HKS Technical Factory in Saitama Japan have been wondering to themselves about the capabilities of the Nissan GT-R SpecV. Not so much in standard form, but with respect to how it responds to light tuning modifications. Quite well it would seem. With the HKS GT600 kit installed, the SpecV’s larger turbos are much happier with high boost than the standard GT-R’s.

This goes doubly so when HKS TF take the SpecV turbos and tweak them for further gains. They’ve made 700ps at the wheels hubs on their own SpecV measured with a Dynapack dyno.

HKS TF plan to develop these turbos and eventually bring them to market with a reasonable price tag.

Hit up the link below for specs on the turbos and more photos…

Source: GTR-World – SpecV, the best tuner car?

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Nissan has decided to go ahead and setup shop on the new ring boulevard at the Nurburgring in Germany with a new concept store known as “Nissan Sportscars Shop”. On display is a Nissan GT-R, a 370z Nurburgring edition and the European specification Nissan GT-R SpecV.

Sales are expected to begin this year but pricing is not yet known.

Will Nissan let the world know the SpecV Nurburgring laptime at the European SpecV launch? Makes sense to me!

Check the full press release after the jump…

Source: Nissan Motors Australia

Read more…

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A couple of photos that landed in my news feed of the Ebbro 1/43rd scale Nissan GT-R SpecV model that should now be on sale. As usual the Ebbro models are of excellent quality with high amount of attention to the details. This one is in Ultimate Opal Black but you can also find them in Brilliant White Pearl.

These should sell around the $30 – $40 mark if you can find them at your local Ebbro stockist.

GT-R Models and RC, SpecV GT-R ebbro, gt-r, gtr, model, nissan, specv

As seen recently in an interview with Mine’s president Niikura-san, Mine’s has been developing engine parts for the Nissan GT-R and GT-R SpecV with a goal to improve the power and, more importantly, the response of the VR38 engine. Mine’s tuning philosophy has always been one of modest power goals with maximum response.

One of the differences noted by Mine’s when they got their hands on the new SpecV was that Nissan had paid some attention to airflow through the SpecV’s standard throttle body. To smooth flow through the intake they have coated the rough cast inside of the throttle body. The result you can see below. In comparison with the standard item it’s an improvement but when you see it next to the Mine’s item you can see how doing it properly would be preferable.

Mine’s not only pay attention to machining the inner surface of the throttle body but also to the aerodynamics of the butterfly valve and control shaft.

The Mine’s High Flow Throttle Body is available now through your local Mine’s distributors. For a pair of throttle bodies in exchange for your standard ones, the price is 132,000 yen. For a pair of throttle bodies without exchanging your own the price is 258,000 yen.

Source: GTR-World.net: Mine’s High Flow Throttle Body Report
Link: Mine’s Website

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Given the opportunity, you would tune this too. Not content to have the quickest production GT-R available, this SpecV owner has booked it in for a few basic performance upgrades. Garage Saurus have complied and installed a few choice upgrades from their range such as the Trust / GReddy full titanium exhaust, Garage Saurus Suction Piping Kit, Blitz twin blow off valves, Garage Saurus upgraded wastegate actuators, and to control the boost a HKS EVC.

To complete the picture, ECU tuning will beging this week. With this being the first SpecV worked on, they expect a few speed bumps but nothing serious. While tuning a set of Garage Saurus Bosch 750cc injectors may make their way on to this car as well to beef up the fuel system. I think this car is in good hands! Should be interesting to see the final power figures.

Link: Garage Saurus R35 GT-R Website

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In this installment of what is fast becoming “Best R35 GT-R Motoring” DVD-zine we get to checkout exactly how a stock Series II (2009 JDM model) Nissan GT-R goes up against a Nismo Clubsport Package tweaked GT-R and a SpecV Nissan GT-R. After the SpecV’s less than impressive result in questionable conditions earlier in the year, Mizuno is on hand to ensure the test is fair this time.

Three seasoned racing pros go head to head at Sendai Highland Raceway to see which GT-R is ultimately king of the circuit. Should be a good one to pickup for the collection.

As usual you can order this and any GT-R books and DVD’s from Amazon Japan in English if you follow our HowTo linked below.

Link: Best Motoring Website
Link: Buy Best Motoring July 2009 Online from Amazon
Link: Best Motoring back issue DVD’s from 2009 – Amazon.co.jp
Link: HowTo: GTRBlog’s guide on buying online @ Amazon.co.jp

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When the price of SpecV parts were being made public via various Japanese media outlets many were firstly shocked that a SpecV badge could cost $1,500 and then intrigued why the SpecV’s turbochargers were listed as a separate part with a higher cost.

