What would a Nissan GT-R be without the racing pedigree that’s helped make it what it is today? The truth is that we don’t even want to know. But we don’t have to, because the car known as Godzilla is as devastating on the race track as it is on the street.
Very different racing versions have been made to challenge the FIA GT1 World Championship and for Japan’s own Super GT series, the latter powered by a naturally aspirated V8 to satisfy regulations instead of the twin-turbo V6 in the production model. Getting your hands on either of these, however, could prove a bigger challenge than passing one in a race. Fortunately, Nissan has just released a competition-spec GT-R you can buy.
Co-developed by Nismo (Nissan’s in-house tuning department) and JR Motorsports (which campaigns a pair of GT-Rs in the aforementioned GT1 series), the GT3-spec model first debuted at the Magny-Cours circuit in France back in August, but is now available for order by privateer teams and gentlemen racers alike. It packs the same 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6 as the production model, tuned to deliver 523 horsepower.
That may be slightly less than the current production model (due to the constrictions of GT3 regs) but the Nismo GT3 model also offers a fully adjustable suspension, stripped-out interior with roll cage and all the trimmings, extra cooling ducts and an aggressive aero package. The extra grip is where the extra speed comes from, and it can all be yours for a hair under 300,000 euros, or about $390k at today’s rates.
autoblog
