So I've been looking around for sports cars... (vehicle, convertible, motorcycles)
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NO offense with regards to the GT-R but I've heard some nightmare stories about maintenance and other associated costs for them. (Like a 7k brake-job)
Couple that with their initial "game the system" launch control which you couldn't use much before voiding the warranty and I just get this skeevy feeling that they built a car to do great on tests (and it's certainly a heckuva car) and kept the costs down by not engineering it to hold up for the long haul, keep weight down or both.
The GT-R is a high end supercar built with cutting edge components that aren't always the best solution for road use. It's the same with the Ferraris and Lamborghinis the GT-R competes with. You couldn't live with it everyday like a 'Vette or even a 911.
The GT-R is a high end supercar built with cutting edge components that aren't always the best solution for road use. It's the same with the Ferraris and Lamborghinis the GT-R competes with. You couldn't live with it everyday like a 'Vette or even a 911.
I actually see a guy who appears to daily drive his GT-R several times a week (and that's just the times I see it). I don't think there's anything particular about the GT-R that would make it difficult as a daily driver. There is a great amount of incorrect information floating around the GT-R. The people I've talked to who actually own the cars have generally had pleasant things to say about them and I've yet to meet anyone who has mechanical troubles of any kind.
The GT-R is a high end supercar built with cutting edge components that aren't always the best solution for road use. It's the same with the Ferraris and Lamborghinis the GT-R competes with. You couldn't live with it everyday like a 'Vette or even a 911.
GTR's are designed to be driven daily. There are several in the area and one guy has over 50K on his already. I've even seen a couple driven year around in the slop and snow.
A lot of the info floating around the net about these cars is total BS. Brake jobs do not cost 7K. The total of the parts f bought from Nissan is only $2500 if you're doing all four wheels. If you go direct to Brembo the parts are less than half that.
The launch control is an issue as it is so violent that it's breaking transmissions. Nissan has covered most of the breakages even though they warn owners in the manual that the use of Launch control could void the warranty. They have also reprogrammed the system for a softer initial hit. The benefit is that testing done before and after show an improvement in 0-60 times.
The GTR is a great road car. It's as tame as a Altima until you spool the turbos then you'd best be hanging on. Another plus is there are kits on the market that will take the GTR to 600+HP without doing anything other than swapping injectors and retuning the computer.
One other car that comes to mind is a used Viper. A 2007-2008 GTS is right in the 45-50K range right now and they are serious performers but they are also a lot harder to drive well because they are just brute power.
It's hard to beat the C6; from the suspension, power to weight ratio, powertrain, drivetrain, and price. I have seen Corvette Forum dealers selling brand new Z51-equipped barebones for a price of less than $40k in the past. I doubt those dealers would sell Grand Sport at such price, but in general, Grand Sport price level is comparably low for such a car. I'd say if you are looking for another, it doesn't hurt to test drive a Grand Sport. A 9-percent bump in power and stiffer/grippier suspension (compared to your '05) are nice additions.
The GTR might push your budget a little, and might not be ideal since straight line speed is your drug of choice, not corners, but there's not many of them out there, so it should certainly be "louder" in appearance than the Vette.
The GTR might push your budget a little, and might not be ideal since straight line speed is your drug of choice, not corners, but there's not many of them out there, so it should certainly be "louder" in appearance than the Vette.
The GTR is a superb straight line speed car. If anything it runs out of steam at the top end, but its AWD allows it to launch better than almost anything. The 2012 GTR has already been tested with a 0-60 time of 2.9 secs and 1/4 mile of 11.1. That is notably quicker than the ZR-1.
The video below is slightly entertaining and shows the GTR vs. a Z06 and Shelby GT500.
The 2012 GTR fixed a lot of the issues with the first gen model, but you won't be buying one for $50k. With that said, there is nothing wrong with the first gen until we are talking about using the car as it was intended. I think the first gen can be a great daily driver "supercar" arguably better than even the Vette.
The difference is that the Vette will take anything you throw at it and you have a solid powertrain warranty and the ability to have it serviced at any dealership. GM is also not in the habit of denying warranty claims for people who drive their Vette's as intended. The same can't be said for the GTR.
I know of two GTR owners from NJ who ended up with denied and cancelled warranties. One for using the launch control feature and breaking the transmission. The other for tracking the car where the computer had recorded "sustained high RPM driving consistent with racing". Nissan went back to the drawing board on the 2012 model and made a lot of changes so that owners could use the car as intended. No word yet on whether or not actual racing could still void the warranty.
That is really my only gripe with the GTR and one shared by countless owners whose stories are posted all over forums. Basically, they loudly boasted about the performance the car was capable of, then took the ability of the owners away to replicate that performance without voiding the warranty. Outside of that, the biggest PITA is finding a GTR certified Nissan dealer as not all of them are equipped to work on the car.
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