The R35 is a humongous leap from its three predecessors.
The Nissan GT-R, of course. We don’t mind that it’s an old machine. Despite its weight, the newest Godzilla is still a monster of a coupe that can turn heads despite being a recognized brand for decades.
However, the Nissan GT-R is no longer what it once was. The current R35 is a tremendous step forward from its predecessors, and this drag race, hosted by UK’s Carwow, intends to demonstrate that. Four generations of GT-R and Skyline GT-Rs compete on the tarmac from R32 to R35 to discover how far Godzilla has progressed.
The R32 was the first Skyline GT-R to feature the renowned twin-turbo 2.6-L RB26DETT inline-six engine, for those unfamiliar. From then on, this engine has been at the heart of the Skyline GT-R series, though with minor changes between generations.
The Skyline GT-R R32, R33, and R34 all have 276 horsepower (206 kilowatts) on paper, according to a gentleman’s agreement between Japanese automakers not to surpass those figures.
In reality, though, they all produce more, increasing per generation. Torque figures likewise increase per generation, as well as the weight. All of the samples here come with manual gearboxes, with the R34 having an extra gear compared to the two.
Meanwhile, the R35, which saw Nissan dropping the Skyline monicker for the GT-R, makes twice as much power as the older GT-Rs do. With a twin-turbo 3.8-liter VR38DETT V6 engine under its hood, the Nismo version here makes 600 hp (447 kW) and 481 pound-feet (652 Newton-meters) of torque. It’s also heavier by around 353 pounds (160 kilograms), so there’s that.
The drag race here is lopsided, to begin with, so you might want to focus on the older GT-Rs while watching the video embedded above. The result won’t surprise anyone, though.
Now, the question is, will there be a next-generation Nissan GT-R? Your guess is just as good as ours at this point.