The 2012 GT-R Track Pack is Incredible, but Won’t Hit American Soil
2012 Nissan GT-R Track Pack
Nissan Announces the 2012 Nissan GT-R Track Pack: for Japan, the U.K., Australia, and South Africa only.
Nissan engineers recently unveiled the details of their new Track-Pack trim for the Nissan GT-R, and I must say that it's pretty exciting. The complete track-pack will take the already incredible Nissan GT-R and prepare it for the racing circuit for its more demanding customers. This track-pack, which will actually allow the GT-R to remain road legal where available, also provides the car with an extra edge on the circuit over its standard competition.
The package will lighten the vehicle substantially, and it achieves this by deleting the rear seats from the cabin, and replacing the front ones with ultra-lightweight Recaro racing ones. The vehicle is also equipped with lightweight RAYS alloys wheels, which help shave pounds off of the standard wheels, and some carbon fiber touches which are more lightweight than their plastic contemporaries.
In addition to the weight saving features, the GT-R track pack will also feature stiffer suspension rates all around to provide the vehicle with a "harder edge" and greater control through intense track turning conditions. Newly integrated active brake ducts will also work to allow the front brakes to operate as much as 100 degrees cooler around extreme track conditions--ultimately resulting in large reductions of brake fade and chatter. The track-pack will use the same drivetrain as its more road friendly brethren, but the changes help it drop its 0-to-60 time from 2.9 seconds to 2.7, and has allowed Nissan drivers to post regular sub-7 times on the Nurburgring.
In case you wanted to make sure people know what you're driving, too, the track pack outfitted GT-R will also have special badging both inside and out. And, finally, no special edition vehicle would be complete without an exorbitant price tag modification: in this case, 10,000 British pounds, or, the rough equivalent $15,700 American. What this means, ultimately, is that Nissan is removing parts of their car and charging more for it--a move that other automotive companies have been doing with track ready editions of their fastest vehicles.
Of course, for us Americans, even if we wanted to shell out that much $$ we couldn't, as Nissan will not be offering the Track Pack to its American consumers. If you were set on having one, however, I'm certain that $16k could get you an equivalent. Password:JDM makes R35 GT-R Carbon Fiber rear seat deletes, RAYS and Recaro products are readily available online, and any body shop worth their salt is certainly able to custom create active brake duct screens for your vehicle. In fact, with the $16k, you could forgo the RAYS and Recaro components, install the ducts and seat deletes, and then have the money leftover to purchase a complete titanium exhaust, like the one made by Akrapovic for the Nissan GT-R which adds 17HP and shaves 40lbs off of the vehicle. In the end, the GT-R with the seat deletes, active brake ducts, and upgraded exhaust would probably beat the Track Pack, even on a circuit.
New Akrapovic GTR Exhaust Video
New video just released by Akrapovic of their Titanium EVO Exhaust on a Nissan GTR. If you have not seen and heard the Akrapovic GTR Exhaust in person, put it on your bucket list as something to do. The Akrapovic Exhaust for the GTR is ultra light, has an awesome sound, and comes with your choice of Titanium of Carbon Fiber tips.
Akrapovic Titanium Exhaust for the Nissan GT-R
When your car is as incredible as the Nissan GT-R, it can be hard to find a modification piece worthy of the vehicle. When it comes to exhaust systems, there are a lot of options out there too, so what exactly should you be looking for? Weight, performance, sound, visual appearance? How about all four.
The Akrapovic Evo exhaust for the Nissan GT-R is a rarity in the fact that it delivers incredible benefits in all 4 departments there, that no other exhaust can really equal.
Weight
The GT-R is a heavy car, we know this. This is, in fact, about the only real knock on the vehicle that exists. It's heavy, alright, we get that, how do we get past that? A great place to shed some weight is in the exhaust. The stock exhaust weighs over 65 pounds, and by switching to a full titanium exhaust system (Like the Akrapovic EVO) you're able to shed more than half of that weight. The EVO weighs 38.5 pounds less than the stock exhaust, and comes in at right around 30 pounds on its own as a complete system. That's a lot of weight to save, especially when you consider the HP and Torque boosts that the system provides.
Performance
So, you're saving weight and adding HP, what does this mean for the vehicle's performance? Well, for one, it means the car will be a lot quicker. The Akrapovic exhaust offers a published 17 extra HP (even though independent dyno numbers are posted in forums a lot that show as much as 31HP extra). If you assume that you'll get exactly the published bonuses, that means your vehicle will lose 38.5 pounds and gain 17 HP, which takes its HP/LB ratio from the stock 1HP for each 7.2 LBS to a much more impressive 1HP/7.8LBs. That's a half a pound per HP that's shaved by switching to an Akrapovic exhaust.
