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But, as Justin Gardiner finds out, the result is a bit puzzling. 503: Globe trotters Kerstin Gackle and Volker Aldinger left their native Germany on April 1 and pointed their Yamahas toward Australia. Eight months later Justin Gardiner caught up with the couple in Tokyo. 501: Back to the future Cutting-edge technology and futuristic vehicles highlight the 37th Tokyo Motor Show at Makuhari Messe through November 5. Justin Gardiner offers a guide. ISSUES 499- ISSUES 449- ISSUES 399- ISSUES 349- ISSUES 299-

Mean Machine

William Bonds gets behind the wheel of the Nissan Skyline 350GT.

So, what exactly is this species, the Gran Turismo, or GT to you and me? Is it a bird or is it a plane? No, it’s a supercar, or, to be more precise, a supercar wannabe. While some GTs have merely been dodgy production cars with a new set of wheels, others—in more traditional style—are genuine efforts to combine speed with comfort and style. The Skyline badge has, indeed, found its way onto plenty of cars (some bland, some rampagingly awesome) in the Nissan range in its 40-year history, but the Nissan Skyline 350GT certainly lives up to the more traditional definition of a GT.

For a start, it’s a genuine four-seater rather than a 2+2 (two normal seats plus two seats for people with no legs). It’s also been designed to look the part; it’s got a six-speed gearbox and more grunt than an Arnold Schwarzenegger movie.

At over 1,500kg, it needs plenty of grunt to make an impression. But it certainly does that, reaching 100km/h in around six seconds and cruising all the way to 240km/h if you want it to (although, curiously, the speedometer only registers up to 180km/h). Twenty years ago, such figures would cause heads to turn. Even now, it’s still pretty nimble but well outside the sub-five second range of the genuine sports cars (although only half a second slower than Nissan’s real sports car, the 350Z).

It’s certainly fast enough for the market it’s aimed at: the American sports coupe bracket. There, it’s sold as the Infiniti G35 for around $30,000 (¥3.3-3.6 million here) and, besides picking up a raft of awards, has helped the company pass the 100,000-unit mark in 2003 for the first time ever.

In aiming at the US market, it’s easy to understand just why the 350GT is the way it is. It’s not a sports car, it’s not a sedan and it’s not overtly “sensible” (which is why there is a Skyline sedan range). It’s basically a car for dads who want to drive fast without upsetting the wife and the contents of the (two) kids’ stomachs.

Unlike America’s typical beefy two-door four-seaters (Ford Thunderbird, Mustang, Dodge Charger, etc.), the 350GT is in more of a niche market and one in which it is doing very well, shifting over 2,000 units a month. In fact, Nissan as a whole is on a tear in the US with its February sales of 74,836, nearly 50 percent higher than the same time last year. The 350GT may not represent a significant part of those figures, but as Toyota has proved with the Lexus brand, flagship cars can lead to brand recognition and brand loyalty, which can lead an entire corporation.

The Skyline's in-your-face bumper shows off its stylishly fierce design

Style and comfort
Nissan’s increased sales figures are no fluke. Their designs have improved quite dramatically over the past few years, with an emphasis on sharp, dramatic features, which on big cars like the 350GT look positively macho although, curiously, their smaller cars look quite cute. The 350GT is in no doubt about what it’s got, from the huge, in-your-face rear bumper, dazzling alloy wheels, rakish front end and hefty size. It’s a brute—and a stylish brute.

Nissan has paid particular attention to designing the light clusters (a failing on so many performance cars, particularly at the rear) and the low-strung look (watch that bottom, folks) is very masculine. Indoors, things aren’t quite as spectacular. The driver’s seat has plenty of buttons to push to maneuver you into the right position, but somehow it never seems to get there. And why can’t the passenger have the same seat options?

Rear passenger accommodation is adequate rather than generous, but if the driver’s legs aren’t too long, the people in the back shouldn’t get too claustrophobic. The pedals are cute and well laid out, although the length of the clutch may stretch your hamstring, and the steering wheel is agreeably comfortable and responsive. The rest of the interior is a little dull (apart from the pop-up TV/navigator) with lots of plastic (some of it silver) to fill up the spaces, but little that looks as if it was designed for those spaces. Rear-view vision is good, although the dramatic sweep of the front half of the car can prove a bit tricky. Trunk space is limited and it’s a bit of a struggle to fit in two golf bags.

Power and performance
The target audience and design becomes crystal clear when you drive the 350GT. The combination of chunky tires and a superbly balanced suspension means that it will ride smoothly over rough roads and bolt around sharp corners at excessive speeds with very, very confident handling. The slightly rearward position of the V6 engine on a wide chassis makes it very easy to drive and handle while still having plenty of appeal for amateur racers.

A relatively dull interior pales in comparison to the sleek, dramatic exterior

It’s a great compromise and therein lies its appeal. You can pretend it’s a sports car, but its smooth, smooth engine and cruisability means it’s also a good long-range, interstate car. As such, it’s a great car for the US (rather than the Japanese) market, although slinging it around the back roads of Europe, you feel, would also be a lot of fun. The downside to the driving experience is the six-speed gearbox. It’s a pretty clunky affair that seems to have been designed in the 1970s. It makes changing gears hard work. Unless you’re doing some serious speeding, it’s a lot simpler just to use first, third and sixth. If Nissan actually chose to design a three-speed gearbox for the 350GT, it wouldn’t be any worse than the present mishmash. Definitely give the automatic a try.

Overall, this is a seriously good-looking automobile. It looks downright mean and it goes like the clappers. You can slap it around a bit and it doesn’t get all bent out of shape and you can leave most people drooling in the dirt. But if the 350GT and the Infiniti range are going to represent the best that Nissan can offer, they shouldn’t forget the little things. A few tweaks inside the 350GT and Nissan would be closer to a real supercar.

See details at www2.nissan.co.jp/SKYLINE/V35
/0301/index.html (Japanese) or www.infiniti.com (English).

Photos by William Bonds

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