New Nissan GT-R NISMO Confirmed for 2014, Next Generation Coming 2015

Since the current Nissan GT-R’s debut back in 2009, the supercar has well earned its reputation of “the giant killer”. The Japanese automaker has regularly re-tuned the R35 GT-R to maintain this moniker, consistently increasing the power and performance of the vehicle… The 3.8L twin-turbocharged V-6 began in 2009 with an impressive 485 hp, and has been continually tweaked and tuned until its current iteration which outputs a knock-your-socks-off 545 hp.

Over the past 4 years, Nissan’s prized GT-R has been put head-to-head against the many of the stereotypical European super car nameplates (eg. those from Porsche, BMW, Audi and even Ferrari) and come out on top, hence the name, “giant killer”. In fact, just earlier this month the Japanese supercar took down Motor Trend’s annual World’s Greatest Drag Race.

And that’s such a fun video, let’s throw that in as well:

Now, I know you’re thinking, “Yeah, yeah, I know the GT-R is a sweet car. What’s new?”

Well, two things actually. First…

Nissan Confirms 2014 GT-R NISMO (again)

We’ve heard it before that a GT-R NISMO was in the works, and that a 2014 release was likely. But, last week we got official ‘written in stone’ confirmation that Nissan’s motorsport development team (NISMO) will be unleashing their version of the GT-R at the end of 2014 as a 2015MY.

Unfortunately, Nissan still hasn’t given us any official technical specs for the GT-R NISMO. But, rumor has it, we’ll see the same 3.8L V-6 bumped up to 570 bhp, maybe even more. NISMO’s goal is to produce a commercially viable vehicle that can burst from 0 – 60 in 2 seconds flat, which is faster than any production vehicle in existence. (Gotta stay in front of the amazing new 911 Turbo S, after all.) In addition to a more powerful engine, NISMO aims to accomplish this speed with lightened vehicle weight thanks to carbon fiber integration throughout the body, along with slightly tuned aerodynamics. Suspension tweaks are also quite likely.

If you’d like to get a better feel for what the Nissan GT-R NISMO will bring to the table, take a look at this recent spy shot):

So, still no surprises here… The GT-R NISMO is going to be awesome, and it’s coming next year for sure. Next?

Next-Gen GT-R to Arrive in 2015 as 2016MY

There we go… Now THIS is some big news! About one year after the GT-R NISMO goes on sale at the end of 2014, Nissan has confirmed that the next-gen GT-R will be released at the end of 2015 as a 2016MY.

Unfortunately, we know very, very little about the next generation of Nissan’s high-performance supercar. Rumor has it that the Japanese brand may try to develop a hybrid powertrain option for the nameplate, but that seems complicated: Hybrid powertrains are more difficult to manufacture, and a supercar like the GT-R would require careful tuning to account for the additional weight of the gas engine and electric motor combination.

As far as aesthetics, the folks over at Carscoops put together a fantastic rendering to showcase Nissan’s possible design direction:

As you can see, Carscoops expects Nissan to further separate their supercar from more conventional design themes with hyper-aggressive styling. This is the kind of aesthetic you might expect from a European manufacturer as opposed to a Japanese one. Either way, I’m excited, and you should be too.

We should learn more about the Nissan GT-R NISMO before the end of the year, and it seems reasonably likely that we’ll see some sort of production model, or at least a production prototype, at one of the major auto shows left in 2013. Who knows, it could be Frankfurt! You’ll just have to stay tuned for further updates as we learn more. Until then, thanks for reading!

Sources: World Car Fans, Wikipedia, Motor Authority, Motor Trend