A few people suggested a review when I'd driven it a bit, so here goes...

Last week I started driving a 2010 spec Nissan GT-R for occasional (fun) use.

It's had a stage 1 tweak with a different downpipe and engine tune to take it from 470bhp to 550bhp, plus it's had the 2011 improved gearbox software download. So performance wise it's fairly similar to the new 2011 spec that comes with 530bhp from the factory.

The fairly obvious thing to mention is the performance. It's quick, in an unbelieveably quick way. Until I drove this car I'd never experienced anything like it. The closest I'd got was the aggressive thump of torque from the diesel Fabia VRS. But this is more and through the whole rev range. 0-60mph is around 3 seconds. Thankfully the seats have a soft pad to rest your head on under full acceleration so you don't hurt your neck. 0-100mph is round 8 seconds give or take a bit.

There is a lot of info out there on this car and it does beat a lot of expensive machines, despite a pretty big kerbweight of over 1700kg. A key factor in this seems to be the transmission.

It's got four wheel drive and the gearbox is in the back under the rear seats, by the rear wheels. The power only goes to the front when it has to, rather than other performance cars (like the Audi TT-RS) that send the power to the front first which doesn't seem so sensible to me. With a DSG style box and flappy paddles it launches itself through the gearbox at an amazing rate and from the driver seat you don't really feel the gear changes. They are so fast it's just like riding a wave of torque as somebody hits the fast forward button on your life. The combination of the rear biased drive, 4WD and quick changing DSG mean it absolutely launches itself every time you stamp on the throttle. It's an unusual experience.

Surprisingly, the car is also very easy to drive. Being a Japanese high performance car it's got more computers that you know what to do with. You can check a seemingly endless list of things on the move, or download the drive data later for tech boys. These include g force for cornering, braking and accelerating, oil and transmission temps and pressures and God knows how many other thngs including the actual tyre pressures to the nearest psi.

I was a bit concerened with the interior, as I've not had a Nissan before and was expecting it to be like a mainstream car. But I have to say they have done a good job with great sports seats and a nice interior. Being slim the seats fit me perfectly. You can feel a light pressure on your hips from either side holding you in place. When you whizz round corners at a speed that would see you up a tree in a normal car it doesn't feel that fast at all.

This is possibly the only criticism I can make of this car. It's so capable, so safe and so impressively refined that you get a little used to speed. It's far too easy to overtake people on a dual carriageway and end up doing speeds you shouldn't be doing, because it is just so smooth. There is no raw feeling of wrestling the car to get it doing what you want. You point the car where you want to go and just go. Even if you start to slide the back out with too much power the trick differentials just snap it back into shape without you even having to take your foot off the accelerator and lose performance. It's like a sensible refined supercar that'll help you out when you over estimate your abilities. And the suspension is pretty good. Certainly noticably softer (except in R mode) than my Fabia VRS with coilovers.

The first tank of fuel I only averaged 18mpg because I was playing with it. Like putting the transmission in R mode so when I came to a roundabout it automatically dropped three gears and was at 4000prm ready to fire me out the other side. It's quick enough without R mode on, but it's nice to know how these things work.

I've never been a big fan of paddle shifts, preffering a manual. But in this vehicle you need a DSG style box. No way could most drivers get such quick changes, it'd just make the car slower. It goes like an absolute rocket in auto mode and I have to say that I've not felt the need to take control with the paddle shifters yet... other than to drop a couple of cogs in a tunnel so I could listen to the exhaust.

Overall I have to say this car is amazing. A real triumph of Japanese technology and performance over the laws of physics.

A real supercar you could use every day. If you could afford the fuel bills. But for the daily commute I prefer the Fabia Greenline as I don't get so frustrated with people holding me up or stand out like a sore thumb.

And using it every day would probably get you used to it. Which means you'd be more tempted to start modifying...

Just don't get a puncture that can't be fixed.

Because if the other tyres are worn the new one will make the computer have a fit, so that'll be four new tyres at £300 each.

Sensational, but expensive.

That is rather cool. Any photos?

A real supercar you could use every day. If you could afford the fuel bills. But for the daily commute I prefer the Fabia Greenline as I don't get so frustrated with people holding me up or stand out like a sore thumb.

And using it every day would probably get you used to it. Which means you'd be more tempted to start modifying...

Just don't get a puncture that can't be fixed.

Because if the other tyres are worn the new one will make the computer have a fit, so that'll be four new tyres at £300 each.

Sensational, but expensive.

Still glad that you are "sensiable" about it ....I'd do the same....damn temptation!......oh...didn't realise that it suffers from the same problem that the Volvo 850R AWD ( and some other AWD Volvos had/have) with the tyres (it really mucked the diffs up)! :S

That is rather cool. Any photos?

Thanks James,

Just a few from my Fabia thread.

I like it! I saw a GTR a week or so ago in a kind of iridescent white, I presume it had been wrapped. Looked rather eye catching and it sounded awesome as it shot away! I never realised they where quite that fast. Mental cars!

I've never been a big fan of paddle shifts, preffering a manual. But in this vehicle you need a DSG style box. No way could most drivers get such quick changes, it'd just make the car slower. It goes like an absolute rocket in auto mode and I have to say that I've not felt the need to take control with the paddle shifters yet... other than to drop a couple of cogs in a tunnel so I could listen to the exhaust.

I thought the GTR had software that meant the ECU took control while the box was out of gear and did perfect rev matching for you anyway? So even the "manual" car is rather more assisted than your idea of manual from the vRS...it'd take a lot for me to willingly take on an auto box. Admittedly the only experience I have is pretty much from total sheds, but I would be gutted to spend big on something like the GTR and find that I still didn't like auto-boxes, too big a risk for me and I'd have to stick with something I knew that I'd enjoy I reckon.

