lol! Too hardcore for me. I run full everything (except exhaust).

 

I see the weight of GT-R complained quite often.
However, according to Mizuno san the weight figure was part of the whole packaging from the very beginning of GT-R's design.


He explains:
"based on his experience with the relationship between the down force weight and tire patch grip of Group C race cars, the weight of GT-R has been predetermined to achieve optimal tire patch grip in a road car. The light weight packaging simply could not provide enough grip without using softer tire compounds. To achieve the maximum grip in all situation with NORMAL road tires, the GT-R's optimal weight for its tire compound has been determined without increasing the downforce that involved enormous drag coefficient."

First, I thought WTF was he's talking about, but then I remembered Lotus and ProDrive discussing this in an engineering segment over a decade ago.
Well, guess who Nissan subcontracted out the suspension and chassis design for the GT-R to. If you said Lotus, you are astute.

In the end any car can always use less weight for a host of reasons but what he states makes sense in a road car with road tires. It's no wonder this car is so quick when it corners.

 

No doubt a lot of engineering went into this car. And we all knew that Lotus was involved over 5 years ago (along with Borg-Warner, Cosworth, etc...). What is being discussed is whether Mizuno's comments are just a copout, trying to explain away the obesity issues plaguing the R35, and how to overcome them with aftermarket components and practices.

 

Point taken but I believe it would be safe to assume the following: With the amount of technological and mechanical engineering inherit to a GT-R, along with the way the entire vehicle was designed and packaged as a holistic system to a degree unlike any other road car in the past short of the Veyron and certainly none in this price segment, its weight - while a bit heavy for this "class" of car had to be done with a purposeful intent.

I doubt it was a rueful cop out because I doubt Nissan would have necessarily objected to making the car lighter even if it would have added $2,000 to the BOM per unit.

 

I don't doubt this, completely. After driving a GT-R for a little bit, it feels wonderfully balanced. It moves its weight VERY well. I see the weight being almost a requirement to meet all of their needs, and then reverse engineering it to be fast, despite the weight, as opposed to purposely making it heavy, and then using that to meet all of its requirements...

I'm a pretty big advocate of the success the GT-R has had. It is the perfect car for me. I don't actually wish it was lighter. I've driven my car in the heavy rain, snow, and ice (even drove it on track in the freezing rain). I've seen some of the benefits from the additional weight. I don't doubt that if it was a few hundred pounds lighter, that it would perform even better.

My issue being - at what cost? The car handles harsh weather for daily driving like any other AWD car (I've shared a story on here about when my city was covered in ice, and I still made it into work - long story, while having to drive others to their jobs, homes, etc...).

 

^^^I'm not disagreeing with you. As a matter of fact I think you stated my agreement in a different way.
I've never been critical of the GT-R's weight. Sure, at first blush when you see the curb weight number you gasp a bit and shake your head considering the category this car is in.

But the proof is in the performance.

 

Agreed. But we do wonder how much better the dry performance (about 90% of driving time) would be enhanced if it was a few pounds lighter. What we are discovering is that it would cost considerably more for a factory to release the car in its current configuration and make it 200lbs lighter.

It appears that the 2012 moves it's weight even better, runs cooler, smoother suspension, with more power, etc... (and the 2013 is coming with 550HP).

 

I did wheels/tires, seats, and titanium exhaust on mine... Probably shaved over 200lbs.

 

I did seats Recaro Sportster CS,wheels VOLK ,tires Hoosiers,Lightweight exhaust and mid pipe.As we all know reducing unsprung weight is the best thing you can do for a cars performance

 

the back seat is a must for weight loss

 

How much weight loss would you expect from removing the back seats?

 

Our Ti exhaust saves approximately 50lbs. The stock midpipe weighs 35lbs alone...