when will gtr be ready 2008?
wow 450 hp, I hope its infiniti
I,ll be ready trade 05 at that time
price 60-70 gs I have start saving now for that bad boy...

 

Uhh...I could probably buy 2 or 3 GTRs for the price of an F430. If you said Z06 or M3 or Viper I could understand but the F430 is an exotic.

 

I personally don't care what it's going to be badged as.............just bring it & I'll buy it!

 

as long as the gtr can smoke anything there is. im down .

Corvettes may be a problem... but not on the track.

 

dayum...around 70k? honestly Id rather save a bit more and get a Benz AMG. freals tho, I couldnt be any happier with my G35, and I aint really tryin to always look forward to/upgrade to whatever is newer. If I bought the GTR I would only be paying more for the HP, because looks wise the G35 is ideal for me. Dont want it any crazier, or any less sporty. but I dont really need all that HP anyway.

 

Nissan is expanding the Infiniti brand. I believe it's already in the Middle East and Korea. Nissan has already said that the main competitor of the GTR is the 911. So it would make sense to target that demographic as an Infiniti rather than a Nissan. It would be different if they said they were competing with the Corvette. Then it would make sense to brand it a Nissan. But Nissan already has the 350Z as the sports car. Also, I used to drive a Nissan Pathfinder and the difference between getting service at a Nissan dealership vs an Infiniti dealership is quite different. At Infiniti, I can get a loaner, there's free beverages and free wireless internet if I wanted to wait. At Nissan, there's a vending machine. For Infiniti to keep moving upscale, they should definately make the GTR an Infiniti.

 

can this thread be moved?

 

I wonder if the GTR will suffer the same reviews of some infinitis about having a somewhat "cheaper" appearing interior. If they focus on everything else but the interior, I could visualize it as a nissan, but if they make the interior some prestigous looking specimen, it would look funny in the Nissan showroom.

 

They might do what Toyota did...

Have a all performance no-frills no compromises sports car under nissan..
They could just have it called the Nissan Skyline V-Spec

and then have a Luxo-fied "Infiniti GT-R" under infiniti for more money.
it would be both performance and luxury. Nice connoly leather, Insane sound system, etc etc.

Just like the Supra was no compromises and the SC300/SC400 were its lexus counterpart.

 

I don't think the branding matters much. I mean let's face it, our G35's are Nissans. Infiniti is just a brand image, and not much more. Sure I enjoy the better warranty, dealer service, etc. that Infiniti offers over Nissan, but if they sold the G35 as a Nissan in the U.S. and not an Infiniti, it wouldn't have stopped my from buying the car. I didn't buy the G35 because its an Infiniti. I bought it because of the car it is and what it offers.

Some other examples of higher priced performance cars that were branded under the more mainstream brands and sold well anyway:

- The Corvette costs more than some Cadillacs, yet is sold as a Chevrolet, and still does well.
- The last Supra TT was more expensive than most Lexus', yet was branded a Toyota, and I don't think anyone respects it less because its not a Lexus.
- The Ford GT could have been branded as a Lincoln, since that's Ford's premium brand, but is sold under the same brand as a Focus, yet that didn't deter people from buying every one to be made, at a large premium over sticker to boot.
- The Viper could have been branded under Chrylser since that is supposed to be their more higher end product line (Dodge is kind of middle of the road), yet the fact that its a Dodge doesn't seem to detract from its sales or respect, and customers willing to pay $80k for one.
- The Plymouth Prowler was very rare and unique, yet was sold under the lowest end brand name Chrysler had, Plymouth, which was later discontinued. Would the Prowler sell better as a Chrylser or a Mercedes today?

 

I personally hope, for personal reasons, that the GT-R remains a Nissan - one person sited the next Toyota supercar as an example - it will be a 500 hp V-10 beast that Lexus is planning on selling for $125-150k - wtf?!?!? Do you people really want to pay $70-80k for this car? You will if it comes out as an Infiniti...

 

You guys underestimate the power of branding. Like someone said earlier, the Supra failed because it was a $45k Toyota. If it was a $45k BMW that did 0-60 in 4.8 seconds, it would have been a smash success. Branding is especially important in the auto industry where a three point star can add a $10k premium because people are WILLING to pay for it. You bring out a $150k Toyota and I would lmao because who would buy it? I'd certainly look at a Porsche 911 turbo for that much and probably buy it because...you guessed it. Its a PORSCHE.

If they bring out the Skyline GTR in the US, people aren't going to shell out $70k for a Nissan. They might for an Infiniti but Nissan doesn't have a good brand reputation in the US. Nissan = cheap, sporty alternative to the Honda/Toyota models.

 

oh my sad news. I wonder how they expect "targeted audience" nissan buyers to cough out over 50k where Infiniti buyers already are paying that amount. The badge should only reflect how good the car is not who the buyers are.

 

No, the Supra failed not because it was a Toyota branded car, but because the car was overweight, overpriced, and just didn't have styling that appealed to many people in the U.S. (at the time). Plus it was facing a LOT of competition in a declining sports car market. When it was only offered as an automatic in its last few years in the U.S. due to emissions, it was done. Calling it a Lexus Supra wouldn't have changed a thing.

No, it would have met the same demise as a Toyota. BMW has made some total flops (sales wise) too. The BMW 850i for example, sold horribly here and depreciated like a rock. I happened to like the car, but it just did not sell well at all, even with the BMW name, and some great styling. The BMW 318i is another flop, despite being a "cheap" BMW. If people only wanted the BMW brand really badly, then the 318i should have sold like hotcakes since it was a BMW that sold in the $20k's, and looked like the rest of the 3-series from the front, and had the BMW logo plastered all over it. Yet, it was a failure. Because people saw through the cheap car and weak engine, and the BMW brand wasn't enough to save it.

Depends on the performance and rarity of the $150k Toyota, but if its got the kind of performance to hang with a $450k Porsche Carrera GT for example, then the same people who are paying $150k for a FORD would pay for a $150k Toyota (or Nissan for that matter).

Who cares? You're trying to tell me you would rather have a Porsche 911 turbo than a Ford GT or a similarly priced and performing Toyota, when a Ford GT will literally blow a 911 Turbo off the track, while also being a hundred times more rare? Just because of the Porsche brand?

To each their own, but I just don't understand that logic. A brand is an intangible thing - something created by a bunch of marketing MBA's to get foolish customers to pay a premium for. It's an image. Performance is REAL and tangible.

No offense, but from what I've found, people who buy cars based solely on the brand name are usually posers, while true automotive enthusiasts could care less about the brand - they care about the car. I find it hilarious that most Americans who just love Porsches and would pay anything for one, don't even know how to pronounce the name properly!

If it'll smoke a 911 Turbo with ease, and looks good, then people absolutely will shell out $70k for a Nissan, especially if its somewhat rare. Dodge has been doing that with the Viper at $80k, and GM is about to do it with the next Corvette C6 Z06, which will probably be priced around $60-70k.

 

No post has ever been more deadly accurate.