Farewell to the R35 GT-R: Final Car

Nissan’s R35 era closes with a mix of pride and a lump in the throat. After 18 years, the final GT-R for the Japan market rolled out of the Tochigi plant, a Premium edition T Spec wearing Midnight Purple. Workers paused to honor the car that turned engineering obsession into a global icon. Across its life, roughly 48,000 units found homes, and each engine carried the name of a Takumi master who built it by hand—only 9 of them, quietly shaping legends in Yokohama.

What made the R35 special was not a single breakthrough but a mission: build a true grand tourer that could crush lap times and still feel polished on the commute. The VR38DETT twin-turbo V6, the ATTESA ET-S all-wheel-drive system, and constant aero refinement formed the backbone. Year after year, Nissan kept tuning—more control here, more comfort there, more edge for NISMO—so owners felt the car growing with them.

Power climbed with that philosophy. Early cars delivered 480 ps. From 2017 onward, standard cars reached 570 ps. NISMO models stepped up to 600 ps thanks to GT3-spec turbochargers and meticulous weight-balanced internals. The upgrades were not just numbers. They showed up in lap times and trophies.

On track, the R35 wrote its own timeline. At the Nürburgring, it carved 7:38 in 2007, then 7:29 in 2008, 7:26 soon after, and 7:18 by 2012. The headline came in 2013 when Michael Krumm hustled a GT-R NISMO with track options to a scorching 7:08.679. Closer to home, Tsukuba fell in 59.361 with a 2020 NISMO and then 59.078 with a 2024 NISMO. It even took a Guinness World Records title for the fastest drift in 2016, sliding at 304.96 km/h at a 30-degree angle. That is not just performance; it is attitude.

And now, a pause—only for the badge to draw breath. Nissan says the GT-R name will return when it is worthy. If the R35 taught us anything, it is that relentless iteration beats one-and-done heroics. Until the next chapter, thank you, R35, for the memories, the noise, and the goosebumps.