Although it was originally deemed controversial for dropping the Skyline moniker and the inline-six RB in favor of a V6, the R35 proved the naysayers wrong by obliterating almost every new car on sale in 2007. Introduced no fewer than 15 years ago, the current generation of the GT-R is understandably old school in many respects. Be that as it may, this fellow still has plenty to show for itself against modern land missiles.
Sam CarLegion matched up the 2022 model year BMW M550i xDrive against Nissan’s aging Godzilla with obvious results. The clip below starts off with a good ol’ dig race in which the Bavarian performance sedan launches an idea better off the line, only to be shamed by the Japanese coupe in the quarter mile. It’s not a tremendous gap, but nevertheless, it still is pretty darn special to see a design this old prevail against a twin-turbo V8 rocket with all-wheel drive and one of the best automatic transmissions ever produced.
The question is, what did you expect? 4,275 pounds (1,939 kilograms) make the Bimmer considerably heavier than the 3,933 pounds (1,784 kilograms) of the GT-R. The M550i xDrive with the Life Cycle Impulse also happens to be less potent (make that 523 horsepower), although it does have the upper hand torque-wise (553 pound-foot or 750 Nm). Funnily enough, the weight distribution for these unlikely rivals is just around 55/45 for both.
Had it been the M5, especially the M5 CS, that cranks out a few more ponies, the R35 might have accepted its fate. But it’s not as simple as that because the GT-R is playing in a very different league in terms of the retail price. Nissan discontinued the R35 from its American lineup after the 2021 model year when the Premium used to retail at $113,540 and the NISMO carried a sticker price of $210,740, excluding destination charge and optional extras.
$210k is too much for the go-faster variant of a car developed prior to the financial crisis. That’s Lamborghini Huracan Coupe RWD money in the U.S., and pretty much everyone can agree that the Raging Bull of Sant’Agata Bolognese is more desirable than Nissan. Unfortunately for GT-R enthusiasts, the R36 is nowhere near completion, as per a year-old report.
“The GT-R is a professional machine and we need to work it out for the future,” chief exec Makoto Uchida told Autocar.co.uk in November 2021. “We are looking at how we can do it electrified. It’s something that’s a really professional sports vehicle with no compromise,” he added.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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