complier of Parting Shots
lvranger says:
04:14 PM, 12/ 9/09
I've seen two of these out at the strip. They are the only production car that can outrun my bike. I'll give them some cred for that.
lazyhater says:
04:29 PM, 12/ 9/09
Where is the EVO X vs. GTR battle story?
MN_Car_Enthus says:
06:02 PM, 12/ 9/09
Thank you Edmunds for a great long term test. My experiences with the GT-R differs significantly from yours, but you did a fine reporting your experience as it was. Kudos to you.
While I've got the soap-box, I'd like to air-out a couple auto journalist pet peeves.
- No automotive writer should ever utter again or use in print the word "teutonic"...for the rest of time, for ever and ever. Let's pass a law against using this over-used and abused word. It's my pet peeve of all time.
- Now to my major gripe. Anthropomorphisizing (sic) vehicles like Josh Sadlier has in talking about character is cheap journalism. I'm not trying to be an ass or purposefully abrasive. I love cars and most people who will read this post do also. But we've taken romanticizing cars to an absurd level. These days, it manifests itself in a discussion of "character." Most importantly, in 9/10 instances when an automotive journalist starts talking about character, they are about to tell the reader how much they don't like the car. It's lazy. So please tell us why you like, and even how it makes you feel. Just wipe the default, catch-all , "I don't need to explain myself" use of the word character and discussions about character out of writing. The automotive journalist world would be much better served.
carguy622 says:
07:08 PM, 12/ 9/09
Dear Nissan:
Even though I can't afford it, please offer the GT-R with a proper manual, it would just make me feel better. OK?
Thanks,
Anthony
fuhteng says:
07:08 PM, 12/ 9/09
It was a fun, ugly target for a long time. I'll miss it for that. Now if I could find one to drive, I'd be delighted.
On a side note, I've only seen one of these. I was leaving town on a game day, and in the opposite lane, one of the most awful (bumpy) roads in the state, was an R35. I can only imagine how the poor sap felt when he got out of it. OW!
mercedesfan says:
09:04 PM, 12/ 9/09
I was one of the skeptics when the GT-R first came out, but then I got the priviledge to drive it (and drive it hard). It is an insanely fast, insanely composed, insanely grippy car that will plaster a smile on your face for a full 24hrs after leaving the cockpit.
Having said that, if it were me I'd never buy one. Never have I driven a car so totally different than my personality. Almost everything I value highest in an automobile (well balanced suspension tuning, top-notch interior execution, and "feel") is missing from the GT-R. Still, for those who crave easy speed and distinctly Japanese-character (and don't fall for the whole "budget exotic" lie because let's be honest it costs as much as a Ferrari to live with) it is the perfect car.
wrinklebump says:
11:04 PM, 12/ 9/09
All I ever saw in pictures of that car is tentacle hentai and Godzilla pooping on Osaka
No thanks
bodyblue says:
05:17 AM, 12/10/09
History (I think) will regard the GT-R as interesting car that was not quite ready for prime time and did not live up to its pitch as the everyday supercar......Yes the Ford GT was a lot more expensive to buy but it holds the crown to the title "everyday supercar" It did not cost as much to maintain and it retained its value much better. The GT-R will never be a classic like the GT, but will be remembered for its amazing performance.
felonious says:
10:01 AM, 12/10/09
John and Donna FTW. Also, thanks to JRis, I'm now fantasizing about the GT-R engine in a different car...
cr_driver says:
10:13 AM, 12/10/09
Loved it at first, was so excited about it.
I havent driven one, I know for sure how fast it is would be insane, but if goes by like a video game, then my interest diminishes.
Its like driving a 335i vrs an M3.....
Good overall car, but ferrari-like maintenance costs are a big no-no for a nissan.
Plus its too weak.
jameswilliard says:
10:51 AM, 12/10/09
bodyblue: Were you on the design team for the Ford GT or something?? We get it already, the Ford GT is a great car, but seriously.....it's like comparing apples to cats.
