TOKYO MOTOR SHOW: 2013 Nissan GT-R Nismo busts out

The next vehicle from Nissan's high performance tuning arm, Nismo, has made its official debut at the 2013 Tokyo motor show.

The hardcore Nismo version of the Nissan GT-R takes 'Godzilla' to new levels with more power and torque, aero tweaks and significantly revised suspension.

One of Nissan's fastest ever cars, the company is claiming the car is officially the fastest production vehicle around the Nurburgring road-circuit in Germany.

Although Porsche holds the production car record with its 918 Spyder hybrid supercar at 6min 57sec around the 20.8km circuit, Nissan says the GT-R Nismo is in a different category, its time of 7mins 8secs making it the fastest 'volume' production car.

Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn was on hand to talk about the company's road-going ballistic missile, saying it is the fastest Nissan GT-R ever.

"With a 7:08.679 lap time, we can authoritatively say that the Nissan GT-R Nismo holds the volume production car lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschliefe, which is the gold standard of high performance achievement," said the Nissan-Renault boss.

It's now the fastest Japanese car around the 'Ring, beating the Lexus LFA Nurburgring Package by six seconds and the previous GT-R lap record by 15 seconds.

The street-legal super car is powered by a "factory tuned" 3.8-litre twin turbo V6 engine that belts out an incredible 441kW/652Nm, representing increases of 37kW and 24Nm over the standard $172,000 GT-R.

Seen here sporting a white paint job with black highlights and red accents, the Nissan GT-R Nismo gets larger turbochargers (originally developed for the Nissan GT-R GT3), new ignition timing control and a heftier fuel-pump to deal with the increased fuelling.

Though Nissan hasn't released 0-100km/h performance specs, the powertrain changes the GT-R Nismo are expected to see benchmark acceleration times drop from the regular GT-R's 2.7 seconds to face-rippling levels, potentially 2.5 seconds.

Handling has also been modified to ensure more grip at higher corner speeds via firmer springs and unique reworked electronically adjustable Bilstein dampers. The latter features a three-mode push button-operated setup - Comfort, Normal and R.

New links fitted to the double-wishbone front suspension and an upgraded rear anti-roll bar are designed to reduce body roll in high speed corners.

Tipped to go on sale in Japan from February 2014, the Nissan GT-R Nismo is expected to command a hefty price premium over the regular model's $172,000 when it arrives in Australia, and could break into the $200,000 bracket.

The car rides on 20-inch black alloy wheels shod with 255/40 front and 285/35 rear Dunlop tyres.

Also new to the GT-R Nismo is new ground effects bodywork designed to enhance down force at higher velocities. This includes a restyled front apron, a new rear spoiler and a slightly longer rear bumper.

The record-breaking new GT-R Nismo joins the Juke Nismo and 307Z Nismo models and will be launched in Japan in February 2014, with US and European sales to follow.

The Nismo brand is expected to be launched in Australia in 2014 and could eventually include a go-fast Altima mid-sized car, which will make its local debut this week.

Australian deliveries of the highly-strung super car have not been confirmed but it is likely to be offered here for around $200,000 later in 2014.

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