Nissan’s next-generation sports car won’t launch until 2017 at the earliest, but will feature more aggressive styling than today's model
25 October 2014

The next Nissan GT-R won’t make an appearance until at least 2017 and it could be 2018 until the next generation of the firm’s sports car is launched.

Speculative reports have previously claimed that the car will come in 2016 but Nissan’s chief creative officer, Shiro Nakamura, told Autocar that it is three to four years away. 

According to Nakamura, Nissan has yet to start on the car’s design, although chassis and drivetrain development is underway. It will retain the essential characteristics of the current model, with a nominally rear-wheel drive set up, four-wheel drive on demand and a front-engined configuration.

NYIAS 2016 update: The most significant Nissan GT-R update revealed in New York

A hybrid powertrain is also on the cards, and it will remain as a stand-alone model with little similarity to other Nissan products

The next GT-R will also retain the current car’s aggressive look, and Nakamura said it could even be more aggressive and distinctive. He is keen to maintain what he described as the GT-R’s “boxy, functional appearance. It shouldn’t be too elegant, and it should be brutal, with a rawness”.

The Vision 2020 concept, revealed at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this summer, will influence the car’s look - but don’t expect a production version of that car. “It contributes to the overall feeling,” said Nakamura. A much-improved interior, more in keeping with the GT-R’s performance status, is a crucial part of the new car’s make up.  

Before the new car appears, the current GT-R will go through one more facelift before it comes to the end of its ten-year lifespan. “We’ve been improving it all the time,” said Nakamura, “and there’s still room to improve.” 

Dan Stevens

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Our Verdict

Nissan GT-R

The Nissan GT-R is not a cheap car, but it’s better value for money than cars that are seemingly as fast

25 October 2014
When did aggression become a desirable trait in a car? And elegance become undesirable? Nakamura wants to have a word with himself and grow up.

27 October 2014
Norma Smellons wrote:

When did aggression become a desirable trait in a car? And elegance become undesirable? Nakamura wants to have a word with himself and grow up.

Why shouldn't it be? There's a space for all sorts, and the Skylin/GT-R has always had a boxy/brutish way about it. Makes a nice change.

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Never wrestle with a pig. You'll only get muddy, and the pig will enjoy it.

25 October 2014
What? History shows plenty of beautiful, aggressive, but not necessarily "elegant" cars.

In any case, all those things are obviously in the eye of the beholder, to some extent, at least.

25 October 2014
Have Nissan/Datsun ever designed a beautiful or elegant car-in classical euro terms? Apart from the 240Z I'm struggling to think of one (and that was designed by a European). Honda have managed it, but generally the Japanese design language is quite unique. Look at Kei cars..

25 October 2014
Keep the engine but for better emissions, revise the styling and lose 200 kgs and you will have another world beater.

25 October 2014
Nissan GTR - albeit at a fraction of the cost - has been delivering hyper car performance and physics defying driving dynamics. So I presumed that the new GTR will take a swipe at the hybrid hyper cars from Ferrari, McLaren and Porsche. But it seems the GTR will beat the Koenisegg path keeping things pure. In that case weight loss should be high on the agenda.

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