Nissan Z, step aside

Nissan Z, step aside

Lindsay Chappell
Automotive News
October 24, 2007 - 6:22 am ET

Details of a supercar
Nissan's GT-R will include:

480 hp 3.8-liter twin-turbo V6

Dual-clutch transmission

Independent transaxle 4-wheel-drive

Free annual engine and transmission tuning for three years

Base price (Japanese market): $67,800

TOKYO-Nissan Motor Co. has entered the world of testosterone-fueled 
supercars with the unveiling here today of its new GT-R sports car.

The car's expected $67,000 price tag will double the price of the brand's 
current sportscar offering, the 350Z, and triple the price of its 
best-selling Altima family sedan.

The GT-R will reach U.S. dealerships next June with a new 480-horsepower 
engine, specially designed 20-inch racing tires, and two extra coats of 
paint. The car's uniquely designed powertrain system rests the engine over

the front axle and the transmission over the rear axle in order to dampen 
vibration at speeds of up to 180 miles an hour.

It will require U.S. dealer service technicians to travel to Japan for two

weeks of training to become certified to work on the model.

An automaker that was on the doorstep of bankruptcy seven years ago,
Nissan 
has been developing the GT-R under closely guarded security for the past 
four years. Today at the Tokyo Motor Show today, Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn 
introduced the GT-R as Nissan's new technology flagship.

"This is no mere muscle car," Ghosn told a crowded audience of mostly
Asian 
and European journalists here. "We wanted to make a car that stretched our

engineering abilities to the limit."

As far as sales go, the GT-R will barely make a blip on Ghosn's global 
three-year push for 600,000 new Nissan sales. The Japanese production line

created to build the GT-R will only turn out 30 to 50 cars a day-a
capacity 
of just 12,000 globally.

But Ghosn believes the supercar will stimulate sales floor traffic in
Nissan 
dealerships around the world. He said the company has already sold out the

first three months worth of GT-R production, and orders are coming from 
markets as far-flung as Russia and Qatar.

U.S. pricing on the car has not been announced.