On the Road

Well finally the Nissan GT-R has arrived through official channels (dealer Tan Chong Motor Sales), almost two years after it’s Japanese world in the end of ‘07.

You’ve surely read the copious amounts of literature on the nature of Godzilla, and having test driven it (read the full review in the Car section), we can say it’s mostly true: it’s as fast as blue blazes and flexible too, so you can drive it like a complete nutbag or a nun if the mood so strikes.

Godzilla!

But the main debate is whether the GT-R has a soul – some motoring writers have criticised it as being simply too efficient and clinical.

Sure it uses technology to go fast – lots of engine electronics, a twin-turbo 3.8-litre V6, Nissan’s super-advanced ATTESA-ETS all-wheel drive system, a dual-clutch gearbox that sits in the rear.

But that’s like saying an F-16 isn’t as good as an F-15 because it uses fly-by-wire instead of hydraulics. What’s more important, and this goes beyond pedantic thinking, is if it provides that sense of control coupled with edginess – it’s arguable that the supercar patina is acquired by crashing!

For example, the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X  is a very similar car (turbo engine, AWD, smarter than your average bear electronics) and undoubtedly quick. But driving it one gets a sense of being mediated by the computer.

The GT-R provides a lot more directness, maybe because it’s smarter, but still the electronics also won’t catch you all the time. It’s drivetrain also has a rear-wheel bias so it feels like a traditional supercar.

We’ll be sampling something else in the coming week that’ll help put some perspective on things. All I can say for now is, it’s Italian.

But in the mean time what do you think makes the soul of a supercar?

Design? Racing heritage? The sense of being flung into a tree at any moment? A tendency to rust? The complete lack of civil amenities? Should a supercar be about mere, brute performance or technical supremacy? Let us know!

Tags: Evolution, GT-R, Japan, Mitsubishi, Nissan, supercar

Our National Day themed story this weekend in Speed chronicles the life and times of Singaporean racing driver Ringo Chong, you can read it here.

Ringo of course, isn’t the only racer here, there are others like Melvin Choo, Denis Lian, Hafiz Koh and drift driver Ivan Lim who have achieved a fair measure of success.

What unites them, besides the obvious urge to drive cars very fast, is determination. Singapore, with its lack of proper road circuits, is not exactly the best place on earth if you’re ambition is to be a professional racing driver.

Singapore drivers in the 1980-90s, literally had nowhere else to race but the car park.

Motorsports, like music, did have promising roots.  But sadly, like rock music and discos, racing was outlawed here (in 1973, the year the last Upper Thomson GP was held) which more or less spelt its doom.

We are certainly making up for lost time though, with F1 finally here and the Changi Motorsports Hub on track for completion in 2011. The scale and speed of the IR’s construction shows just how much Singapore can accomplish when it really wants to.

Hopefully it’ll signal an new era and a burgeoning motorsports industry. But in the meantime, to those who have fought hard and long to enjoy motorsports here, we salute you!

Tags: drivers, motorsports, Ringo Chong, Singapore