http://jalopnik.com/386017/nissan-gt...9-makes-us-wet

The friendly Finnish Fans of Cars all over the World tell us today the new 2009 Nissan GT-R can now lay claim to being one of the fastest production cars in the world — in Nürburgring lap times. Nissan claims GT-R chief test driver Tochio Suzuki completed the famous German circuit in just 7 minutes and 29 seconds during runs on April 16th and 17th. According to their records, this puts the GT-R in second place for fastest laps by unmodified production cars — that's just behind the Pagani Zonda F's blistering 7 minutes and 27 seconds last November. Guess that wet lap time last year of 7 minutes and 38 seconds was just a test run, eh?

Kazutoshi Mizuno, the GT-R's Chief Vehicle Engineer said

"At last year's testing, we were frustrated by the conditions at the Nürburgring, always believing that the GT-R could go under seven minutes 30 seconds, the GT-R proves it is among the fastest mass-production cars in the world. We set out to build a multi-performance supercar accessible to anyone, anytime and anywhere - I believe the GT-R has delivered that promise."
Yeah well, we're beginning to think that car could make a hero out of even us. [via World Car Fans]

 

oh god it will never end.

 

That is pretty sick...

I read another article (don't remember where) comparing it to the GT3 and Z06 and it was a couple of secs quicker than both around the circuit they were testing...

I am very very impressed, but there is something that bothers me. This car, as well as the new EVO, have so many nannies and driver aids (and I'm not against technology) that I find purists and sports car lovers may find that while they must actually drive their cars and put their own skills to the max in order to deliver, this car lets anyone do the same, in a sense, cars like the M3, Z06, GT3 are true drivers cars, and the GT-R... well almost a driving simulator...

Just my impression. It bested everyone out there and no one can take that away from it, but I don't see Porsche and BMW fans scrambling to Nissan dealers to pick one up. It's not a pure driving machine to that crowd.

 

Yea, well, the German marques all have their fair share of driving aids as well, and so it basically comes down to snobbery.

And for what it's worth, even with all the "nanny" technology enabled, a 911 Turbo is still scary-fast for any amateur driver. I have no reason to suspect that the GT-R is any different in that regard.

 

I know I know, don't misinterpret me to hold it against it at all.

It's just they are rather snobbish and I can imagine them rationalizing like that against the car.

 

Yep, the owners of certain vehicles will rationalize against vehicles like the Z06 and GT-R because it's a lot easier to create excuses than it is to accept that maybe, just maybe there are faster modes of transportation available for a lot less money

If given the choice between either: A) A well-optioned 911 Turbo; or B) a Z06 and a GT-R... well, let's just say that the interior of the Porsche is nice but not quite that nice.

 

They are pretty spartan aren't they? I just don't think you're getting what you pay for these days from them.

I mean, a Cayman is what, 70,xxx. in PR... screw that.

 

The ZR1 won't be able to touch the GTR-V and perhaps not even the GTR.

It's a shame though. With the ZR1 starting to look like it just barely gets by the Z06 with the ZR1's blistering low 7:40's pass thus far on the Nürburgring track, and it's mild increase in top speed, I wonder what went wrong? Was it the extra 200 lbs, or perhaps the extra rotational inertia of the 20" wheels? Quite frankly I don't care anymore.

I suppose I'll wait until the official ZR1 numbers come out, but I'm not holding my breath.

 

Where did we get a 7:40 lap time for the ZR1?

 

I think that the 911 interior is pretty nice, at least in the upper-end models. Sure, it's not fancy, but it sure feels solid, functional, and expensive. But probably not enough for me to pay $70,000 more than the GT-R or Z06, just to get less performance.

Front engine, rear wheel drive, 640 HP, DOT tires - that right there is a difficult combination to optimize. I wouldn't write off the ZR1 just quite yet, though - there may be more development work to do on the vehicle, and it might take a great driver quite a while to figure out how to unleash all of the vehicle's potential.

 

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...hotopanel..1.*

 

So Suzuki drove a Nissan?

Great times either way. Interesting while watching the video it didn't seem any quicker or more spectacular than the recent Camaro test car.

I thought they said the GT-R Spec V ran a 7:25... so the 330 lb drop and extra 70 hp over the GT-R only gains 4 sec when just driving the GT-R on dry pavement will gain 9 sec???

 

The GT-R is an astonishing to run the times it does at that weight. Just out of curiosuity what tires does the GT-R get versus the ZR-1?

 

I'm wondering too. I'd want to see lap times with both of them on race rubber.

 

But did it not run those times @ the ring with a flying start, started timer 100 feet from start line and stopped timer 400-500 feet from finish line?