2014 Nissan GT-R Track Edition Review – Video

Track Edition models are limited to the United States and they’re only building 150 of them, which makes a special car even more unique.

Regular GT-Rs benefit from a more responsive engine at high RPM thanks to new fuel injectors, a retuned suspension and a more rigid body. One snazzy feature is the addition of a placard on the engine that bears the craftsman’s name that built it… by hand. The engine-assembly process takes a full six hours and is completed by one of four people. These gentlemen are called “takumi” in Japanese, which apparently means master craftsman. This hands-on approach is done to guarantee precision and quality.

The car is propelled by a 3.8-liter V6 engine with an iron lung (read: turbocharger) hanging off each cylinder bank. The result is a monstrous 545 horsepower with 463 lb-ft of torque. It’s matched to a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and a cutting-edge all-wheel drive system that can rout 100 percent of the engine’s torque to the rear wheels or up to 50 percent to the front axle.

Nailing the throttle from a standstill results in a somewhat tepid launch. But once the engine gets a few revs on the clock and the duet of turbos is spooled up, hang on. At around 3,200 RPM the car explodes like a fertilizer plant in a wildfire, which sends you – and your passengers – hurtling down the road at felony speeds.

At peak power the G-forces at play are so strong it almost makes it feel like you’re having an asthma attack. It gets slightly harder to breathe as the engine presses your carcass into the seat until you get a split-second reprieve as the transmission grabs the next gear. Have you heard of sleep apnea before? Perhaps doctors will diagnose GT-R owners with driving apnea. The GT-R should come with a CPAP machine.

Underway there are all kinds of whirring, clattering and whooshing noises, more ruckus than a prison kitchen during a riot. It may be noisy but all of that technology is working overtime to make you look like a rock star. Even the most capable driver owes a debt of gratitude to all of the GT-R’s solenoids, clutch packs and sensors for delivering an almost otherworldly experience. So much technology is working so hard to make you look so good.

Pitch the car into a corner and it goes; it’s almost like a video game in that it turns the rigid, immovable, uncaring laws of physics into something malleable that can be bent and twisted to the GT-R’s demand.

If there’s one downside to this car’s performance it’s the ride. Our brief test drive took place on an old runway; a surface you’d think would be pretty smooth, after all, airplanes used to land on it and they’re far from off-road vehicles. Despite this inconvenient fact the GT-R managed to find every bump, expansion joint, crack and crevice on the runway and probably a few that weren’t even there. The car’s ride is bumpier than falling down a flight of stairs, minus a closed-head injury, of course.

The Nissan GT-R is a great performance car that keeps getting better with every turn of the calendar. As in years past the 2014 model is still a giant killer that can spar with some of the world’s greatest supercars and come out on top. Capable all-wheel drive, unimaginable levels of grip and rocket-booster thrust only make it better, while a hand-built engine is cooler than Pluto’s moon.

While the GT-R’s price continues to rise with every new model year it’s still a performance bargain. That’s even true when you add on the $16,000 premium for the Track Edition model, which doesn’t just add performance, but also prestige.