Yes – even more stuff on the GT-R! As more and more drivers get their hands on Nissan’s new flagship pseudo-supercar, marketed as having an off the chart bang to buck ratio, we’re finally getting a good idea about the reliability of the super advanced drivetrain (quite possibly its biggest selling point!). Nissan has estimated the 0-60 at a ridiculously low 3.2 seconds – because of the all wheel drive system and the built in launch control that can deliver maximum thrust off the line consistently.

At what cost do these numbers come at? Sticky tires + all wheel drive + powerful engine + high RPM clutch bomb can only equal one thing – broken drivetrain parts, Lancer Evolution and Subaru STI drivers are all too familiar with this. All the torque that the engine delivers is instantly transmitted through the drivetrain the moment that the clutch is connected and it has to go SOMEWHERE. Obviously, a high horsepower RWD or FWD car would just spin the tires; an AWD car with a weak clutch and sticky tires may just smoke its clutch; if that AWD car had tires with weak grip or was launching on a non tarmac surface it would just do an awesome all wheel drive burnout. Unfortunately, Nissan’s design did not give any wiggle room for all that power – and the weak part that will pay for the launch is the transmission itself.

A member over at Supercars.net has already broken his GT-R and had the damage estimated at 18,000 dollars (with 20 hours of labor). Not too much else was posted, except that the reason was “too much launch control launching”. A picture out of the owner’s manual has also been the cause of much speculation; the page has been designated for “Transmission Assembly Replacement Record” with enough slots for up to six replacements. Looks like they were planning ahead at Nissan.

This raises the question, is it fair that Nissan advertised the GT-R for performance times that it cannot realistically achieve consistently without absurd repair bills? It’s performance has been the object of much speculation and name calling ever since it was release, especially with Nissan’s decision to use the Porsche 911 family as their primary benchmark. They posted a lap time of 7:29, which is just a hair faster than the Porsche 911 GT2 which has a time of 7:32;  three seconds over a course that is 12.85 miles long is practically microscopic! While I’m not clear if the test was conducted with a flying start or a standing start, a standing start would take full advantage of the GT-R’s super launch system – and be responsible for those 3 seconds that it has on the Porsche. I don’t think this is fair at all to advertise these times if the car cannot reliably perform the task required – its fine to note that the time exists, but don’t start marketing the car with these 0-60 and Nurburgring times.

What sucks is that there will be (foolish) people that are going to buy this car because the price is just low enough for them to afford it (the power of financing!). They drive it like its advertised (can’t blame them for that) and then they are stuck with the repair bills – which they can’t afford because the car was just a bit beyond their limit in the first place. I guess this would lead to a bunch of GT-R’s on the market at liquidation prices – which isn’t that bad after all…