What we didn’t perhaps expect is just how close the 50 customer cars would stay to the prototype that blasted up the Goodwood hill at the Festival of Speed presented by Mastercard. Lower, sharper and with colour-contrasting nose and tail sections, the ultimate Godzilla carries with it all the drama of the concept in a shape that’s clearly familiar GT-R but reimagined to be edgier than ever. It is “virtually unchanged” from the prototype, says Nissan.
If you thought the FOS car’s grey body with contrasting gold nosecone and rear deck was a little bling fear not, for Nissan is promising that each of the 50 owners can choose any colour combination they like. The first GT-R50 by Italdesign, as it is badged, features a blue/metallic grey combo, and no gold. All the body panels, including the 54mm lower roofline, are believed to be bespoke and in carbon-fibre, with carbon in the cabin, too, helping explain the price of €990,000 plus tax, or £1.06million on the road in the UK.
Staying true to the concept, the GT-R50 is based on the latest GT-R Nismo but with a reworked 720PS (710bhp) version of the twin turbo 3.8-litre V6 complete with GT3 competition-spec turbochargers and larger intercoolers. The six-speed dual-clutch auto has been beefed up for the job, as has been the suspension.
As Nissan design head Alfonso Albaisa says (see interview below), the first-time collaboration with Italdesign began as a way of marking the VW-owned design house’s 50th anniversary and also the half century of the GT-R nameplate. Although the car was designed by Nissan, Italdesign engineered and developed it and, it is thought, will build it in Italy. The 50 owners around the world can expect delivery in 2019-20 says Nissan.