It can typically take automakers several years to develop a new vehicle, and during that time these companies go all-out to maintain high levels of secrecy. The automotive press is always on the lookout for scoops, and spies will be all too eager to snap photos of the next best thing to inform the waiting world.
As such, it can be incredibly hard to keep a lid on such a secret when it’s time to evaluate on the open road, but Nissan came up with a crafty answer: It would hide its now-iconic R35 GT-R in plain sight by cloaking it in the body of another vehicle. This is the story of the Japanese company’s clever ruse.
How To Hide: The Nissan Way
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2009 Nissan R35 GT-R Specifications |
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Engine |
3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V6 |
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Transmission |
Six-speed dual clutch automatic |
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Drivetrain |
All-wheel-drive |
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Power |
480 hp |
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Torque |
430 lb-ft |
Many manufacturers will try to apply a special kind of wrap to any testing vehicles to try and confuse the waiting press or casual bystanders. If anything, these crazy designs just tend to draw attention, and Nissan was having none of that. Instead, it turned to its sister brand Infiniti and came up with a cunning ploy. It would use the G35, an existing luxury coupe, as its test mule for the all-new Nissan GT-R. Both vehicles were similar in size and platform and unwitting onlookers thought that they were seeing a modified G35. They didn’t know that this would eventually turn into a new supercar that would go on to challenge the likes of Porsche and other European giants.
The Supercar in a Business Suit
The Infiniti G35 sits on top of the Nissan FM platform with rear-wheel drive and a V6 engine, but it’s more of a refined car than anything else. To make this project work, the Nissan engineers took all the standard components out of the G35 and instead inserted the new hardware. The test mule would have the ATTESSA E-TS all-wheel drive system for better power delivery and cornering, a prototype version of the VR38DETT 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V6 engine, and a rear-mounted dual-clutch transmission. The engineers would also reinforce the chassis and suspension geometry to cope with these additional demands. Of course, all these modifications took place beneath the surface and, from the outside, it just looked like a standard Infiniti. However, beneath was a mechanical Frankenstein’s monster just waiting to get off its leash.
The Need For Secrecy
It’s hard for a company to keep all its development plans under wraps and the automotive press will often get wind of new vehicle development through unfortunate casual conversations or other leaks. Vehicle-tuning communities will often hunt for clues as well, and if Nissan had started to test a prototype on public roads, especially if it resembled the distinctive GT-R concept, tongues would have been wagging. Yet Nissan also had to validate such a project on public roads and highways and even demanding circuits like the Nürburgring. So, in this case, Nissan came up with a different mule vehicle concept.
As the G35 was already known as a premium model with some performance variants, this was the perfect ploy. As the platform was similar, it was certainly flexible enough to accommodate some extensive re-engineering without giving away what was going on. Nissan wanted to retain the element of surprise, and this sleeper strategy allowed it to test advanced drivetrains in traffic or on track while flying completely under the radar.
Other automakers may wish to test a little more publicly. It’s common for new and upcoming vehicles to be shod in unusual wraps, and tested with a sort of semi-disguise on them. This attracts attention, which is always great, as that will help to generate a media buzz, but it also keeps the intricate details of said upcoming model hidden. The automaker gets free press, while still not detracting from an official launch, later down the road.
The Radical Layout Of This GT-R
The new R35 GT-R was a clean break from Nissan’s previous Skyline lineages. In fact, this was to be the first GT-R not to wear the Skyline badge, and it had an all-new drivetrain layout. The new V6 engine had several modifications, such as plasma-sprayed bores and high-flow turbochargers. It wasn’t simply a tuned version of an existing engine but built from the ground up with a block that engineers optimized for durability under extreme conditions.
The GT-R’s all-wheel-drive system used electronic sensors and hydraulics and was able to send up to 50% of its power to the front wheels on demand. It could also dynamically shift the torque delivery from one side to the other, to give the GT-R some legendary cornering ability. The dual clutch transmission was in a rear transaxle layout which helped with weight balance. This also provided lightning-fast gear changes for better overall performance. To test such a complex system would require thousands of hours of real-world validation. This meant that the company would need to venture out of the factory and away from the dyno for high-speed stability tests, endurance runs, and other challenges. With the G35 as its cloak, the new Nissan would blend in on Tokyo expressways and tear through the Fuji Speedway with ease.
While a sharp-looking Infiniti sports coupe might seem an unusual basis for a track-honed supercar-slayer, things start to make a little more sense when you view this operation from the Japanese perspective. While we dub the test mule’s humble beginnings as an Infiniti G35, in Japan, it’s simply known as the Nissan Skyline, specifically the V35 generation.
Given the Skyline’s lineage, it adds up that a Skyline would play the role of test mule for a new GT-R, but still, things were different this time around. In the past, the Skyline and GT-R have been linked far closer than just in name; the GT-R was always just a hotter Skyline, whereas this time around the R35 stood alone, hence why the Skyline name was dropped entirely for it.
Something Strange At The Nürburgring
By 2006, some resolute car enthusiasts started to smell a rat. They’d noticed some strangely aggressive G35 coupes blasting around a circuit like the Nürburgring and took note of their unusual stance, bespoke wheels, and markedly different exhaust configurations. They may have thought that Infiniti was planning to go rogue and nobody guessed the truth that these were early GT-Rs in disguise. In fact, the Nissan engineers used the Nürburgring proving ground extensively to refine the all-wheel drive system and suspension setups. They also used it for brake endurance tests and to assess things like aerodynamic drag and corner load to perfect their invention. Apparently, one of these test mules was able to post a 7:38 Nürburgring lap time, which was stunning for a production car on the lower end of the luxury price spectrum.
Other Attempts To Hide
Some other manufacturers have also tried to hide innovative projects within familiar shells. For example, Porsche was to test its 959 supercar in a modified 911 body during the early ’80s, while BMW’s M cars seemed to evolve from within mundane 3 Series sedans. But Nissan’s approach was especially notable because the final product shared very little with the donor car. After all, the engine, transmission, all-wheel-drive system, electronics, suspension, and even body structure were different, which makes this tactic even more impressive.
Nissan Reveals Its Masterpiece
In 2007, Nissan proudly unwrapped the R35 GT-R at the Tokyo Motor Show. This was a new supercar that would deliver 480 hp, give you a top speed of 193 mph, and accelerate to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds. In fact, it was so brutally effective that it could overpower cars that cost twice as much. These vehicles went on sale in Tokyo soon after, but it would take until the 2009 model year for them to arrive on American shores.
The R35 GT-R Was A Resounding Success
You can attribute much of the success of the R35 GT-R to Nissan’s clever engineering workaround. It didn’t have to constrain its testing in real world conditions to maintain secrecy and could continue this approach for years before the company unveiled the car. As a consequence, the GT-R burst onto the scene fully sorted. The company didn’t have any major teething issues or have to issue any drivetrain recalls as the project simply worked incredibly well. This approach also reinforced the GT-R’s identity as a no-nonsense performance machine. It would use the latest technology to stunning effect with sensors, computers, and algorithms all working behind the scenes to deliver the last ounce of performance.
Wouldn’t it be great if you could get your hands on one of those pre-production mules? It would certainly be valuable and something entirely different, but sadly, none of them exist in the public domain. It’s more likely that they were destroyed or may be stored in Nissan’s engineering archives. However, if one or more of them is sitting somewhere under a dust sheet, they will remain a fascinating footnote in automotive history – as the ghosts of a secret supercar.
Sources: Nissan.
