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Now, for the drag race no one saw coming. What would you think if I told you that a Nissan GT-R and a 1972 Datsun 1200 were going to race? You'd laugh at the thought of the Datsun slowly pushing through the smoke left in the GT-R's wake, right? What if I then told you that the Datsun was an all electric modification? More humor. What if, I then told you that the Datsun wins?
I hate showing GT-Rs losing (and thankfully, those videos are so few and far between that I never really have to) but this one is too cool to pass up. Of course, the '72 Datsun 1200 in question (affectionately called White Zombie) is no normal Datsun. This 1200 runs off an all electric drive-train which delivers an immediate 772 pounds of torque. That's right, 772 pounds of torque delivered to all 4 wheels the second the accelerator is hit. That power makes this Datsun the fastest electric car on Earth. This incredible vehicle uses a cavalcade of batteries to power the vehicle for as much as 100 miles of driving, or if you're more interested in speed than conservation, 1/4 mile of all-out hauling ass. The EV Datsun 1200 hits 0-60 in 1.8 seconds and finishes a 1/4 mile run at a very very respectable 10.4 seconds. Not even the monster that is Godzilla can top this thing. The stats are impressive, but it's even more fun to watch. If you don't get a sick laugh watching a '72 Datsun 1200 run a 10 second 1/4 mile, you probably don't have a car-loving soul.

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.

Apparently, this happens as a result of the steering fluid losing compression after the column locks, most likely as result of a faulty transmitter or other part within the column lock system. A lot of people have reported being able to jar the column loose and be able to start their car, but some have said none of the home solutions have worked at all. Nissan really needs to figure this out and repair it ASAP, as it is leaving some GT-Rs completely stranded in garages (and at times much worse places, such as parked on city streets and in busy lots). If you find yourself in one of these positions, some people have reported being able to free it and start the car by doing the following things:

Applying extra force left and then right on the wheel, hopefully pushing past a locking mechanism and increasing steering fluid compression. Once in this pressurized state, pressing the start button.

Releasing the tilt control on the wheel and using the up/down motion of that to see if the steering column will not unlock itself in another position.

Replacing the battery (sometimes this issue is result of low battery voltage to the electronic systems, apparently).

Of course, it would be preferable that none of these things were ever necessary. My recommendation to you would be to do whatever necessary to free the steering column if this leaves you stranded in a public place, as that is by no means an ideal place to leave your GT-R for an extended amount of time, and drive it either A) directly to a Nissan dealership or B) Straight home. If you take it to a dealership, report the problem immediately and have it inspected. This seems to be happening with more regular frequency, so I would be surprised if a registered Nissan GT-R mechanic had no idea how to handle the situation. If you take it home, call it a registered Nissan GT-R mechanic and have them make a house call. Hopefully, this information is just a helpful warning for you and never becomes necessary. Also, hopefully, Nissan will register a recall or a repair for the Nissan GT-R soon and stop this problem from happening any more, as it is the first stain on Godzilla's permanent record thus far. Eliminate it before it becomes a real problem Nissan, and let there be no detraction available for the Nissan GT-R.

I guess nothing can be perfect though, and in the grand scheme of things, this problem is not so bad when compared to the others some other car owners are facing (the biggest of these being the fact that they're driving anything other than a GT-R... those poor souls).

There has been no end to the rumors of what the Nissan GT-R will become next, but the most credible rumor circulating in Japan right now is that a Nissan GT-R Hybrid is in development. The hybrid Godzilla would be part of the R36 generation of the GT-R. Sources close to the project tell us would likely debut in 2012 as a 2013 model with a pricetag around $100K.

The drivetrain for the 2013 Nissan GT-R Hybrid is expected to be a version of the hybrid system in the upcoming Nissan M35 Hybrid, but with a dramatic power increase and an all-wheel-drive layout. However, instead of a normally aspirated V6, the GT-R Hybrid would use a twin-turbocharged V6 just as the R35-derived Infiniti Essence concept did. It would be the same twin-turbo 3.8-liter V6 (VR38DETT) the GT-R uses today.

The target would be 440 horsepower for the hybrid application (versus 485 on today's GT-R), with an additional 160 hp coming from the electric motor -- the same one used on the Essence.

With 600 hp to go around, the hybrid GT-R would be just as quick as today's production GT-R, sources tell us. We also hear, though, that serious weight will need to be cut out of the car to offset the addition of the battery pack. And even with that dieting, the GT-R Hybrid is still expected to be heavier than today's car (3,800 pounds).

Fuel economy, though, is expected to be 25-30 mpg, which of course is the very point of building a Nissan GT-R Hybrid. If achievable in the real world, Nissan would have a convenient rebuttal to pundits who argue that supercars (and more generally, fun cars) will lose their relevance in the coming green era. -- Mak Tokuyama, reporting from Japan