Godzilla Still King in 2012

If you’re an R35 fan, 2012 is set to be a cracker year. We’re going to take a quick look at the new improvements for the production model and then show you three of the best tuned examples to look forward to this year.

The new 2012 production model takes the Japanese concept of ‘Omotenashi’ (hospitality) to a whole new level, providing an ‘inviting’ experience for the driver. This latest GT-R also celebrates the 20th anniversary of Nissan's second and last outright victory in the Bathurst 1000, achieved in 1992 by drivers Mark Skaife and Jim Richards in an Australian built and developed R32 model Nissan GT-R Skyline. Love that tid-bit.

The big news is more power, now up to 404kW, with better economy and lower emissions. You’re looking at new intake and exhaust systems, metallic sodium-filled exhaust valves and a leaner AFR. Torque has also increased to between 612Nm and 628Nm between 3200—5800rpm. Laymans? It feels more punchy than ever before. Keep in mind every VR38DETT is hand built by a team of eight as well, including hand-polishing, too.

The transmission is also improved, thanks to a strengthened shift fork arm and firmer fixing bearing for the flywheel housing. A new diff oil is also in place.

But the big news is the world’s first asymmetric suspension settings on a RHD car. Accounting for the added weight of the driver in a right-hand drive vehicle coupled to the fact that the propeller shaft driving the front wheels in the car’s permanent AWD system is located on the right side of the car, the GT-R's suspension for RHD versions has been set asymmetrically. 

Says Nissan, “After lengthy finetuning, involving testing on the demanding Nurburgring north circuit, Nissan engineers have achieved the perfect balance of the vertical load on all four tyres.”

Previously there was a weight bias of approximately 50kg towards the right-hand side of Australian cars with a driver of average size alone in the car. So, that’s the production model, but let’s have a look at what three of the best tuned examples will be up to this year.

1. GREDDY/TRUST 35RX

A beast of untold proportions, GReddy and Trust took the wraps off this 1250hp R35 at this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, where it wowed show-goers. With Tarzan Yamada behind the wheel, and built for high-speed at tracks like Fuji, the car uses a GReddy 4.3L stroker engine and twin TD06-20G turbos along with, well, everything. Look out for a complete rundown of the car in issue 149 of Performance Imports Magazine.

2. AMS ALPHA 12

AMS Performance is home to the world’s fastest R35, the Alpha 12. The team took the car to the Texas Mile late last year where it ran 216.9mph (350km/h). Owned by Andrew Hadeed of Antigua Barbuda, it just squeezed out a Russian GT-R that ran 215mph. Along with a lot of AMS’s own components, including a forged short-block, interestingly the car runs a trans cooler from Australian’s very own Willall Racing.

3. BENSOPRA R35

Wearing the same ridiculously expensive BenSopra bodykit as the 35RX above, this example’s been built for drift with legend Nobuteru Taniguchi behind the wheel and is backed by Yokohama/Advan. The crazy part? It wasn’t really even on boost during this video. It runs larger twins than the GReddy car above, so power could be higher again. We’ll have to wait and see when it hits drift events later this year.