2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo Preview: 2013 Los Angeles Auto Show

The 2015 Nissan GT-R and its even higher performance twin the GT-R Nismo represent the apex of Nissan's sports car lineup.  Intended to take on the world's top exotic automobiles, the GT-R seems to get faster with each passing model year in a testament to the automaker's willingness to endlessly hone the technology that makes the car so unique.  The Nismo model in particular shines as a testament to the brand's willingness to apply racing know-how to a production model.

What’s New for the 2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo:

• The 2015 Nissan GT-R see its suspension tuning taken down a notch to make it more streetable
• The GT-R is also quieter inside
• The Nismo model is all-new

New 2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo: Styling and Design

The styling tweaks made to the 2015 Nissan GT-R are subtle, consisting primarily of LED headlights.  Inside the car, buyers will notice more care taken with the quality of the materials that make up the cabin.  The GT-R Nismo is more identifiable, with new fascias front and rear in an effort to add downforce at speed.  A rear spoiler is also present and accounted for, with Nissan claiming 220 lbs of downforce when the vehicle is traveling at over 180 miles per hour.

New 2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo: What’s Under the Hood

Both the 2015 Nissan GT-R and the Nissan GT-R Nismo feature a 3.8-liter, twin-turbo V-6 engine.  The base car makes do with 545 horsepower and 463 lb-ft of torque, while the Nismo jumps to 595 horses and 481 lb-ft of twist thanks to larger turbochargers.  A six-speed automated manual transmission is standard with either model, a dual-clutch design that feeds the Nissan's output to a standard all-wheel drive system.  Nissan claims that the Nismo knocks 0.2 seconds off of the GT-R's sprint to 60-mph, giving it a total time of 2.7 seconds.

New 2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo: Features and Technology

The details on that suspension 'softening' we mentioned above for the entry-level 2015 Nissan GT-R?  A 34-mm hollow swaybar up front, softer bushings, and shocks and spring rates that have been designed - in combination with the stock tire's stiffer sidewalls - to be more compliant.  The GT-R Nismo goes in the other direction, offering adjustable Bilstein shock absorbers, a dramatically retuned alignment, track-ready rubber, a stiffer chassis compared to the base GT-R, and a 17.3 mm swaybar in the rear of the car.

New 2015 Nissan GT-R / GT-R Nismo: What Autobytel Thinks

The 2015 Nissan GT-R continues in its role of representing just how fast a car can go if it's subjected to a rigorous scientific process aimed solely at producing exceptional lap times.  The Nissan GT-R Nismo takes that same formula to the next level and should please track junkies who weren't quite satisfied with the already-potent standard edition of the car.  Either way, the Nissan GT-R maintains its reputation as a cerebral assassin, a car that decimates by design, and which seems to defy the laws of physics.