Cheap Speed That’s Not A Corvette

Mostly our focus is on the best pre-owned vehicles for the money, but to start things off in 2008, we absolutely have to mention the biggest release of the year. Others may while away the time squabbling about the STi vs. Evo X faceoff, but for us, there is just no contest.

When it hits our shores in a few months, the all-new Nissan GT-R will quite simply be the mother monster of performance bargains. Consider this just quickly: its twin-turbo 3.8 Liter V6 unleashes just shy of 480 horsepower, which is about the same as the new Porsche 911 Turbo. However, despite its rather portly curb weight of 3,836 pounds, initial testing in Japan shows that it will outaccelerate the 911, the Corvette ZO6, and the new Viper. Yeaup, the one with 600 horses.

Using Launch Control, which is a feature we Americans are rarely treated to, it rips through its dual-clutch six-speed paddle shifters en route to 60mph in a nosebleed-inducing 3.5 seconds (remember when only a 911 Turbo S or a Ferrari supercar could squeeze under four seconds?) and an as-tested quarter mile in 11.6 @ 120.9 miles an hour. Braking is roughly the same as its competitors mentioned above, and only the massively-rubbered Viper will outhandle it through a slalom. It should also be mentioned that this car is extremely controllable, stable, and more forgiving at the limit than the Porsche.

Without getting too misty-eyed, we’ll leave with you with the best part: the price. At just under $70,000, it undercuts the 911 Turbo by a healthy fifty LARGE, the Viper by $15K, and even the bargain benchmark ZO6 by a grand or two. So, even without the “Skyline” badge, this new GT-R from Nissan is, we believe, more than worthy of carrying on the giant-killing tradition.