Couple those HP numbers with the Torque bonuses that the Akrapovic provides, and you'll see something even more impressive. Akrapovic published Torque numbers of 41 lbs/ft, and those numbers tend to fall right in line with independt dynos on various forum posts (I've seen 37-45 lbs/ft torque posted). When comparing that to the vehicle's weight, you'll see another impressive picture. The stock 2010 GT-R provides 434 lbs/ft, for a Torque:Weight ratio of 1:8.75. When you add in the extra Torque of the Akrapovic exhaust, and remove the extra weight, that ratio changes to 1:8. That changes your ratio by a full 3/4 of a pound, and should really help provide a lot more pick-up and go performance, which is amazing when you consider how much get up and go the GT-R already has.
Sound
Nobody ever complains about the way the GT-R sounds, do they? The vehicle is an absolute beast, with a powerful exhaust note that tears apart the road beneath it. But what if you could make your GT-R sound even meaner? The Akrapovic exhaust does just that. With a louder exhaust volume, and an exhaust tone that sounds like it belongs on a Formula 1 racing ring (or the Nurburgring, if you want to get specific). The Akrapovic takes the steady exhaust crescendo of the GT-R and really opens it up. Of course, it's hard to describe an exhaust tone, so I'll just post some Akrapovic videos and let you hear this one for yourself.
Appearance
I know, I know, an exhaust doesn't change the overall appearance of a vehicle that much when it's driven... usually. The Akrapovic EVO Exhaust for the Nissan GT-R does a magnificent job of improving that appearance, though, as it comes outfitted with large, quad tips in your choice of either titanium or carbon fiber. The tips are all double-rolled edges, and give a fantastic aftermarket appearance to your GT-R that's equal parts subtle and style. The large, well-finished, and attractive tips really draw the eye to the back-end of the GT-R in the same way that the exhaust's tone will draw the ear, making them a perfect compliment for the rest of the vehicle.They really achieve this look, also, by acting as a near-mirror image to the GT-R's taillights and giving the rear of the car a powerful visual motif.
Akrapovic GT-R Exhaust
I know that the big news concerning the Nissan GT-R right now is all about the Egoist, but I got to see a new exhaust this weekend that I wanted to share with you guys.
I don't know if you've ever heard of Akrapovic Exhausts. Before Saturday, I myself had not. They're a Slovenian exhaust company who make high-end, all-titanium, incredible exhaust systems for the greatest race cars on earth. This list is, of course, topped by the Nissan GT-R. Well, I was at a show with my Nissan GT-R when a local driver came by with his Godzilla, and I was immediately amazed by the noise. My GT-R is outfitted with a Mine's exhaust, and I thought I was pretty cool for that. I love the way it sounds and I love the way it looks, but this Akrapovic GTR EVO Exhaust was something above and beyond. The tips, crafted from both titanium and dry-carbon fiber, is absolutely gorgeous looking. The sound of the exhaust is fantastic as well. The loud tone and gorgeous, full, rich quality of it reminded me, immediately, of listening to the vehicles at an F-1 Race drive by. It is aggressive, but incredibly clean. After a bit of conversation, and awe on my part, I was invited back to my new friend's garage (where he has his own lift) to get under the car and check the system out. It is clean, smooth, and still: beautiful. The welds are all flawless, and the quality is unmistakable.
Akrapovic GTR Exhaust
Some more conversation passed, and we decided the next day we would go for a drive together. Out on the road, in full bore on a drive by, the tone is even more impressive. It's not super loud, I wouldn't say that, but it's super aggressive. I then got inside of his GT-R and rode around for a bit: silence. With the windows up, there was no noticeable cabin drone. We then rolled down the windows and enjoyed the tone itself. This was all I needed to know.
That evening, I went home, and went online to see what sort of damage an exhaust of this caliber would run me. It's hard to find. Very very hard to find. Some research showed that they seem to be an exclusive company and only allow very specific vendors the rights to sell their products. Then I came across one, (and one I've mentioned before, months back) who apparently had the rights to carry the Akrapovic line: Southern Car Parts. The guys there are great, and I spoke with David yesterday, who helped me immensely. After reading some more about the system, I was amazed by how light-weight it is. The exhaust saves over 17kg beyond the stock. My Mine's titanium saves about 12, which is already a big difference. The price isn't nearly as ridiculous as I had imagined for a system of this quality either. SCP has it listed at $6460, which seems to be exactly what all other companies sell it at. So, if you're in the market for a new exhaust, I would highly highly recommend this one for you. I have not been nearly this impressed on first listen to an exhaust in a long long time, and think it's totally worth a look. Once again, that's Akrapovic, and whoever these guys are, their quality is unbeatable!
Akrapovic GTR Exhaust
Installed a new Exhaust, wanted to share!
