Just don’t hold your breath on it reaching Australia.
Nissan appears to have taken a leaf out of BMW’s playbook as the Japanese automaker’s North American arm have unveiled a new variant brand’s perennial supercar called the GT-R Pure. It’s mostly a response to the facelifted R35 being positioned as a more premium, more comfortable machine, and as such had its starting price raised a touch or two.
Where previously the range started with the GT-R Premium, the Pure now takes its place and costing US$10,500 less at $99,990 (or roughly AU$131,500). Just as we’re now a little more used to seeing thanks to the BMW M2, the GT-R Pure does without some of the niceties that come as standard on the Premium. However, the rest of range remains untouched with the Track Edition sitting above the now-midrange Premium and the most expensive, more powerful, and more hardcore GT-R Nismo topping things off.
The omissions, though, shouldn’t really be missed by the kind of buyers who want the base GT-R for the least amount of money down - they’re probably interested in the car’s unique powertrain, chassis, and handling over luxuries. These include Active Noise Cancellation, the Titanium exhaust (don’t worry, there’s a huge aftermarket) and the 11-speaker Bose audio system.
Otherwise, should you be entirely fine without these, the GT-R Pure still offers the same thrills and giant-killing performance, now for price that’s easier to stomach. Even visually, there’s no love lost as it retains the same exterior flourishes and even the updated model’s signature alloy wheels.
There’s also some changing coming to the GT-R range as part of the car’s 2018 update, notably including support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, all of which the new Pure receives.
Under the bonnet, as expected, lives same 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged VR38DETT V6 that outputs 420kW and 633Nm shared with the GT-R Premium and Track Edition. It’s mated to a 6-speed dual-clutch transmission located at the rear of the car that also sends power frontward for its monstrous all-wheel ATTESA E-TS traction.
In Australia, the GT-R starts from $189,000 and extends all the way to $299,000. Hypothetically, a similar move to introduce a more barebones version like the Pure would bring the introductory price to around $176k in our money. We would mind that. However, Nissan Australia have already confirmed there are “no plans” for a local introduction. Rats.
For more on Nissan cars, check out our Showroom.
