Is Nissan Poised to Kill the GT-R?

For performance enthusiasts, the idea of Nissan killing its halo car seems unthinkable, and a cruel punctuation to a line of legendary performance cars.

The previous Skylines remain textbook examples of automotive forbidden fruit for American gearheads, and on the NHTSA’s vehicular equivalent of the terrorist watch list, the R34 is the most wanted. So when the R35 finally came to the States—sans Skyline name, but packing giant-killing performance—it was heralded in the automotive press. And while the list price has crept steadily upward from a relatively humble $69,850 in 2008 to nearly 100k today, Godzilla’s incredible capabilities—zero to 60 in 2.7 seconds!—still make it a relative bargain, even if Ferrari’s new maintenance programs make it pricier to maintain than a 458 Italia.

But late last week, rumors began swirling that the next-generation GT-R is still in corporate limbo. CEO Carlos Ghosn has yet to approve the R36 project, which makes the possibility that Godzilla will be felled by corporate bean counters a very real possibility. With less than 6,000 sold, it’s a solid bet the R35 program hasn’t put itself into the black, and while Lexus and VW can afford to blow cash on vanity projects like the LFA and the Veyron, Nissan isn’t in as cushy of a financial position as its rivals.

A strong yen has made domestic production costly, and the company’s most recent quarterly statements reflected an almost 20 percent drop in operating profit, which doesn’t bode well for a low-volume supercar. It also likely squelches—admittedly wild—speculation that Nissan was planning to introduce a new 240SX to compete with the FR-S/BRZ, Hyundai Genesis Coupe and Mazda Miata, leaving the 370Z as the only performance-oriented machine in its stable.

It might be too soon to mourn the GT-R, but the prognosis doesn’t look good. Stay tuned.

 

Yes. It'll be replaced with the now, 270zx. Formerly known as the 240sx.

boom.

 

Replacing the GT-R with a next-gen 240? That's like replacing an AK-47 with a Daisy air rifle. I'm not buying it.

 

Nice article John, lets hope its not the case!

 

Its like the mid to late 90's for Japanese super cars all over again. Only its just the GTR this time. Hopefully this is false.

 

Damn... that would be sad

 

they can just keep the program running for another 5 years and they will still sell lol...

 

they could just keep the car the same as it is, lower the price and they would make their money by selling them in volume

(don't know if that would work I just want them to be cheaper and not be discontinued)

 

Nissan's main problem from day one is the price tag for the GTR. When I could get a Porsche GT3RS for near the cost of a fully loaded GTR, who in their right mind is gonna pick the Nissan brand? Or a BMW M5? Or a list as long as my arm of similar performing cars with much, much more solid namesakes?

The way a bargain supercar works, is it in fact, must be a bargain. $100K is not "bargain", not even by Teamspeed standards

 

I would love to see a even more raw and light-weight GTR. Hope they are going to continue the legacy!