Nissan « Car & SUV

Nissan Juke-R Prototype – new video update

October 13th, 2011 by Car and SUV

Nissan’s UK arm recently undertook an ambitious project when it decided to drop the running gear of a GT-R supercar into the body of its Juke crossover.

Building the Juke-R means taking the 390kW GT-R’s 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 motor and creating space for it in the compact crossover’s engine bay. That alone would be tricky enough but the Juke-R will also be fitted with the full all-wheel-drive system, the GT-R’s electronics and complete drivetrain. Not exactly something you’d knock together in your garage with a few mates.

All sorts of issues have already arisen for the engineers of the manic Juke including shortening the wheelbase of the standard GT-R and adapting the Juke dashboard to fit the GT-R display screen. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: engine swap, GT-r, Juke, Juke-R, Nissan, prototype | Posted in News, Videos | No Comments »

Work continues on GT-R powered Nissan Juke-R (+video)

October 5th, 2011 by Car and SUV

Work is progressing the Nissan Juke-R project that will see the big-power drivetrain from Nissan’s GT-R supercar wedged into the Juke small crossover. Two street legal prototypes are currently being built in a collaboration effort by Nissan Europe and motorsports firm RML. One of the prototypes will be in RHD with the other in LHD.

The Godzilla motor is the latest version of this 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 monster and produces 390kW of power and 612Nm of peak torque. Nissan’s engineers mounted the GT-Rs six-speed transaxle under the boot while the front and rear ends are joined by a modified GT-R 4WD driveline and prop shaft.

Once the frog-eyed Juke has it’s new engine in place Nissan will modify the exterior with a carbon-fibre wide body kit that includes several GT-R styling touches. These include hood vents and a prominent rear wing, filling the guards will be 20-inch RAYS forged alloy rims. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: engine swap, GT-r, Juke, Juke-R, Nissan, Nissan Europe, RML, Super Juke | Posted in News, Videos | No Comments »

Nissan GT-R engine + Juke Crossover = Super Juke

September 27th, 2011 by Car and SUV

Taking the powertrain from a high-performance vehicle and dropping it into something totally different can be a great idea. But not always, and the latest carmaker to try its hand is Nissan Europe which has confirmed that a special one-off high-powered Juke crossover is being developed.

So which of Nissan’s hard core engines will make it into the Juke? None other than the twin-turbo 3.8-litre V6 mill that powers the current Nissan GT-R. This will turn the Juke into a 390kW machine and has seen the concept dubbed ‘Super Juke’. With the larger engine the Super Juke should accelerate from standing to 100km/h in under four seconds and on to a top speed of dangerous proportions.

Rally-inspired sports styling is also expected with the concept so prepare for enlarged wheel arches, a deep front splitter, bonnet vents, two-story rear wing and stripped-out interior for reduced weight. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: concept, GT-r, Juke, Nissan, Super Juke | Posted in News | No Comments »

Mitsubishi to bring back the Diamante

September 26th, 2011 by Car and SUV

Kiwi Mitsubishi owners and enthusiasts will probably remember the Diamante model that was produced until 2004. This luxury sedan still features on NZ roads and was keenly imported until seven years ago. Now, Nissan is set to bring back the Diamante although it may only be for the Japanese domestic market, at least for now.

Mitsubishi won’t be doing the development on the large sedan, instead it will rebadge a version of the Nissan Fuga (pictured). The Fuga isn’t a model well-known in NZ but it’s offered overseas with a choice of V6, V8, hybrid and diesel powertrains. Which engines will be used in the new Diamante is unknown at this stage. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2012 Diamante, development, Diamante, Fuga, Mitsubishi, Nissan | Posted in News | 2 Comments »

Kiwi team breaks class land speed record at Bonneville

September 7th, 2011 by Car and SUV

Kiwi race team CMR Motorsport has returned home from the Bonneville Salt Flats in the States with a new world land speed record. Long-time race driver Reg Cook and his crew from Clevedon in South Auckland, built a car specifically to run at the Bonneville National Speed Week event last month in an effort to break the current 2.0 litre production car body record.

The class CMR competed in is officially called the G/Pro for production bodied cars running a 2.0-litre engine. The previous record was set by a Chevrolet Cosworth Vega in 2009 and stood at 156 mph (249.6 km/hr).

Cook has been a Nissan enthusiast for many years, and chose a 1990 Nissan 2.0 NX using a stock SR20 twin cam 4 valve engine as a base. The rules allow for extensive modifications to the engine and suspension but the outside body work had to remain nearly standard. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Bonneville Speed Week, CMR Motorsport, G/Pro, LSR, Nissan, NX, Reg Cook, SR20 | Posted in News | No Comments »

Nissan developing all-new sports car to challenge MX-5

August 3rd, 2011 by Car and SUV

According to recent reports coming out of Europe, Nissan has entered into full development of a new budget sports car that will challenge the Mazda MX-5′s dominance in this market.

Apparently the sporting model will use a completely new platform that may be sourced from Daimler. This is the same platform pegged for the next-gen Nissan 370Z. Nissan is also in discussions with Lotus to collaborate on the car’s handling.

Engine options and power outputs remain a mystery for now but there are rumours Nissan may use either hybrid power or a fully electric system for this new machine. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: Daimler, development, Lotus, MX-5, Nissan, roadster, sports car | Posted in News | No Comments »

Nissan Micra notches up six million global sales

June 23rd, 2011 by Car and SUV

Nissan has just announced that global sales of its Micra/March has surpassed six million units.

The Micra has been around for many years now with the first-generation going on sale back in 1982. It quickly became known for its easy to drive nature and affordability. The second-generation was released in 1992 and used some of the latest tech for the time like a CVT transmission. The third-generation model, launched in 2002, featured the Intelligent Key for the first time in a Nissan model. The fourth-generation model got its release last year and achieves a high level of fuel economy through Nissan’s Idling Stop system and the next-generation Xtronic CVT box.

The latest Micra has proved a hit in emerging car markets due to its low price tag and reliability. It went on sale in Thailand in March 2010 and was then expanded to countries where it had not been available before, such as India and China. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: history, March, markets, Micra, Nissan, sales, six million | Posted in News | No Comments »

2012 Nissan GT-R to receive increased power and Spec R variant

June 1st, 2011 by Car and SUV

The R35 Nissan GT-R is now firmly in its twilight years after first reaching the market back in 2007. To keep sales strong the Japanese carmaker is set to push out the GT-R’s power figures even more and add a new, final edition to the current model range.

Apparently the upcoming 2012 R35 GT-R will get a power increase of a further 22kW over the the current model. This will boost total output to 418kW with a thumping 661Nm of torque.

If that wasn’t enough to get Godzilla fans going all funny, there’s also a new top dog version in the works – the Spec R. This new Spec R model is set to supersede the current Spec V model and will receive further weight reduction of between 30kg and 40kg. It will also come packing some bling under the bonnet with a gold engine cover to trump the red one on the Spec V. Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: 2012, GT-r, Nissan, R35, Spec V, SpecR, updates, upgrades | Posted in News | 5 Comments »

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