Driven: 2023 Nissan GT-R
2023 | nissan | nissan gt-r | reviews | sports cars
The current-generation Nissan GT-R (R35) has been around for quite some time now, but it’s still a fantastic sports car. The 2023 GT-R is as fun to drive and attention-grabbing as ever. Other vehicles may have surpassed the GT-R’s specs and tech, but Godzilla can still hold its own in a straight line or a curve and makes anyone look like a pro driver.
Our GT-R Premium tester came slathered in a beautiful metallic paint called Bayside Blue. We've always loved the wide, muscular stance of the GT-R, and that hasn't changed. It still looks amazing, from its aggressive interpretation of Nissan's V-Motion grille to the Skyline-inspired round taillights and sculptural tail spoiler. The quad titanium exhaust looks and sounds phenomenal and has a tinge of blue that happens to match the sparkly paint.
Like all R35 GT-Rs, this one has a handbuilt 3.8-liter V6 engine with twin turbochargers. It outputs 565 horsepower and 467 lb-ft. of torque and distributes that to the wheels via a dual-clutch 6-speed transmission and Nissan's ATTESA E-TS all-wheel drive system.
Rolling on sticky Dunlop performance tires, it'll lay down 0-to-60 times right around 3 seconds. We did notice a small amount of turbo lag, but once the torque kicks in, this thing goes hard. The AWD system is just so damned good at distributing torque to provide optimal grip. It'll leave most other cars in the dust when launching from a dead stop, but it also corners with surgical precision. Getting the GT-R to break traction going around curves at speeds that would put lesser cars into a tailspin is nearly impossible.
With the ability to hit speeds up to 196 mph on a track, you need good brakes. The Nissan/Brembo brakes are up to the task, stopping quickly and confidently every time. There are 6-piston monoblock calipers with 15.35" rotors up front and 4-piston monoblock calipers with 15" rotors in back. They're ventilated to help with cooling and to limit fading after hard braking. We didn't get to drive this GT-R off public roads, but past experience tells us these brakes will hold up well on track days.
We love switchgear that looks like it belongs in a NASA command module, and these three switches certainly make the GT-R feel more rocket-like. Flip the three R-mode switches up, and the transmission shifts quicker, the suspension stiffens, and the stability control nannies loosen their grip a bit. You can turn ESC off entirely if you want to induce a powerslide, but it's still hard to get the GT-R to break traction. You can also put the adaptive suspension into comfort mode for a slightly softer ride for daily driving.
Another thing that makes the GT-R so great is how comfortable its cabin is for both the driver and the front-seat passenger. The seats are comfy and wrapped in buttery-smooth semi-aniline leather and provide supportive side bolstering that doesn't dig into wider frames like some sports seats. It doesn't have the most modern or minimal cockpit design, but the analog gauge cluster feels on-point here with its large tachometer front-and-center. And Nissan didn't skimp on the quantity of real carbon fiber on the center console. You can't see it in this picture, but there's also a small second-row seating area better suited to carrying purses and pets than humans.
Gearheads will also love fiddling around with the various gauges and telemetry features on the center touchscreen. It lets you monitor turbo boost, oil temperature and pressure, acceleration, g-force, and braking force and customize its arrangement to your liking. The multimedia system is sufficient but not as slick or capable as more modern setups. We spent most of our time connected to Apple CarPlay anyhow. Look at the top of the unit, and you'll notice something else you don't see on many cars today - a CD player. Time to get out the binder filled with discs!
Something rarely mentioned but worth doing so is the GT-R's trunk space. It's impressively large. While 8.8 cubic feet doesn't sound very big, the trunk's deep and wide opening holds a surprising number of bags, making this an excellent car for a week-long road trip for two. GT-R does stand for Gran Turismo Racing, so it only makes sense that this car is equally good touring as it is zooming around a race circuit.
Godzilla might be a little long in the tooth, but this monster is still one of our favorite cars to drive. The GT-R continues to draw envious stares and launches quicker than 99% of cars on the road. There are few vehicles we've driven that can take a corner like a GT-R, and even fewer that are as comfortable while doing it. If we have any qualms about the GT-R, it's that its price keeps creeping higher and higher, making it less accessible to gearheads. While the original 2009 R35 GT-R started under $78,000, the 2023 GT-R Premium we reviewed had a $116,040 base price and a $123,705 sticker price after options. The 2024 GT-R is even more costly, with a base price of $120,990. Never mind the 2024 GT-R NISMO, which starts at a wallet-busting $220,990.
