Nissan GT-R/C Is a Life-Sized RC Godzilla Driven on Silverstone from a Chopper

That burst obviously owes its existence to the GT-R model. You know you're doing things right when your car gets nicknamed "Godzilla," and among all the Micras and the Notes, Nissan shows it still knows how to produce one of the world's most respected sports car.

The Nissan GT-R normally doesn't need an introduction, but this car right here is not your regular GT-R. Technically speaking, it's as vanilla as the sky in Cameron Crowe's famous 2001 movie, but the engineers have added a few things to its interior.

The cabin is filled with bars and levers that activate the controls otherwise pushed or turned by the human driver. The pedals, the steering wheel, and even the gear shifter had been fitted with mechanic controls that get their inputs wirelessly.

Those inputs would come from a Sony PlayStation®4 DualShock®4 controller held by Jann Mardenborough, NISMO racing driver and former GT Academy winner. Jann was chosen to be the first to take the Nissan GT-R /C out on the track precisely for his skills both as driver and gamer.

The modified 2011 Nissan GT-R had its outing on Silverstone's National Circuit, with Jann Mardenborough following the car around the track a few feet in the air onboard a Robinson R44 Raven II helicopter.

The purpose of the whole shenanigan was to mark the launch of the latest title in the Gran Turismo video game series, the Gran Turismo Sport, on the European market (coming October 18) as well as the 20th year of Nissan's involvement with the franchise.

Anyone who's used the PlayStation controller for a racing simulator knows it takes some getting used to, but we can safely say Jann was well past that phase. That's how he achieved an average speed of 76 mph (122 km/h) during his best lap, with a top speed of 131 mph (211 km/h). That's only marginally slower than the "driven" average (83 mph or 134 km/h), showing just how confident Jann was about his skills and how right Nissan was to solicit his help.