2010 Ferrari 599GTB Fiorano HGTE - First Drive Review

So your stock portfolio is in the crapper, your spouse has found a younger flame, and your standard $326,730 Ferrari 599GTB Fiorano isn’t doing it for you anymore. Can we suggest that you order a new 599? This time, however, check the box for the $30,095 Handling GTE, or HGTE, package. With it comes a retuned suspension consisting of stiffer springs (17 percent in front and 15 percent in the rear), a thicker rear anti-roll bar (1.0 inch versus 0.9 for the standard 599), retuned adjustable shocks, and slightly wider front wheels. The 599 HGTE also sits 0.4 inch lower than the regular version, has a retuned exhaust note, and is fitted with stickier Pirelli P Zero rubber. Inside, each HGTE-equipped 599 includes every possible carbon-fiber option.

The twin-cam, 6.0-liter V-12’s power is unchanged at 612 hp and 448 lb-ft of torque. There are two options for the transmission, both of which offer six speeds: a traditional, three-pedal manual or Ferrari’s F1-Superfast automated manual. The latter is the primary choice for buyers, evidenced by a quick jaunt past the company’s assembly line, where none of the partially assembled 599s were fitted with a manual gearbox.

Improving One of Our Favorites

We have praised the 599 before for its neutral handling, fade-free carbon-ceramic brakes, and grown-up manners over broken pavement. Yet a few hot laps around Ferrari’s Fiorano circuit left us star-struck all over again. Brakes? They haul you down from speed with ease and remarkable precision. Power? There’s plenty of it all the way up to the 8400-rpm redline. (Indeed, while on an orientation lap, Maserati MC12 racing pilot Andrea Bertolini was so entertained by the engine power, he blurted, “The torque of this engine is amazing!”) Steering? It’s a hair on the overboosted side, but loads up nicely and communicates the tires’ distress level well. A 599 with the HGTE package is just as neutral as the standard car, if not more so, thanks to the lower center of gravity and slightly wider contact patch in the front.

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Power Enterprise quad-charges the Nissan GT-R

The Nissan GT-R has been called a supercar-killer for its astonishing performance in spite of what have classically been seen as huge barriers: its heavy weight, low cost and non-exotic origins. Regardless of how one comes out on the 'supercar/not supercar' debate, however, the sheer impressiveness of this four-way forced induction system from the aptly-named Power Enterprise can't be denied.
Power Enterprise's approach to modifying the Nissan GT-R follows the tried and true approach of tuning the ECU, adding sticky tires and putting a little color under the hood, but then it goes into relatively uncharted territory. The idea of turbo-supercharging a car isn't itself new - even a few production cars feature the solution. Twin-turbo and twin-supercharging, however is several orders of magnitude less common.

With a pair of Rotrex C30-94 superchargers bolted to the engine and new fuel injectors to flow the necessary fuel, Power Enterprise says the car will feature better low-end and mid-range response, plus more torque. Exactly how much more torque or horsepower is generated depends on the kit. One kit offers 560hp (418kW) as a bolt-on to a stock GT-R, another offers 600hp (448kW).

The COBRA N+ Tuning Concept for the New Nissan GT-R

The Nissan GT-R reaches for the stars on the wings of a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V6 engine with 485 hp / 356.9 kW and permanent four-wheel drive. The development of an extensive tuning program at COBRA N+, the division of Cobra Technology & Lifestyle that exclusively deals with the customization and tuning of Nissan automobiles, is running at full steam.

Hennessey Introduces 600hp Godzilla Package for Nissan GT-R

Hennessey Performance engineering of Texas has a new, 600 hp upgrade for the Nissan GT-R. Included in the package is electronic boost control, better air induction, and a front-mount intercooler system.

Nissan GT-R Revealed - Full UK Spec

Nissan has revealed official details of its European-specification GT-R models – and it's good news for UK customers. The supercar, which arrives here next April, has benefitted from a host of improvements over US and Japanese editions.
Thanks to some electronic upgrades, the GT-R’s 3.8-litre V6 twin-turbo engine gets a 5bhp boost  taking peak power to 478bhp while torque stays at 588Nm. Dunlop SP Sport 600 DSST tyres will be fitted as standard – these are the same tyres that were used by Nissan engineers during the GT-R's record-breaking lap of the Nurburgring, resulting in a time of 7 minutes 29 seconds.
Other changes include modified suspension spring rate settings, which Nissan says result in an improved ride. Another tweak is the introduction of the Gun Metal grey coloured Rays seven-spoke alloy wheels for the standard and Premium Edition GT-Rs.
There will be a Black Edition too which will be fitted with the same wheels but, unsurprisingly, in black. Lucky customers can also choose a new pearl white exterior colour called ‘Storm’.
As for the price, the GT-R will start from £56,795 on the road with an increase of £1,300 for the Premium Edition (£58,095) and another £1,300 for the Black Edition (£59,395).  So far, 1200 GT-Rs have been ordered by UK customers and with demand still very strong, Nissan says that any new customer ordering now should expect delivery in mid 2010.

Nissan 370Z in action

Yesterday was the official pics, and now it's the official video. After unveiling all details and images on the new 370Z Coupe, Nissan also presented the first promotional video of the new sports car. As a reminder, the 370Z will go on sale in January 2009 at a base price of $29,930. It will be powered by a 3.7-liter VQ37VHR engine with VVEL (Variable Valve Event and Lift) rated at 332 hp at 7,000 rpm and 270 lb-ft of torque at 5,200 rpm. (...)

Nissan 370Z on the street

We may not be the only ones excited about the new Nissan 370Z. This car was caught driving in the Los Angeles area possibly by some Nissan employees out for a joyride ahead of the car's debut at the LA Show. Then again, these weren't spy shots. It had to be pretty well staged if the GTR World got to pop the hood and the back hatch. Looking at the completeness of the car and it's Tennessee manufacture's plate (Nissan North America's headquartered out of there,) this is likely a car that (...)