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We've yet to get behind the wheel of the 2009 Nissan Maxima, but our good friends at Popular Mechanics have put the 2009 Maxima through its paces to determine if the car once hailed as the "four door sports car" has returned to its roots. It's hard to argue with the 3.5-Liter VQ which is good for an additional 35 horsepower and 9 lb-ft of twist. On the other hand, we have rarely been impressed with a CVT transmission at the center of any kind of sports car, even one that promises a manual mode that emulates a conventional gearbox. With a sampling of pieces from the Nissan parts bin, including some suspension bits from the Infiniti M45 and a steering wheel said to wind up in some form on the new Nissan 370Z, could this new Maxima chart Nissan's flagship sedan back into sportier waters? 2009 Nissan Maxima: 2009 Nissan Maxima, Reviewed
Those spy shots we showed you yesterday of a higher-performance GT-R have been confirmed by inside sources as the Spec V model, which will both shed poundage and gain power compared to its baser sibling. Weight is expected to drop by over 300 pounds thanks to extensive use of carbon fiber, and as for how much power the twin-turbo 3.8L V6 will make in Spec V trim... some are saying 550 - 600 horsepower, though we think that's a bit optimistic as well as just overkill. These shots show the GT-R Spec V attacking a corner at the Nurburgring, and in the German sun we can see the new front splitter below the grille and carbon fiber rear wing much clearer. The current GT-R's performance has already surprised us all, but it's clear that this is just beginning for Nissan's new halo car.
With only 20 miles separating us from North Lake Tahoe, it's obvious that I hadn't secured the hood of our Super Silver Nissan GT-R after poking and prodding inside the engine bay. The left side of the bonnet is raised about a quarter-inch and flapping slightly at speed, so we pull off into a newborn subdivision to slam it shut. I step back inside and catch a glimpse of a silver Corvette in the side view mirror. The telltale air intake on the front bumper confirms that the man behind the wheel is an aficionado; it's a C6 Z06 and there's no doubt the driver knows what the GT-R is.
"That's the third one I've seen today," our new friend points out, "What's going on?" I explain that we're doctors of journalism heading out to Reno/Fernley Raceway to wring out the GT-R with the rest of the hacks. "That thing is so over-hyped. Let's see what it can do." With only a few seconds to calibrate my moral compass, he begins counting down. "Three, two, one, GO!" He takes off with a minimum of wheel spin and I lay into the throttle about a half second too late. The GT-R bogs slightly off the line (no time for launch control) and then rockets towards the horizon in chase.
My lame launch put us about ten feet off the Z06's bumper, and with the throttle pegged to the floor, the rear-mounted, dual-clutch gear box runs through the ratios in full automatic mode. Our necks are jolted back at each shift and we can feel our spines forming a valley in the suede-covered buckets. You know the stats; you can do the math. The Z06 is around 3,100 pounds and comes packing 505 hp. The GT-R is down 25 horsepower and is... [Read More]
Scorching fast. That's the word from Car & Driver on a Nissan GT-R they were allowed to instrument up and abuse for a few hours. 11.5 in the quarter mile and a 3.3 second run to 60 mph are incredible numbers from any car, but this one only costs $70,000. That price tag would be preposterous for a Sentra, but it's a bargain for the ability to annihilate virtually anything short of a Hayabusa. There's been some debate about the three little words "engineering test mule," but scuttlebutt has it that the only thing Nissan was testing on the car were tires and suspension calibrations. From the report, it sounds like they got the ride dialed in, too - in comfort mode, you can reportedly thwack across expansion joints without bouncing your coiffe off the headliner. The biggest complaints? Weight (though apparently the car doesn't feel as ponderous from behind the wheel), and the interior design. The materials are said to be good, but haphazard is the order of the day for the dash layout. Oh darn, it won't come with the gorgeous cabin of a Ferrari 599 -- we suppose they need something to feel superior about as they watch the chunky arse of the GT-R rocket toward the horizon. A $70,000 supercar? We'll take it.
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