Hey everybody. I recently had the benefit of saving up enough side cash to justify buying myself a new exhaust for my Nissan GT-R. I'd done some research, and thought about getting the Borla, as it seemed to be the best deal for the money and was very well reviewed everywhere I looked, but I decided to spend a little bit more and go with the TiTek titanium exhaust. While the Borla is well reviewed, I am very glad that I went with the TiTek exhaust, as this thing is AWESOME! Had a couple friends come over (they had recently done a new exhaust install on one of their Camaros) and we set to work putting on my new exhaust. It wasn't exactly easy, but wasn't difficult either. Took the three of us about 3 1/2 hours, and a 12-pack, and we had the thing installed.
I purchased the full TiTek Stage 1 exhaust with titanium resonated Mid-Pipe from the guys at www.southerncarparts.com, as they seemed to have the best prices I could find and were super helpful when talking to them over the phone (Here's a shout out to you guys! Thanks for the help!). Took a couple weeks to get out to me, which wasn't too terrible honestly as I'm a patient man. I was anticipating it those last couple days though, monitoring me tracking number regularly. My anticipation was well-founded. Got the exhaust on, and started it up, and my GT-R roared in a way it never had before. It wasn't throaty or gurgling like an American muscle car with a MagnaFlow on it either. It was mean and clean. The notes were crisp, the volume increase sharp as it worked through the RPM meter (sounding incredibly fierce every time I got up 5k RPMS and higher), and the immediate performance boosts were noticable on my read-outs (nice having a car that gives definitive feedback) as I was accelerating to 60 from a stop tenths of a second faster than I ever had before. I was also pulling new highs on the lateral G's coming out of sharp turns and stomping the gas. At idle it is loud, but never obnoxious, and I can still listen to music at a comfortable level inside the vehicle while driving, so I sacrifice none of the comforts which make the GT-R so great.
In short, I am very glad that I paid a little bit extra and went with the TiTek Stage 1 Aluminum exhaust (once again, this is not meant to be a knock on any other exhaust system for the GT-R as I've read positives on each and every one of them) and can not imagine any other system giving me more oomph or enjoyment. My R35 GT-R, which was already the nicest and meanest ride everywhere I go around my home town, has got a little more character and growl and became that much scarier to all other vehicles out there. Install was fairly easily done by a few guys with limited knowledge, which was a nice plus as I'm certain I couldn't have justified spending any more money to either the wife or myself, and was actually a lot of fun to do with interested friends. I'd give this exhaust an A+ all the way, if I was going to assign a letter-grade to it, and would highly recommend it to anyone out there looking to do a solid single upgrade to their Nissan GT-R. Also, if you're curious, be sure to check out the Southern Car Parts website, as those guys really helped me get this, and talked me through a couple issues and qualms I had before buying it. This was their personal recommendation, and they obviously know their stuff. A great buy for a great car and I couldn't possibly be happier. Time for me to take my GT-R out for a drive and enjoy the sound and the looks.
One last note that I forgot to mention, the tips on this exhaust look awesome as well. The flame touched titanium is a great visual touch and it really makes the rear of my GT-R look a lot meaner.
Mine’s GT-R Products
Well, Mine's is and has been one of Japan's premiere vehicle performance tuning shops, and the work they have been doing with the Nissan GT-R R35 is absolutely incredible. They offer full dry carbon fiber body modification for the Nissan GT-R, as well as fantastic performance upgrade pieces.
Their full ESTA suspension kits offer some of the very best components available in one solid, well-tuned package, and the numbers on the Mine's Titanium VX II Pro Exhaust system for the Nissan GT-R are absolutely incredible. While the Mine's equipment is expensive, it is not like this for no particular reason. The reviews across the board on the Mine's products have been exceptional, and most people claim that the pieces themselves are more than worth the money spent on them.
I'm looking at purchasing one of the VX II Pro Titanium exhausts for myself now, after having seen and heard just how incredible a system it is.
The aerodynamic body pieces designed by Mine's are certain to cut down on track times as well. Coupled with their VX-Rom, VX II Exhaust, Super Catalyzer, and Improved Intake system, you're looking at getting 60+ HP on the GTR. Add to that some 200+ pounds weight reduction from all of their weight reducing products, and you're looking at making one of the most incredible cars ever produced a nearly unstoppable racing force. Mine's is certainly a good company to go with also, as their experience and name guarantee you're getting the very best of the best. Their GT-R R35 line was just finished, and is being carried in America by very few places. I found the Mines Nissan GTR Parts at Southern Car Parts for what appears to be less than any other competitor out there. The SCP guys also seem to have the entire Mine's product line available, as well as a number of other GT-R products, making them a certain go-to for future GT-R performance part purchases.
Mine's and the Nissan GT-R R35, a match made in heaven it would seem!