Italdesign Nissan GT-R50 is actually going to production
Nissan’s R34-generation GT-R made landfall to much praise from supercar fans, and of course more than a little hand-wringing from rival supercar engineers. At $70,000 it wasn’t cheap, yet it offered a performance bargain that seemed to defy all existing norms. Twelve years later, the GT-R improved on its performance (and reliability) while the price has commensurately increased to outpace inflation. And the basic design today reflects essentially mild cosmetic changes.
We still don’t know if or when to expect the next generation of the exotic-slaying techno-marvel, but Nissan just confirmed that the Nissan GT-R50 by Italdesign, first shown at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2018, will enter limited production.
Just 50 copies of the sleek, fluidly styled coupe will be made to celebrate Italdesign’s 50th anniversary in 2018 and the GT-R’s 50th anniversary in 2019. Based on the GT-R Nismo, Nissan’s limited-number top-trim 600-hp top trim, the Italdesign version will increase power even further, to 710 horsepower. Base price for the Italdesign GT-R50 is $1.13M.
That considerable bump in price will net buyers a GT-R with a nearly completely new look. The windshield, door glass, roof panel, and door cutlines carryover from the previous production models, and it’s still recognizable as GT-R thanks to its blunt front end and rearward-slanting roofline, yet the Italdesign version has a smaller quarter glass thanks to a gently curving C-pillar and more substantial haunches. This is definitely a direction we wouldn’t mind seeing in the next-generation GT-R taking.
Buyers interested in picking up one of the limited-production units can visit GT-R50.Nissan to place their order. Construction will begin in 2019 and extend through 2020.
