The GTR is the best all around performance car I've ever owned! Had several track days with it and never had 1 single problem, absolutely love it!

 

Jamie, where the heck have you been, bro? I hope to run into you at a track day this spring.

 

Man I have a dad who got sick last March (cancer) who lives in Florida, so I have been spending my free time down there when I can. Most of my family lives in the Jupiter area of Florida and I actually have a place in Jupiter myself and a business so I have been spending a lot of time down there. I basically grew up at PBIR, used to be Moroso back then, but I think that might end up being the track I will be spending the most time at in the near future. I think I am flying down to Sebring next week to watch Mike race in the series he is racing in and I hope to get in some local racing (MIR) but I don't know if that is possible? Mike is putting a new style rear in my GT2 on the 23rd with different ramps etc, because the car is pulling to one side under acceleration at the track and sometimes on the street so I might make it to the track after I get that fixed? I am going to VIR with TPC for 2 days in April as they are renting the track and then I am heading to Spring Mountain for a week in early May and after that I am going to try and hook up with all you guys at a couple rentals.

 

Jamie - very sorry to hear about your father. I'm sure he's happy to be spending time with you during these difficult times.

I'm sure we'll run into each other soon, man. Please give Mike my best when you see him again.

 

Thanks! Will do!

 

The weight has hardly affected me at all.

I don't get it. Would 99% of the owners really care if it was little lighter? Perhaps. Maybe it wouldn't ride as smooth, or have all of those electronic goodies inside, that everybody else pays sometimes more than $10k over sticker for? Maybe it would cost an additional $80k...

Is it an endurance racer? No. Is it a competent street car that can slap some fast laps on almost any track at whim? Yes. What is your point here?

I think if you drove it, you'd be as surprised as I was the first I drove it, and wonder - where did all that weight go? It is balanced. That matters more than weight.

 

+1. That seems to be the general impression for most people after a first test drive.

 

As a previous Porsche and GT-R owner I have not found anything Speed21 has said in this thread to be overly offensive; some GT-R owners need to not be so sensitive.

As for the weight question: Speed21 is absolutely correct. Many of the 'problems' with the GT-R would be markedly reduced if the bloody car weighed 500 lbs less. The high usage of consumables when the car is driven in a spirited fashion can be directly correlated to its 'porkiness'. Without a doubt the car would be faster, handle/ride better AND be far more 'friendly' to its tyres, brakes, etc. if it weighed less. Everyone who uses the GT-R primarily as a track car tries to get as much weight as possible out of the car. Unfortunately due to its design, more than about 200lbs is very difficult to remove unless you truly convert the car to a race car, rendering it undriveable on the street. There is no doubt that unless one throws a substantial amount of money at the GT-R providing extra cooling and replacing OEM components that don't stand up to extreme use well, (meaning rotors and OEM RFT tyres), it will not complete 25 minute HPDE events at WOT when driven in the advanced group by an experienced driver. The TT S will, stock.

I am NOT ragging on the GT-R; I love the car. However, it disguises its excess weight extremely well on the street and 1/4 mile due to its insane hp/torque; DCT transmission; AWD; damn fine suspension and sophisticated VDC. The road course when its driven rapidly exposes its 'faults' which are esentially two fold: poor cooling of the drivetrain and brakes, and rapid wear of consumables due to excess weight. To not acknowledge these 'faults', which btw can be overcome as many things can by pouring money into the car, is turning a blind eye to reality.

Now let's stop *****ing at each other and get back to talking about the huge strengths, and yes some weaknesses, of one of the best cars ever made.

Bish

 

I'd say for about AT LEAST 90% of the GT-R owners, its weight is irrelevant, and for the 5 out of the last 10%, they aren't too concerned with it, and 4 out of the last 5% won't really do anything about it, leaving the 1% (42 cars around now) to do some serious weight loss.

If it was 500lbs lighter, I believe it would cost at least $80k more (most likely more than that). It would come stripped down, with no frills, etc... (for example: those stock seats are pretty heavy). I don't see it raising reliability on any level for street driving, or occasional track use. Would it cut down on tire/brake wear? Yes. So would avoiding the track in a 3800lbs car. There are solutions to everything.

The first time I took the GT-R on track (and the second & third), I did absolutely nothing to the car. It was fine in its stock form (tracked in Oct, and Feb in VIR/CMP). Did I run into issues at other tracks in the Summer? Yes. This required me to do a cool down session (a couple laps at moderate speed), before completing the rest of the session. I'm not out there to do endurance racing. If I was, I'd either get another car (that is already lighter), or gut my current car an add coolers. Because I'm not endurance racing, this is irrelevant to me.

 

Bish

Well written and as someone who tracked the car your comments are most valuable.

 

The Spec V. Many, (most?) owners know that for a huge increase in monetary outlay, you receive marginal performance benefits with the Spec V over the regular GT-R. In fact, you could buy a lightly used '09 GT-R here in the USA for about $60K, add a high quality tranny cooler, the $14K AP Racing CCM brakes, a custom tune with the Cobb AP, (about $1750), a set of JRZ coil-overs and regardless of the weight differential, the used, 1/2 price GT-R would beat the Spec V on a road course for both overall speed and endurance.

Now if you have more money than sense, and want to keep a GT-R stock for warranty purposes AND want the fastest (slightly) GT-R available: get the Spec V if it's sold in your area.

Bish

 

You raise some good points, but for sure many owners who drive other than in the beginner groups at HPDEs HAVE addressed the weight issue inherent in the GT-R even if they don't really know it. How? Not by removing weight, but by actually adding weight by installing additional oil coolers to keep the car from going into the red zones, and by replacing weak OEM rotors/pads, etc.

As for getting 500 lbs out of the car? Again you're probably right regarding pricing, but for the R36 GT-R; (God I hope Nissan makes one), and by the use of all those CAD/CAM machines, perhaps they can create a true track version; (not a bastardised version like the Spec V), that dispenses with much of the bells and whistles and does weigh about 3500 lbs instead of 3900lbs.

I also initally drove my car in cooler weather in its OEM configuration and it IS a great track car stock. Faster than pretty much everything out there, and designed to make even the average driver seem really fast. The problem is when the ambient temp hits the 90Fs, and you're forced to back way off 2/3rds of the way thru' your run group due to wilted brakes and oil temps dangerously high. Where's the fun in that? Especially if you've been battling that C6 Z06 for 2 laps; you finally dust him/her off and then 1 lap later you have to wave them by? I frankly don't want to back out of the throttle until the checkered flag waves; but maybe that's me.

Anyway, it's a really fantastic and enjoyable car regardless of what you want to do with it.

Bish

 

Sounds like you need to live in Minnesota in the Summer and Texas in the Winter. It might be cheaper!

 

Thread cleaned up. I'm sick and tired of the trolling that's going on in here. If you aren't interested in having polite, healthy discussions...don't post. The next time I see a troll post, the member who posted it will be temp-banned.

Thank you.

 

not off topic but a little off the last few posts is what does my warrantly mean when it says it covers calipers and rotors? I gather you might say just defects?