Sep 05 2009
The soul of a supercar (part 2)
We return to our inquiry on whether the Nissan GT-R, a super-fast technological marvel, is a supercar in the classical sense of the word.
Helping us in this quest, if you read last week’s edition of Weekend Living – Car, was being able to take a (very) short spin in the Lamborghini Gallardo LP 550-2 Valentino Balboni awhile back (read about it here). It’s a Lamborghini in the vein of the old, pre-Audi/VW days, with a little more excitement and rawness to it. Unlike the GT-R and normal Gallardo it doesn’t have all-wheel drive, only the rear wheels are driven.
And now having seen the other side of the story, I think yes, the Nissan GT-R is definitely a supercar. Purists (or the very rich) might not agree, but there is simply no arguing with the design, performance and, most important, the way it makes you feel. With the Lamborghini you get a more recognition on the street for sure and it’s as much a recognition of the Italian design and drama as it is the big price tag. But loud engine and ferocious gearshifts aside, very little separates the two.
What I like best about the GT-R is the price, $297,500 with COE – it’s relatively inexpensive (not that I could ever afford one) because all the cars which offer similar performance cost three to five times as much. You’d have enough to buy a nice condo with the change leftover from a Ferrari F430 Scuderia, for example…
The GT-R’s over-efficiency, as nay-sayers see it, reminds me of another lesson from history: in 1969, Honda launched its CB750 motorcycle which, like the GT-R, forced the whole industry to relook things.
- Honda CB750
Great acceleration, brakes, handling, a 200km/h top speed – exhilarating figures for the era, and it was labelled a superbike. 40 years on, it’s hailed as a classic, and I suspect the GT-R will have a similar fate.
