2009 Nissan GT-R: DNA

Together with Nissan, Brembo came up with powerful brake rotors and callipers.

Bridgestone developed exclusive tires for the Nissan GT-R. They are filled with nitrogen and, being run-flat units, they can sustain speeds of up to 80 kph after a flat. A set of Bridgestone Blizzak winter tires was also made available for this all-season supercar. The lightweight, forged aluminum wheels (20 inches) are designed to maximize tire adhesion under extreme acceleration.

Together with Nissan, Brembo came up with powerful brake rotors (380 mm) and callipers to stop the car from 100 to 0 kph over 110 feet. The brakes are quite responsive and effective, even with a gentle pressure on the brake pedal.

PlayStation, anyone?
The GT-R features a 7-inch LCD touch-screen monitor with up to 6 simultaneous graphical readouts. This driver-configurable system was developed by none other than Sony's PlayStation team. You can select the readouts for oil temperature, coolant temperature, turbo boost, injector usage, longitudinal and total G-force, etc. You can also record all the vehicle and driving data, like accelerations, G-force, telemetrics, torque distribution, throttle and brake position, etc. The data menu is virtually endless.

Completing this comprehensive information center is an advanced navigation system. Nissan has to be commended for the quality and ergonomics of the center stack: the controls and instruments are easy to read and manipulate. German automakers should definitely take notice.

Schubert, BB King or Avril Lavigne?
Bose teammed up with Nissan to custom-design a high-performance audio system with 11 speakers, including dual subwoofers in a die-cast aluminum enclosure between the rear seats. Front passengers, meanwhile, benefit from very comfortable buckets. The driver's is heavily bolstered for sporty driving.

Rivals?
Cheaper than a Corvette Z06, the 2009 Nissan GT-R proved almost as fast as the Porsche Carrera GT on the Nürburgring track. Actually, we've heard that a Spec-V variant of the GT-R completed a lap in 7:25 minutes -- 7 hundredths of a second faster than the Carrera GT. The regular GT-R is still faster than any Porsche Turbo, Mercedes SLR McLaren, Lamborghini Murcielago/Gallardo, Ferrari F430 and many other supercars. In fact, in terms of all-out performance, only the Murcielago is faster than the Nissan (by one tenth of a second). The GT-R reaches 60 mph in 3.5 seconds -- just like the SLR McLaren, which is 6 times more expensive.

Canada will receive 150 fully-equipped models. The only option will be a Super Silver hand-polished paint with three clearcoats. At $81,900, and with a 3-year comprehensive warranty (5-year powertrain warranty), plus four complete maintenance programs, buyers will have to hurry to one of only 20 GT-R certified dealers across the country, starting this June.

Of course, you might want to wait until next year when a Spec-V model is scheduled to hit the market, probably with carbon brakes. After all, Nissan engineers do not rest on their laurels: they want to keep perfecting this new Japanese icon every day of the year.

Believe it: the GT-R is here to stay.

Every line of the new GT-R was purposefully drawn.

photo:Amyot Bachand, Nissan