With the R35 GT-R, Nissan managed to stick a thorn in Porsche’s side and has been doing so for nearly a decade.
We’re talking Nürburgring lap times and bragging rights, of course, for the two are not exactly targeted at the same buyer. Or are they?
Let’s see… The GT-R and 911 Turbo S both are coupes with turbocharged six-cylinder engines, dual-clutch transmissions and all-wheel drive. Additionally, with 550 HP on tap and performance to challenge any exotic, they blur the lines between sports cars and supercars yet, unlike the latter, are practical enough to be used every day. They even offer seating for four, even you’d not call them spacious; especially the Porsche.
What sets them apart is how each gets about doing its job. The 911 has, naturally, its flat-six where it shouldn’t (at the back) and a pedigree that’s been built over more than five decades of evolution. Not to dismiss its rival’s illustrious past, but it was far from a household name outside Japan and, hey, even its maker dropped the Skyline nameplate for this one.
Well, they also ditched the Nissan badge from the grille. Not that it’ll fool any badge snobs anyway, but it’s telling, isn’t it? Perhaps not as much as the huge price difference between the two, though that is much to Nissan’s credit.
Fifth Gear’s Jason Plato and Tiff Needell cast aside all those worries and just picked up the two to find out which is the best in three challenges (drag race, lateral grip and a two-lap race) at a wet circuit.
Being so closely matched on specs makes it difficult to predict the outcome. No matter: the significantly updated GT-R ensures that we’ll see those two go head to head again soon enough.