There's just no stopping the new 2009 Nissan GT-R. Bearing the chassis code CBA-R35 (R35 for short), the new GT-R has surpassed even the mighty R34 in terms of media hype. As the first GT-R to ever be sold on US shores, the R35 has managed to clinch the cover of almost every car magazine that isn't solely devoted to pushrods and carbureted 'Stangs. Every single auto show for the past two years has also been the scene of chaos, with journalists trampling each other left and right to snap a shot or grab a brochure.
After Nissan declared that the Porsche 911 Turbo was the benchmark 'rival' for the R35, publications rushed to set up comparisons, flowcharts or tests pitching the two force-fed machines against each other. If you ask us, Nissan probably helped sell a few 911s from the extra coverage. We don't remember reading so much about the 911 Turbo's track prowess until the R35 puffed out its chest.
On paper, the R35 has all the necessary ammo to get the automotive world in a stir. Under the hood is an all-aluminum 3.8-liter V6 with two turbochargers, and such details as a semi-dry-sump oiling system and plasma-coated cylinder bores. When it shows up in the US, it'll be making 480bhp and 430lb-ft of torque, sent to a six-speed dual-clutch transmission complete with paddle shifters. The Bilstein shocks are electronically adjustable, the massive Brembo rotors are large enough for most of us to use as wheels and the car has more buttons and displays than a misguided ice cream truck that came out of Pimp My Ride.
Some of you may be thinking: "So what? How is any of this new?" The 300ZX Twin Turbo has a twin-turbocharged six-cylinder, the VW GTI comes with a dual-clutch transmission and the Corvette can be had with an infinitely adjustable magneto-electronic suspension. But no other car has ever wrapped all this technology and capability into one package and made it so accessible. The price of admission is high, yes, but there's no other car for this money that does zero-to-60mph in the low three-second range-day after day-and is so easy to drive. And then there's the GT-R nameplate's past success with Group A and Super GT racing.
We were dutifully impressed and excited after driving the new GT-R for the first time (SCC, March 2008), but we had to fly to Japan to get behind the wheel of that one. As of a few months ago, we were still interested in seeing how the R35 would fare on US roads. The only problem was, the R35 wasn't on sale here yet. In fact, the car still won't be available by the time you read this.
And then, just a few months into 2008, we caught wind of the first R35 to reach America. Our good friend, Steve Mitchell of M-Workz fame, gave us the lead on a new GT-R he had just re-assembled. And when we say re-assembled, we mean just that.
The right-hand-drive R35 GT-R seen here was imported by Daryl Alison of Jspec Connect, an online community website dedicated to bringing together enthusiasts of Japanese performance cars. The car was purchased in Japan (where they're already on sale) as a body shell and then shipped to the US as a 'drivetrain delete'. Alison then separately purchased and shipped in a complete R35 engine, transmission and suspension, and had M-Workz re-install all the parts. Nissan had originally designed the R35 to be a one-world, one-platform car. During the re-installation process, Alison and Mitchell found out that the JDM R35 has all the necessary US DOT equipment and is even EPA emissions-compliant.