Here’s Why The Nissan GT

May 05, 2023

Lurking inside the Nissan R35 GT-R, the 3.8-liter VR38DETT V6 engine is meticulously hand-built by master craftsmen with well-thought elements.

From Toyota to Nissan, Japanese carmakers so far have managed to build amazing cars that captured the hearts not only of local customers in Japan, but also in other parts of the world, such as the United States and Europe.

One of these cars is the formidable Nissan GT-R, also known as the supercar killer and, 'Godzilla'. Through the decades, since it came out into the market, the GT-R has attracted hordes of fans and enthusiasts. In fact, even when the current generation of the GT-R – the R35 -- is around 15 years old, people still want to buy the car.

Nissan has finally discontinued the R35 GT-R in some markets, including Japan. In the United States, the GT-R lives on for the 2023 model year. Nevertheless, the end is near for the R35 GT-R, and some fans are already wondering if the next-gen GT-R would have an all-new engine or an evolved version of its current twin-turbo mill.

After all, Nissan's engine of choice for the R35 GT-R – the VR38DETT – is one of the primary factors why the R35 GT-R remains a Godzilla among its modern competition. The VR38DETT twin-turbo engine is such an engineering marvel, prompting many to search for the reasons why.

The VR38DETT is one of the engines in Nissan's VR series, which are the successors to the likewise heavily successful VQ series. The VR engine series have powered other Nissan vehicles such as the Skyline and Z, as well as briefly on the nitro-nonsense Juke-R. These engines have also powered Renault Sport RS01 and a number of Infiniti luxury models.

The clue to the marvel that is the VR38DETT engine lies in its code or name. The 38 following the engine code refers to the displacement, which stands at 3.8 liters. The ‘D’ stands for the fact the engine had dual overhead cam, while the ‘E’ represents electronic fuel injection. On the other hand, the ‘TT’ refers to its twin-turbo boosting scheme.

Interestingly, each VR38DETT engine comes to life thanks to engineering expertise of Nissan's master craftsmen known to mankind as Takumi (not the Initial D guy). Led by Takumi Kurosawa, these exceptional master craftsmen ensure that each VR38DETT engine is in great working condition.

A Takumi craftsman personally measures and adjusts everything by hand. A Takumi manually checks and confirms the viability of each VR38DETT engine before the GT-R leaves the factory. Interestingly, a Takumi would proudly mount a plaque with his name on the engine, signifying that each mill is an engineering masterpiece and marvel.

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Weighing a little more than 600 lbs, the VR38DETT twin-turbo V6 in the Nisan R35 GT-R offers astounding reliability, consistency and strength. Nissan ensured that the VR38DETT features these characteristics by employing elements such as a closed-deck cylinder block and a ladder frame structure.

In fact, the VR38DETT engine features a cast aluminum block with cylinder liner bores sprayed with 0.0059 inches of low-friction plasma. By spraying the cylinder bores with this material, the piston rings gain a protective coating to slide while the piston goes through the power cycle. The cylinder bore is 3.760 inches, while the piston stroke is 3.48 inches.

In addition, the VR38DETT V6 engine employs dual overhead cam (two per cylinder head), a four bearings crankshaft, forged steel connecting rods, as well as a micro-finished one-piece forged crankshaft. The cams control all 24 valves using a continuously variable valve timing control system (CVTCS) on the intake valves.

Nissan's VR38DETT engine features multi-port fuel injection, fully symmetrical dual intake, a low back-pressure exhaust system, a pressurized lubrication system with thermostatically controlled cooling, and a magnesium oil sump.

Providing the boost are two IHI turbochargers integrated into the exhaust manifolds, which come with optimized turbo flange attachment points. The VR38DETT V6 engine also features a titanium exhaust for optimal cooling.

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When it first arrived on the scene in 2007 under the hood of the Nissan R35 GT-R, the 3.8-liter VR38DETT V6 engine was already a potent machine, capable of delivering 480 hp of max output and 430 lb-ft of peak torque. Nissan, however, knew that the engine can provide more, and a few tweaks now and then were what it needed.

As years went by, Nissan was able to squeeze more from the VR38DETT engine. In the final iterations of the standard GT-R, the VR38DETT V6 delivers 562 of max output and 467 lb-ft of peak torque. On the extra-hot GT-R Nismo model, this twin-turbo mill can provide up to 591 hp of output and 481 lb-ft of torque.

So far, the most powerful straight-from-factory Nissan GT-R is the limited edition GT-R50 by Italdesign, which is a commemoration of the 50th anniversaries of the car in 2019 and the design house in 2018. In this model, the VR38DETT V6 can provide 710 hp of max output and 575 lb-ft of peak torque.

Incredibly, the VR38DETT V6 engine is strong enough to welcome heavy tuning from more adventurous owners. In fact, tuners can easily squeeze more than 1,000 hp from the engine. The Extreme Turbo Systems takes pride in its drag turbo kit that could boost the GT-R VR38DETT V6 to 3,500 hp.

Source: Nissan,

Julybien Atadero writes from the island of Cebu covering various automotive topics including new sports cars, classic muscles, pickup trucks and SUVs. While I like peace and quiet, I love playing with my kid. When I have nothing else to do, I watch documentaries and animations.