The men who build GT-R engines

Nissan appears to be warming up for the release of its gibberish-inducing GT-R Nismo with the release of a new video that introduces the four men who produce each and every GT-R engine.

The first Nismo-fettled GT-R will eclipse the standard supercar’s 404kW/628Nm performance outputs and, therefore, its gob-smacking 2.7-second claimed 0-100km/h acceleration time.

But the GT-R Nismo’s more potent 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 will be built by the same four master craftsmen – or takumi, as the Japanese call those at the top of their profession – that build the standard GT-R engine at Nissan’s massive Yokohama engine factory.

Collectively, Takumi Kurosawa, Tsunemi Ooyama, Izumi Shioya and Nobumitsu Gozu – the soul assemblers of the GT-R engine – are said to have notched up more than 100 years of work in their chosen field.

Each engine is assembled with painstaking precision by one of these four individuals, who then mounts a plaque bearing his name upon completion, “serving as a timeless reminder of the high level of craftsmanship and expertise that went into each work”.

Nissan says it has welcomed many GT-R owners, including TV talk show host and car collector/aficionado Jay Leno, to the Yokohama plant to meet the takumi engine builder who hand-assembled their VR38 engine.

“Yokohama is the plant where our company was established, and we’re proud to make Nissan’s flagship engine here. It represents the pinnacle of the Nissan brand,” said Yokohama plant manager Nobuhiro Ozawa.

“We adhere the nameplates of the takumi who hand-built these engines and put their souls into each one with a sense of responsibility.”

Nissan has produced more than 35 million engines at its founding Yokohama factory, which is now almost 80 years old.