BRAND NEW 2020 Nissan GT-R Nismo

Nissan's R35-generation GT-R has now been in production for over a decade, and while some people may believe that it is time for the Japanese giant to give way to someone new; Nissan is committed to making the car better year on year. Make no mistake, the GT-R is every bit as entertaining to drive now and it has ever been.

The 2020 Nismo GT-R is the range-topping, track-ready model of the series. Nissan have said it is 2.5 seconds faster around its development track than the 2019 model.

So, what makes this £175,000 Nismo GT-R bigger and better than all the ones before?

Jason Fenske at ‘Engineering Explained’, gives us an in-depth look at what makes the 600-horsepower, 3.8 Litre, Twin-Turbo; 2020 Nismo GT-R the fastest Godzilla produced to date.

The first point to look at is weight reduction. Against the 2019 model, 2020 Nismo has lost nearly 23 Kilos. A lot of these savings have come from the body. Carbon fibre has been used extensively throughout on the 2020 model’s exterior, with a redesigned carbon-fibre bonnet, as well as wheel arch vents to better extract heat from the new 16.1-inch, carbon ceramic Brembo front brakes. Interestingly, the only external panels that are not carbon fibber are the rear fenders and the doors. Interestingly, the lower weight has meant that Nissan has had to retune the suspension geometry. The dampers have been softened by 5% in compression and 20% in rebound. While you might think that reduces the overall sharpness of the GT-R's on-road performance, actually, it improves it.

Secondly, Nissan have gone to great lengths to improve the responsiveness are the engine. This was achieved by using turbochargers from Nissan's GT-R race car which house lighter turbine wheels that spin up more quickly, therefore, reducing turbo lag. Nissan says “this improvement translates to a half-car-length advantage over 5 seconds when flooring the 2020 Nismo GT-R from a 55-mph roll”. The rest of the improvements comes from upgrading the tyres and aerodynamics, with the main focus on the former.

For the 2020 model the tyre compound and tread were both improved. There is now 11% more rubber in contact with the road, and this therefore results in a 7% improvement in grip on the road.

Jason Fenske explains that all of these small improvements come together to make the 2020 Nismo GT-R significantly quicker than the 2019 model.

Watch this video that we found on YouTube by Explained Engineering reviewing the new Nissan GT-R Nismo.