Nice car though, as I said in Fabia I, I'm not jealous...much :(

I like it! I saw a GTR a week or so ago in a kind of iridescent white, I presume it had been wrapped. Looked rather eye catching and it sounded awesome as it shot away! I never realised they where quite that fast. Mental cars!

Yes, quite quick... acceleration vid not using Launch Control in my Fabia thread here: http://briskoda.net/forums/topic/202729-richards-09-mki-vrs-se/page__st__160

I thought the GTR had software that meant the ECU took control while the box was out of gear and did perfect rev matching for you anyway? So even the "manual" car is rather more assisted than your idea of manual from the vRS..

It does, when it changes down it blips the throttle for the fraction of a second a change takes.

It's not nearly as mechanical as a proper manual change with a clutch, but suits this car very well.

I was not convinced until I drove one either as I usually prefer a more raw feeling in a performance car where you feel you are more in control of things.

What I meant was that this car would not work as well if it was a conventional manual with a clutch. It would be slower.

Brilliant honest review there! They are truly awesome machines these R35's. There's a guy local to me who was running 1011bhp on low boost in his (until it went pop). The car was called the JUN R1, something crazy like £100k on the engine alone. 40-140mph in 2.5 seconds... There's some vids on YouTube if you wanna check it out

Anyway yours looks really nice mate.

All the best

Wow. I watched the video and I thought it looked very fast, it looked even faster when I realised the digital readout was in MPH not KPH as originally thought!!

Just had a thought, you didn't buy it from a chap around here did you? In Ashtead?

Edited 20 October, 201114 yr by Allams Skoda

Wow. I watched the video and I thought it looked very fast, it looked even faster when I realised the digital readout was in MPH not KPH as originally thought!!

Just had a thought, you didn't buy it from a chap around here did you? In Ashtead?

No, it was a private purchase from Hampshire.

I might bring it when I visit on Tuesday as it's got sat-nav. Provided my Mum will get in it.

No, it was a private purchase from Hampshire.

I might bring it when I visit on Tuesday as it's got sat-nav. Provided my Mum will get in it.

The plate looks a little familiar. I had a chap from Ashtead come in with one like yours recently and he said he was going to sell it for the same sort of money you got yours for. Would of been odd if it was his. He was looking at a Yeti DSG as he said the GTR was just going to get him in trouble!

Would be great if you could bring it down Tuesday, certainly wouldn't mind if you could take me round the block in it!!

Lovely, lovely car. My best mate works at a bodyshop and on odd occasions I go and visit him and get to drive one in the workshop at closing time

I'd have one in a heartbeat - have heard about the tyres too. Another mate works at a tyre fitters and is the only guy to fit them direct from Nissan apparently. £1200 for four tyres when all you need is one

300 quid a corner isn't too bad imo. Better value than 200 quid a corner for a new shape vauxhaul astra on 17s.

300 quid a corner isn't too bad imo. Better value than 200 quid a corner for a new shape vauxhaul astra on 17s.

That's for Bridgestones.

If you want the Dunlops the new cars come with Nissan have the only access and it's £500 a corner.

But as said above it becomes more of a problem if the tyres are reasonably worn and you get a puncture you can't fix.

As with the different rolling sizes you need to replace all four to stop the computer having a fit.

Makes me jealous every time I see you talk about your gtr!!! Beautiful monster!

Richard... Wow. When magazines say it corners like on rails they mean exactly that. Thanks for the spin!!! I'm still in shock. I have never ever experienced a car like this. And I've been all over Switzerland in a Ferrari F430 Spider, played with a Porsche 911 Turbo and a Jag XKR to name a few. But this thing is mental.

Your whole sense of distance and speed gets warped in this car. When we joined the motorway all my senses said that car there going past is going to be right on us when we join, yet, two seconds later not only did we pass that car and joined the motorway but we left it 300m behind BEFORE it even passed the point where the motorway and slip road merge!!! Eh?! Amazing.

So in a straight line it is fast up to legal speeds (and beyond I'm sure). Though top speed is so irrelevant these days as you can't do it anywhere. This car shines in getting to legal speeds for sure but that was not remotely what stuck in my memory. Launch control and 0-60 in under 3 seconds was impressive, but without a Golf GTI in the mirror to leave behind your sense of that 3 seconds is not as heightened. But then... Then you hit a corner... THAT is when reality stops. As I said like on rails. You point, it goes. Ninety degree corner, slow bend, does not matter. Nor does the speed you come into the corner. You point, it goes. No tyre squeal, no twitching, no drama at all. I have never experienced a machine before that can corner like this thing. Stupefying. The speeds you can enter and go through bends are ten, no maybe twenty times higher than I can dream of in my car. (and we are talking doing 50mph here around a corner where a normal car would do 15 before people think Richard was doing foolish things on public roads. Not in the least. It was normal speeds EVERYWHERE. Bend or not). On rails. Wow.

Then you stop. The dash thingy said over 1g of force!!! My mind says we are not going to stop in time!! You need to stop!!!! And still the car is accelerating and then you hit the brakes and wham... Within what feels like 10meters you go from fast to a dead stop. Amazing.

I cannot think of ANY car that can give you this level of performance for the money. Nothing. That it has a decent boot and 35mpg doodling around town fuel consumption is just utterly, utterly incongruous.

What a car Richard. What a car. Thanks again for making my year!!!