Nowhere did Nissan mention that the turbochargers were different so why the cost?

Garage Saurus have had a SpecV in the workshop for a couple of weeks and couldn’t help themselves. They’ve pulled the exhaust off and taken photographs to compare.

What we see here is quite unexpected. A larger exhaust wheel combined with a totally different blade design. Add to that a what looks like a slightly larger volume exhaust opening. The SpecV’s turbo is actually a rather big improvement over the standard item then.

Garage Saurus have commented that this difference could mean we see a lot more horsepower without reaching the turbos limit from the SpecV versus a base model GT-R. Who’s game enough to do it though with a 16 million plus yen investment?

Link: Garage Saurus R35 GT-R Website

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Nissan have partnered with Kyosho to bring us this 1/43rd scale 2007 Nissan GT-R Nuburgring test mule model limited edition. It joins a niche with other Nissan GT-R test cars from manufacturer HPI who has a 2007 Nurburgring model and a 2007 Goodwood Festival of Speed model out. The difference here is that the Kyosho item has camo stripes added. There were only 500 of these Kyosho models made available via Nissan’s online store and unfortunately they all sold out already. They may still be had via Japanese online auctions like Yahoo but are now at almost twice the price…

The SpecV models are just about ready and recently GT-R World checked out the Aoshima version at the Shizuoka Hobby Show 2009. This 1/24th scale resin model is due out soon.

Link: GTR-World.net – Shizuoka Hobby Show Photos
Link: Nissan Shop

GT-R Models and RC, GTR News, SpecV GT-R aoshima, gt-r, gtr, hobby show, kyosho, models, nissan, nurburgring, r35, rc, specv

Japanese web magazine Openers is quite unique in it’s approach to giving an inside glimpse into Tokyo culture, fashion and the high end automotive lifestyle. Recently they’ve begun a new series in the automotive section called the Long Term Test and, as the name suggests, will be living with a car for the long term with regular updates on how they’re going.

The first car they’ve purchased to launch this series is the 2009 Nissan GT-R SpecV and in their first article have described the purchase and delivery process. How it differs to some of your experiences outside Japan may be quite stark.

Head on over to the link below, and we will endeavor to keep you updated on Opener’s ownership experience of the SpecV.

Link: Openers Web Magazine: Long Term Test – SpecV has Arrived! (English)
Link: SpecV Initial Impressions Video – Japanese

Magazines/DVD/Books, SpecV GT-R gt-r, gtr, nissan, openers, r35, specv

As we know Nissan began deliveries of the GT-R in December 2007 in Japan and since that time has made revisions and enhancements to the production car to continually improve on it’s performance. As the pinnacle of the Nissan brand and it’s technological capabilities, new tweaks are being rolled out with each successive model year.

The most recent set of changes has seen significant performance improvements for the latest model production GT-R. These include suspension improvements that improve the road handling and driving feedback, increases in power and improvements in the VDC software to enhance the GT-Rs acceleration. We call these cars Series II GT-Rs for simplicity.

While Nissan has been pro-active in offering the less tangible improvements to existing GT-R owners at no cost via the TCM software update available at dealerships, there is really not much that can be done about the hardware upgrades…

Well that’s no longer the case, for Japanese owners at least. For a special package price between 494,000 and 532,000 yen the suspension upgrade package is now available at Japanese NHPCs. The package includes the following parts:

• Billstein Shock Absorbers (front and rear)
• Springs (front and rear)
• Transverse link bush
• Engine Mount (rear)
• Engine Mount (front) – 2007 models only
• Transmission mount – 2007 models only

Diagram showing the updates to the late model Nissan GT-R suspension

Nissan also makes note that certain SpecV parts will be available to purchase through NHPCs and dedicated service centers nationwide. The following parts previously only available on the SpecV will now be made available for other GT-R owners in Japan.

• SpecV Rays 20″ Forged Aluminium Wheels
• SpecV Recaro Carbon Bucket Seats
• SpecV Titanium Muffler / Exhaust
• SpecV Resevoir Tank

I dare say you’d now be able to have your dealer install any number of these upgrades prior to delivery if you were that way inclined. This announcement was quite expected after the GT-R recently made a 7:27.56 lap time at the Nurburgring on SpecV wheels.

Whether other regions such as the US will follow suit in offering either of these options from Nissan is unknown at this time.

Source: Nissan Japan

Update: Ben from GT-RR.com has let us know that they’re able to offer all of the Nissan OEM parts listed above including the SpecV parts to global GT-R owners. If there’s anything of interest to you, check them out at their website GT-RR.com.

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