Nissan has been very adamant that the GT-R will be back. What’s less certain is the form that a new iteration of the iconic sports car might take—electric, combustion, or hybrid. Currently, it’s something the automaker is actively exploring.
Guillaume Cartier, Nissan’s chief performance officer, recently told Autocar that there’s “no clear plan” for a new supercar as the automaker explores “different routes.” Nissan teased a potential future GT-R with 2003’s Hyper Force concept, a quad-motor electric vehicle with 1,341 horsepower, but nothing was ever confirmed.
Now that R35 production has ended, fans are anticipating an R36. Nissan CEO and President Ivan Espinosa said earlier this year that the company wants the GT-R “nameplate to one day make a return.” It just might not be anytime soon.
Espinosa added that the company did not “have a precise plan finalized today” and that the GT-R would “evolve and emerge in the future.” He’s not the first within the automaker to discuss the next GT-R. Ponz Pandikuthira, Nissan USA’s chief product planner, said, “The GT-R would be back, without a doubt.”
Photo by: Robin Trajano Motor1
Without any clear plan for the supercar’s return, it could be a while before a new one arrives. Nissan is revamping its lineup now while Espinosa, appointed to lead the company earlier this year, tries to turn around the struggling automaker.
An all-new, low-volume supercar might be beyond the company’s current budget considerations, although Nissan is already working on an R35 successor. The most likely outcome is probably a hybrid supercar, pairing a higher-powered combustion engine with potent electric assist.
The Ferrari 296 GTB and Lamborghini Temerario both feature hybrid powertrains, making 817 and 908 horsepower, respectively. A hybrid GT-R would most certainly make more power than the R35, which featured a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V-6 engine producing 600 hp and 481 pound-feet of torque in the Nismo version.
But not even Nissan knows what the future holds for the next-generation GT-R. Even then, we hope to hear something more concrete about the supercar very soon.
