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FK8 Anybody with an FK8 own or owned a Nissan GT-R?

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91
I am hoping we have a few owners of the GT-R on the forum. I am thinking about an MY17 onwards GTR as a second car, while I love almost everything about the GT-R I have a niggling doubt over the car losing the buzz after a while. In my mind the Type R and GT-R make for a kind of best of both worlds garage.

The only other alternative that really excites me is a Lotus, either an Evora GT430 or Exige 430 Cup. The Cup may be too hardcore as a weekend blaster with the Mrs so in my mind, its really the Evora vs GT-R.

Any and all opinions welcome :lol:

Cheers
 
Chap I know had an FK2 bought a GTR, is now looking to get back into a Type R, had it for around 18 months, he likes it but no where near as useable a Type R. Fuel economy is comical, within our driving group they are the first to fill up always.

My experience of the Evora dates back to an early car, nice handling, looks great, clutch is expensive to change, interior not up to scratch, a very different car to the GTR, the 430 cars are a lot better both inside and power wise, if you trackday them they struggle noise wise. I haven’t driven a GTR for a few years now, but once I got over the mind boggling way the car goes in a straight line you start noticing the weight, in the corners, under braking. Of the two cars I’d most likely choose the 430 Evora.
 
I haven't owned (or driven for that matter) a FK8 but from what I read I would well imagine that they would be a very different beast to a GT-R - which I haven't owned personally but my Dad is on his third one and I have driven all of them a fair distance as well as tracked them.

While the GT-R is an incredible machine, and certainly not lacking in the cornering side of things, they can be quite difficult to tame once you have managed to reach its limits. But the reality is that you would never reach this on conventional roads unless you had a death wish as they really are very capable given their size and weight.

That being said, owing to their size, they aren't really a 'toy' as such as (especially around here) they are too big to use on a proper B road blast, where you need the whole road (and then some in some cases) to actually feel as though you "having fun" - so long as you don't look at the speedo!

You will need a de-cat Y-pipe without a doubt as they sound far too tame out of the factory (fitted with four catalytic converters - the Y-pipe removing two of them). And if you go for MY17 onward, the OEM system is titanium instead of stainless steel, so the cost of this Y-pipe is eye-watering - over £2,600 for the one currently fitted. Whereas the Milltek one he had on his first GT-R was around £500 (steel - but also a ghastly design with poor flow).

Then there's the cost of them that most either ignore or aren't aware of (and depending on the level of care you give it).

The average cost of ownership has reduced of late due to him having not been back in the UK since Christmas, but there was a time where the average yearly cost, without fuel, was setting him back £17k per year in servicing, insurance, sundries, etc. And when he does visit, he'll happily spend over £1,200 on fuel in two weeks.


They are an amazing drive though. Yet also be mindful that they really shine in the upper regions of third and fourth gear - so 110mph upwards. Most people are too scared / unwilling to drive at these speeds, which makes ownership of such a machine pointless in my eyes as you aren't utilising its full potential.
 
Thanks for the insightful responses.

VTECMatt, I suspect you are right about the novelty of the GT-R's straight line performance. I can see how the acceleration fun may wane over time and then other apsects of the car may start to grate a little. Reading your experience fits with what I have been thinking in comparison to the Lotus, but regardless, I think I am coming to realise I have lusted after a GT-R for so long now that I probably need to get it out of my system, and then buy the Lotus :lol: The MY17 update has made the GT-R into a great looking car and more of an all-rounder, and with the prestige interior upgrade, a nice quality place to be too.

Nymph, your old man sure loves his GT-R's and I appreciate hearing your first hand experience. While I probably wouldn't look to mod the Litchfield stage 1 is a little tempting but wow, i didn't think the Y pipe would be so many ££ (surely you can just fit a steel Y pipe). I have no plans to track but I do have Snowdonia on my doorstep so plenty of nice roads to enjoy. I have to ask - how does you dad spend £17/yr on insurance, servicing etc? I assume he has a an MY17 onwards so a nearly new car with minimal maintenance, basic servicing and tyres every 10k miles or so? I guess if he gives the car a hard time on track days I can see how the costs can quickly mount up in such a heavy and powerful car vs a Lotus which can go around all day while being relatively gentle on its brakes & tyres. I am prepared for 18mpg, as the car would do 5k miles/yr I consider that to just be the cost of fun!
 
Hey Mondie, so, to answer some of the queries...

From brand new there is the 'delivery service' after a thousand miles or so. Then a 6 month service and then yearly / 6 month rotation services thereafter (as multiple items require servicing at different intervals). Average cost per service at Nissan is £1,500.

Four new tyres circa £2,500. Replacement discs and pads post track day, £3,000. So when we have taken them to Spa or around Brands Hatch, there's always the potential six grand post event cost to get the car road worthy again.

The chassis undertray is fixed to the chassis with mild steel bolts that rust (especially here on the South coast) - Litchfield do a kit in stainless steel that is very much worth doing. About £300 fitted if not done at the same time as a service.

The problem with having a mixed exhaust system (where part is steel and part is titanium), is that each metal has different temperature coefficients (react and expand to heat at different rates and at different temperatures) - therefore, if driving hard, the exhaust can blow / vibrate as the steel expands faster than the titanium.

For a Japanese car the interior is a very nice place to be. I much prefer it to the likes of BMW and Audi, but that's because I'm not a fan of trinkets, gimmicks and gizmo's.
 
As always great info, thanks Nymph.

The tyre and brake prices seem very expensive, I assume your Dad is using top of the line replacements as I can see from a quick look on Litchfield's site that they need not cost anything like that. If I buy a GT-R it will be 3 yrs old so servicing will be done at Litchfield where the costs look pretty reasonable, Nissan dealers are mostly pretty hopeless and I wouldn't trust them with a complex bit of machinery like a GT-R. Perhaps I would if buying new but then a service pack is great value.

Appreciate the tip on the undertray screws, that would be forgivable if it was new to the market but not on a car that's been around for 12 years. That is something I will need to sort. The Ti to steel mismatch is interesting, I am surprised the expansion coefficients are such that this can be an issue but again good to be aware of it. Agree on the interior, I am over German cars and much prefer the Japanese design style and the generally much better reliability too.

It's interesting comparing the dimensions of the GT-R to the FK8. The GT-R is only an inch wider, I found that interesting given the numerous comments I have read about it being too wide for B roads.:confused:
 
Yes, the costs involved of taking it to an GT-R authorised Nissan dealership (there's only a handful in the country) are always astronomical, and servicing by a decent specialist (such as Litchfield) will always cost less. And regards to tyres, using an independent will save about £1,000 on four.
 
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