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Virtual 2024 Nissan GT-R ‘Shooting Brake’ Triggers Stagea Comeback Discussion

As old as it may be (the R35 iteration started production in December of 2007!), the Nissan GT-R is a high-performance grand tourer that is still capable of creating hype.
2024 Nissan GT-R Shooting Brake rendering by jlord8 27 photos
Photo: jlord8 / Instagram
2024 Nissan GT-R Shooting Brake rendering by jlord82024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official2024 Nissan GT-R T-Spec and Nismo official
Both in the real world as well as across the imaginative realm of digital car content creators, as it turns out. As far as the former kingdom is concerned, the nameplate was born in 1969 to the tune of the colloquial ‘Hakosuka’ moniker and actual internal codes of PGC10 for the four-door sedan and KPGC10 for the later coupe body style.

The two-door version prevailed, and it was followed by the ultra-rare ‘Kenmeri’ Skyline GT-R of 1973 before finally settling into the well-known R32, R33, and R34 designations. Production of the original Skyline series ended in 2002, and Nissan only resurrected the GT-R part of the high-performance nameplate for the current, modern stint.

And since we already established that today’s ‘Godzilla’ is basically as old as the dinosaurs, Nissan kept it alive and well through numerous variants, special editions, and updates. The latest refresh was officially presented not long ago, complete with new aero goodies, the reintroduction of iconic paintjobs, and the return of the T-spec grade. Unfortunately, there were no changes to the powertrain, which remains at the current levels of 565 and 600 hp for the ‘regular’ versions and the GT-R Nismo, respectively.

Thus, since folks cannot mingle with the powertrain, some of them – mostly dwelling across the digital expanses of a parallel CGI universe – quickly thought that maybe they can still play with the iconic two-door body style. As such, some of them gave it an extreme tuning makeover, some quickly imagined it ready to pass the baton to the R36 Nismo, and a few even thought about dropping the roof so that people could better enjoy the roar of the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6 as the wind passes through their hair.

Now, here is Jim, the virtual artist better known as jlord8 on social media, who also chipped in and CGI-created a Nissan GT-R for a (smaller) family, thus inadvertently opening the door to an interesting debate. So, his idea would be to see the R35 morph into a three-door Shooting Brake that is more practical for road trips but just as feisty. And, instead of musing about this transformation, his fans quickly kicked off a debate about the potential return of the Nissan Stagea station wagon, the model built from 1996 to 2007 as a rival for the Subaru Legacy Touring.

Well, it is all wishful thinking, so why not – let us just assume that Nissan would have the courage to make the GT-R a shooting brake and name it Stagea. That would be bonkers, especially when thinking about that 600-hp Nismo version, right?


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Editor's note: Gallery includes official images of 2024 Nissan GT-R.

About the author: Aurel Niculescu
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Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution.
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