ROSSLYN, South Africa – In the 50 years since it made its debut in 1968 at the Tokyo Motor Show, the Nissan GT-R has become a true icon of icons.
Known across the globe as “Godzilla,” the GT-R has been described by the famed Jeremy Clarkson as “one of the very, very best cars in the world.” It has also been featured in a range of big-budget games and blockbusters, which have earned the vehicle a cult-like following.
As the nation gears up for Heritage Month – which is celebrated in September - we at Nissan look back on the evolution of the legendary GT-R, which has become a cornerstone of our own heritage.
The GT-R’s origin story
The first Nissan Skyline GT-R, known as the PGC10, made its public debut at the 15th annual Tokyo Motor Show in 1968. It was originally available exclusively as a four-door sedan and was then made available as a coupe in March 1971.
The successor to the PGC10, the C110 debuted at the 1972 Tokyo Motor Show and was released the following year. A gas crisis resulted in a dip in demand for high-performance sports cars in the early 1970s and only 197 C110s were built before production was cancelled until 1989.
The R32 – complete with a new 2.6-liter twin-turbo charged engine and an all-wheel drive concept, designed by Nismo - went into production on August 21, 1989 and was met with critical acclaim from both the motoring press and the public.
The R32 claimed five consecutive championship wins at the Japanese Touring Car Championships and over 200 individual race wins as well as the unofficial lap record for a production car at the world-famous Nürburgring racetrack in Germany.
It also enjoyed success at the Australian Touring Car Championships, where it triumphed to victory in both 1991 and 1992. At this time the Australian media gave it the nickname, “Godzilla” meaning “Monster from Japan”.
The R33 made its debut in 1995, with an engine that was almost identical to the R32’s and the same turbochargers as well the same specification for the 5-speed manual gearbox but with stronger syncros. A point of pride for the R33, the vehicle took the production car lap record at Nürburgring.
The next generation of performance Skyline's to hit the streets after the R33, was the R34 which was released in January 1999. Made famous, in part, for its iconic Bayside Blue color, this model was made shorter and the front wheels were brought closer to the front. A 5.8" LCD multifunction display – displaying seven different live readings of engine and vehicle statistics - was introduced in the center of the dashboard of the R34.
The sixth generation GT-R - the R35 - made its public debut at the 2007 Tokyo Motor Show and was launched to the Japanese market later that same year and the US market the year after.
The 2020 Nissan GT-R 50th Anniversary Edition
To celebrate the half-century of the GT-R, Nissan’s engineers challenged themselves to find undiscovered performance potential while still making sure the car could be enjoyed by drivers across the board. And so, the 2020 Nissan GT-R 50th Anniversary Edition was born.
This special anniversary edition, which was unveiled at the 2019 New York International Auto Show in April, comes in three heritage-era, two-tone exterior colour combinations meant to represent the GT-R's liveries from the Japan GP series. Inside, a special grey colour scheme gives the cabin a sense of luxury, reminiscent of the atmosphere of the night sky after the twilight hour. Additional features include a unique steering wheel and shift knob trim, special seat embossing, an Alcantara® headliner with unique stitching and Alcantara-wrapped sun visors.
“The GT-R has been the lodestar for high performance driving for the past half century. We are incredibly proud of where we have come from and of the direction in which we are headed,” says Janus Janse van Rensburg, Chief Marketing Manager of Nissan Premium & Performance Cars, “The GT-R truly has come with excitement and with unparalleled refinement and we look forward to carrying the sterling reputation that it has built for itself into the future and beyond.”
About Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.
Nissan is a global full-line vehicle manufacturer that sells more than 60 models under the Nissan, INFINITI and Datsun brands. In fiscal year 2017, the company sold 5.77 million vehicles globally, generating revenue of 11.9 trillion yen. On April 1, 2017, the company embarked on Nissan M.O.V.E. to 2022, a six-year plan targeting a 30% increase in annualized revenues to 16.5 trillion yen by the end of fiscal 2022, along with cumulative free cash flow of 2.5 trillion yen. As part of Nissan M.O.V.E. to 2022, the company plans to extend its leadership in electric vehicles, symbolized by the world's best-selling all-electric vehicle in history, the Nissan LEAF. Nissan’s global headquarters in Yokohama, Japan, manages operations in six regions: Asia & Oceania; Africa, the Middle East & India; China; Europe; Latin America; and North America. Nissan has partnered with French manufacturer Renault since 1999 and acquired a 34% stake in Mitsubishi Motors in 2016. The Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance sold 10.76 million vehicles combined in calendar year 2018.
For more information about our products, services and commitment to sustainable mobility, visit
nissan-global.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and LinkedIn and see all our latest videos on YouTube.
About Nissan in South Africa
Nissan South Africa is the operational hub for Regional Business Unit South, serving Nissan's key South Africa market and 45 other countries in Sub Saharan Africa, including Angola, Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria as well as the key Southern African markets of Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland. In South Africa, the company offers a range of 24 vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti and Datsun brands, including the popular locally-produced Nissan light commercial vehicles - the NP200 half ton pickup and NP300 one-ton Hardbody - produced at the company's Rosslyn plant, north west of Pretoria. Nissan made history locally in 2013 with the introduction of Africa’s first electric vehicle, Nissan's flagship Nissan LEAF. As well as boasting zero emissions leadership, Nissan is also a leader in the crossover segment. Among its product offerings are the all-new Nissan Qashqai and X-Trail, as well as Juke. The Datsun brand has re-established Nissan in the entry-level market where the tailor-made Datsun GO is breaking new ground in the ‘riser’ market segment. Infiniti continues to make a mark in the luxury segment. Nissan is one of the top five automotive companies in South Africa. For more information visit our website at http://www.nissan.co.za
Contact
Patience Dumisani
Head of Communications
Tel: (012) 529 5000
Mobile: 079 074 0922
patiencedu@nissan.co.za
Veralda Schmidt
Media Relations Manager
Nissan South Africa
Tel: (012) 529 5680
Mobile: 082 820 8562
Email: veraldas@nissan.co.za