The Nissan->ke62 NISMO GT-R GT3-spec race car made a successful debut at the Blancpain Endurance Series at Magny-Cours over the weekend, finishing eight in a field of 35 cars for JR Motorsport and proving that the car has enough bite to back up its bark.
Built to GT3 race specs and jointly developed by NISMO and JRM, the NISMO GT-R carries the same 3.8-liter VR38DETT V6 engine as that of the production model with an output of 530 horsepower and 451 lb/ft of torque.
The NISMO GT-R GT3, which was driven by David Brabham and Richard Westbrook, capped off its impressive performance by covering over 440 kilometers in just a little over three hours of action, showing that it can run with the established models of the GT3 class in just its first racing action. With development only beginning a year ago, the Nissan NISMO GT-R GT3's performance at Magny-Cours is a sign of great things to come for both the car and the JR Motorsport team.
“We came to Magny-Cours with a plan, as our main goal was to test the reliability of the car in an endurance event and to assess how it compared in a competitive environment - and that's exactly what we've done," team principal Andy Barnes said.
"To achieve such a solid all-round performance has taken months of hard work by NISMO and JRM. The outcome of this weekend really underlines the true potential of the car and keeps our development program and pre-launch plans firmly on track.”
The future's looking bright for the newest race car in the GT3 grid. Both NISMO and JRM are confident that with an impressive car in tow, the team will be remain competitive in future GT3-class races.
2012 Nissan Nismo GT-R GT3 by JR Motorsport
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- Model: 2012 Nissan Nismo GT-R GT3 by JR Motorsport
- Engine/Motor: 3.8-liter VR38DETT V6 engine
- Horsepower: 530 horsepower
- Torque: 451 lb/ft of torque
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