Arrived in fleet: Friday, March 13, 2009
Who says Friday the 13th is an unlucky day? Not at Automobile Magazine, where we just took delivery of a brand-new 2010 Nissan GT-R for a one-year test. Our silver test car is finished in black leather and has huge, smoky gray, twenty-inch Rays wheels shod with meaty, nitrogen-filled Bridgestone Potenza tires, 255/40ZR-20 front and 285/35ZR-20 rear.
Our test car has Nissan's newly calibrated launch control setup, explains Bruce Robinson, senior development engineer for Nissan Tech Center North America, who delivered the car to our offices. "Previously, [our launch control] came out at 4500 rpm in first gear with one foot of rear-wheel spin, and then the fronts would grab," Robinson continues. "With our new calibration, we launch at 3000 rpm because there's more midrange turbo boost. It works [with the dual-clutch automatic transmission] in either manual or automatic mode, but the quickest way is just to leave it in automatic and let the engine shift at redline." In short, Robinson says, put one foot on the brake and floor the accelerator with the other, but be sure to leave VDC (stability control) on, lest we void the warranty.
Other changes for the 2010 Nissan GT-R include five more horsepower for its 3.8-liter twin-turbo V-6 engine, which now makes 485 hp. The brakes have been updated with more rigid brake lines for improved durability, and the brake calipers now carry both the Brembo and Nissan logos. The suspension gets redesigned Bilstein dampers with a new valve body design and revised spring and damper rates. Before leaving, Robinson directed us to take our GT-R to service at 1000 miles so that the engine can be balanced, the transmission calibrated, and the alignment checked. Fluid changes are due at 6000 miles, and another suspension and powertrain calibration is due at the 12,000-mile mark. Our local Nissan dealer in Ann Arbor, Michigan, is not an authorized GT-R agent, so we'll have to visit Dick Scott Nissan in nearby Canton to get our GT-R serviced.
We're certainly looking forward to spending twelve months with the 2009 Automobile Magazine Automobile of the Year. Check back here at automobilemag.com for monthly updates on what is sure to be an interesting Four Seasons test. ...next page >>