Nissan Skyline

Nissan Skyline (スカイライン in Japanese) is a line of compact cars, sports cars and compact executive cars originally produced by the Prince Motor Company starting in 1955, and then by Nissan after the two companies merged in 1966. After the merger, the Skyline and its larger counterpart, the Nissan Gloria, were sold in Japan at dealership sales channels called Nissan Prince Shop.

It is currently available in either coupé, or sedan body styles, and are most commonly known by their trademark round brake and tail lights (as of 1972); the station wagon bodystyle was dropped in 1989 with the introduction of the R32 platform.

Iterations R30 to R34 of the Skyline are still popular tuner cars for Japanese car enthusiasts from the 1980s to today, especially with available features such as straight-6 engines, turbochargers, and the high-performance GT-R trim.[1] While not distributed in the United States, the Skyline's prominence in video games, movies and magazines resulted in many such cars being imported there from 1999 to late 2005, after Motorex petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to allow 1990–1999 GT-Rs and GTSs to be imported, at the condition that they were modified to meet United States Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.

BNR32
The 3rd Generation of GT-R(1989–1994), After cancelling the Skyline GT-R in 1973, Nissan revived the GT-R again in 1989. At the time Nissan was competing in Group A Racing with the Skyline GTS-R. Nissan wanted to retire the GTS-R in favor of a more competitive vehicle. The new generation GT-R, E-BNR32 chassis (commonly shortened to R32), was designed to dominate Group A racing.

This new 2.6 L all wheel drive concept was put into production as the R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R. The R32 developed 206 kW (276 hp) and 266 lb·ft (361 N·m) of torque, it had a curb weight of 1,430 kg (3,146 lbs). Initial production of the car was the required 510 to allow for homologation starting on May 22, 1989. Its successful debut along with critical acclaim by the motoring press created a heavy demand for the car. Nissan officially started an unlimited production run August 1989, and began its Group A campaign in 1990. Due to strict Group A homologation rules, Nissan was required to also sell a series of the Skyline GT-R which more accurately reflected the car they use in Group A racing. This series was called the Skyline GT-R 'Nismo' edition.

Spec

 * Body style - 2-door coupe
 * Layout - Front engine, rear-wheel drive / four-wheel drive
 * Engine - 2.6 L RB26DETT I6
 * Transmission - 5-speed manual

Performance
The R32 GT-R "In a word - extraordinary. This is the world's newest benchmark... The GT-R is an awesome car, because its enormously powerful engine doesn't overpower the enormously proficient chassis.

It was the most expensive Nissan on sale by an enormous margin - the next most costly Nissan was the naturally aspirated 300ZX, which could be bought for 40 percent less. In fact, Nissan and its dealers were a little unsure of how to handle the GT-R - in the uptake of the car, and in its long-term retained value, this was one of the problems that was to dog the fast Skyline. But in early 1991, that was all in the future.

BNR34
The GT-BNR34 (R34) Skyline GT-R and GT-R V-spec models were released in January 1999. The R34 GT-R was also made to be shorter (from front to rear), and the front overhang was reduced.

R34 GT-R V-Spec (Victory Specification) models come equipped with the ATTESA E-TS Pro system and an Active LSD at the rear, while standard GT-R models come with the non-Pro system and a conventional mechanical differential. The 'M' on the M-Spec stood for Mizuno who is the chief engineer of Nissan. In August 2000, Nissan released the V-Spec II, replacing the V-Spec.

Engine

 * Production : 1999–2002
 * Body style : 2-door coupe
 * Layout  : Front engine, rear-wheel drive / all-wheel drive
 * Engine  : 2.6L RB26DETT I6
 * Transmission : 6-speed manual

Performance

 * The Skyline GT-R soon earned the name "Godzilla", for its "monster" track performance and country of origin. The R32 GT-R dominated JTCC, winning all 29 races it entered in the series, as well as taking the series title every year from 1989–1993.
 * The GT-R's success in motor racing was formidable, particularly in the annual 1,000 km race at the Mount Panorama circuit in Bathurst, Australia, where the winner in 1991 and 1992 was a GT-R (despite receiving additional 100 kg (220 lb) in weight penalties and a turbo pop off valve in 1992, and crashing), and in the Japanese GT series where it has remained dominant for many years. The Skyline GT-R line were retired from the JGTC series (later changed Super GT Series) in 2004. Its successor, the Nissan GT-R, competed and dominated the 2008 Super GT season, winning the GT500.