SadButTrue says:
11:57 AM, 12/10/09
@MN_Car_Enthus,
"- Now to my major gripe. Anthropomorphisizing (sic) vehicles like Josh Sadlier has in talking about character is cheap journalism. I'm not trying to be an ass or purposefully abrasive. I love cars and most people who will read this post do also. But we've taken romanticizing cars to an absurd level. These days, it manifests itself in a discussion of 'character.' Most importantly, in 9/10 instances when an automotive journalist starts talking about character, they are about to tell the reader how much they don't like the car. It's lazy. So please tell us why you like, and even how it makes you feel."
I don't think saying a car has (or doesn't have) character is tantamount to anthropomorphizing it. When you're a connoisseur of Xs, you're highly sensitive to subtle differences between one X and another. Take, say, an E46 M3 vs. a Mitsubishi Evo X GSR. Performance numbers are about the same and may well favor the Mitsu in certain areas -- but the connoisseur will note the differences in engine note (race-bred wail vs. vacuum-cleaner roar), steering feel (vibrant vs. video-game-like), etc. Those little variations add up to character or lack thereof. In my estimation, the M3 has it, and the Evo doesn't. Reasonable connoisseurs could disagree with me here, but the discussion itself makes sense.
The GT-R actually has more character than the Evo, I'd say (memorable turbo/gear whine, great steering, nice interior). It doesn't feel strictly like a speed appliance. But compared to other cars at its price point (911, M3, Z06 come to mind), it's just not that interesting to drive. Astoundingly fast, yes, but the engine doesn't make me want to downshift a gear or two just to hear it sing -- there's some characteristic V6 coarseness near redline. And you can't get a proper manual transmission. And the car always feels fullback-bulky to me, which I'm more willing to forgive in the Z06 because of its kickass V8 and manual transmission. The GT-R is a great numbers car, but I don't find it a great driver's car.
These are fine points; however, the GT-R ostensibly caters to an audience that cares about fine points. For that audience -- i.e., for connoisseurs -- I think its character comes up short.
-Sadlier
sherief says:
04:33 PM, 12/10/09
I still don't get why the indestructible manual transmissions from the R32-R34 GT-R's was replaced with this incredibly fragile flappy paddle nonsense. I guess it was the final piece in the puzzle in completely removing the direct connection between the driver and actually driving the car. Now the entire car is driven by computer, and the driver is allowed to make a "suggestion".
Thanks for this long-term test, guys. It was a real eye opener. The reality of finally owning Japan's flagship sports car looks like it would be quite a disappointment.
My sports car money will definitely continue going to ze Germans.
MN_Car_Enthus says:
08:01 PM, 12/10/09
Sadlier. Thanks for the perspective, and I think you are right on point (except for the conclusion: ) ). My comments were not directed toward you specifically and I think discussions of "character" are perfectly fine when coupled with objective & descriptive observations about what this "character" constitutes. You did it here. But sadly, in automotive journalism these days what we have is more akin to character assassination. It has become the much abused method-du-jour of saying "I don't like it and I don't have to explain myself."
Still, I do think we over-romaticize and anthropomorphise cars to an extreme degree. It gets worse year-by-year and pieces are getting ridiculously "syruppy and touchy-feely".....and boring as a result!
kavex says:
01:09 PM, 12/27/09
I'd like to give a parting shot to the people who complain about this *first generation* R35 supercar's maintenance troubles after 30k miles plus a new owner by giving you a video tribute to a comparable halo-car first generation Cadillac CTS-V:
http://videos.streetfire.net/video/StreetFirenets-cjonesy-h_90356.htm?ref=
In the case of Edmunds' car the buyer was happy to purchase it and continue its use. No where near a lemon as the CTS-V video above, not to mention in my opinion the poor customer service treatment. The 2nd generation CTS-V's reliability and reputation, however, from what I gather is a night and day story. Give the GT-R its 2nd iteration shot, then we'll talk.
Both production cars were halo cars when released; the lesson here is it could be much worse and just wait for a 2nd generation/iteration to make your judgements.