A NISSAN HAS MY HEART

Being a 'Certified Car Lover Boy', I usually get the question, what is your favorite car? The words Bugatti, Ferrari, Lamborghini or Porsche are the expected response, but I put up a funny looking grin and say “The Nissan …”. Before completing my statement, I realize the once enthusiastic face of the person asking has become somewhat puzzled; like did he just say Nissan? Well, yes I did and to complete that statement, my favorite car is The Nissan G-TR.

Unlike the Nissans of the last decade with cheap plastic interior and poor build quality, Nissan used to be a reputable car company back in the 90’s. Beginning with the Skyline which is now the G-TR, to the Nissan Silvia and the Nissan Z's. These were all budget friendly sport cars that actually gave the big dogs like Ferrari a run for their money. For me the GT-R (Gran Turismo Racer) stood out and I think I love it because of it's pedigree. It was famously nicknamed ‘Godzilla’ because it devoured any and everything in its path on the race track.

The Nissan GT-R Family Tree; From right to left; Nissan R35, R34, R33 and R32 GT-R's

A little of that pedigree begins in 1963, when professional car racer Genichiro Tahara won the first-ever Japanese Grand Prix and this win inspired a passion of motorsports in Nissan. A few years later, he became the Chairman of the Nissan Sports Car Club and thus began the Nissan domination in motorsports. The first-generation Nissan Skyline GT-R set the trend by winning 52 Japanese domestic touring races. The R32 Skyline GT-R was also staggeringly successful outside Japan, obliterating everything in its path in the Australian Bathurst 1000, the 24 Hours of Spa, and the Australian Car Championship to earn the 'Godzilla' nickname.

My second reason for loving the GT-R is greatly influenced by one of my idols, Paul Walker. Popular for his feature in the Fast and Furious movies as Brian O'Conner until his untimely passing, Paul had an iconic blue R34 GT-R. I am not sure if you noticed, but in the short cameo of what was supposed to be Paul Walker joining the dinner at the end of Fast and Furious 9, a blue GT-R is seen pulling into the drive way. The car signified the presence of the lost icon. A footage of Paul having the time of his life in a Nismo R34 GT-R surfaced on YouTube and it was obvious he was having the time of his life. Undisputed, it is obvious that the Nissan GT-R is one of the best sport cars straight out of Japan.

Paul Walker and his blue Nissan R34 GT-R

In recent times, Nissan has clearly lost it's place in the Sport Car World. A problem I and probably every other Nissan fan boy has with the GT-R and in fact, all Nissan sport cars as a whole, is the awfully long time it takes Nissan to refresh it's sport car models. For example, the new Nissan Z that was launched this year, took nearly 12 years to get a reboot as the previous Z before it, the 370Z debuted in 2009. The GT-R is not left out as there has been no proper change to the present-day R-35 GT-R since it launched in 2008. Compared to other sport cars, the GT-R is way behind its time. It is more than overdue for a new refresh and I am earnestly waiting for this change. Irrespective of this flaw, the Nissan GT-R remains the car of my dreams.

I hope to have these in my garage someday!

To cap it off, what is your favorite car? Let me know down in the comments section. Thank you for reading and always remember to turbo that engine.