Nissan Skyline 2000GT-R Hardtop (1973)
Publication: Car Graphic
Format: Road Test
Date: May 1973
Author: “C/G Test Group” (uncredited)
Summary: The “Ska G-R” has a completely redesigned body. It is fitted with a semi-racing engine inherited from the previous model, but despite the attractive specs, there is nothing particularly impressive about the performance in stock form. The controls are heavy and the handling is very rough, but t has a fairly high level of balance and a solid ride. The four-wheel servo disc brakes require a lot of pedal effort. It has poor fuel economy, is noisy overall, is expensive, and is aimed at wealthy enthusiasts.
Road testing the Skyline 2000GT-R Hardtop
The Skyline GT, or “Ska G,” seems to be one of the dream cars for the average Japanese motorist. With a large, showy, heavy body and all the accoutrements of a personal car, it is difficult to pinpoint anything particularly outstanding about it, and it is merely a typical Japanese car. However, it is quite popular, far ahead of the Nissan Laurel and Toyota Corona Mark II, both of which are cars of the same class with similar style, equipment, performance, and price, and always holds an overwhelming advantage in sales battles. Not only that, in some regions, it is is even sold as a top-selling car, rivaling the sales numbers of the Toyota Corolla.
Incidentally, the number of new car registrations in January this year was 4,835 for the Laurel, 6,744 for the Corona Mark II, and 9,543 for the Skyline. This figure is for all models in the Skyline series, so it is unclear how many of those are for the GT, but according to what I’ve heard, since the full model change of the series in September last year, the best-selling of the many variations is the hardtop 2000GT-X with a five-speed gearbox, a high-priced car that costs 1,025,000 yen in Tokyo (apparently the most popular body color is ivory white).
So why is it that only the “Ska G” sells so well?
One cannot help but point to the influence of touring car racing. Since its first appearance at the JAF-GP held at FISCO in May 1969, until it was defeated by the rapidly progressing rotary Savanna (also at FISCO) in May 1972, Murayama-tuned Skylines continued to record a history of 50 victories over three full years, with the GT-R being the basis for all of them. Or rather, it was an advanced racing version that was put on sale in order to gain homologation as a “mass-produced car,” so it was naturally very different in content from the regular Skyline GT, and while there is probably no need to explain it further at this point, it was revived in January of this year as the highest-performance version of the new Skyline series.
This car has a new body that underwent a full makeover last year, and is equipped with almost the same equipment as the old GT-R (the one that achieved the famous “glorious 50 consecutive wins”). First of all, the engine is a semi-racing S20 type that has been used since the Prince R380, insted of the normal SOHC inline Six-cylinder for Skyline GTs, and drives the rear wheels through a 5-speed Porsche-type fully synchronized gearbox and a final drive with a limited-slip differential. Not only have all the unnecessary decorations been thrown out, but even the hetaer and radio have been thrown out, and the suspension is significantly strengthened. Unlike the old model, the new GT-R comes standard with disc brakes on all four wheels, and also uses a vacuum servo. Another new feature is the addition of a stabilizer bar at the rear. The front and wheel arches have been cut open to accommodate plastic overfenders. the 5J x 14 wheels are half an inch wider than standard and are fitted with 175HR-14 radials. Another major exterior feature is the spoiler on the tail.
This time, we drove the new Skyline GT-R around for about 800km, including detailed measurements at Yatabe, but in terms of power performance, which was one of the focuses of interest, the unfortunate C/G test group was once again disappointed: this is how unlucky we are with this semi-racing S20 unit. We have brought models equipped with this engine to the Yatabe high-speed course three times, the first sedan-body GT-R, the hardtop GT-R after that, and the Fairlady Z432, but it is hard to say that any of them fully lived up to our expectations (and none of the other times we have driven it were perfect, either). For example, the new GT-R’s top speed was far from the catalog number (200km/h), recording only an average of 178.7km/h on a 1km straight section, and during the measurement, the needle on the rev counter never rose above 5900rpm in fifth gear. The old hardtop GT-R (although it was a regular-gasoline 155ps model) was carefully tuned at Nissan’s Murayama plant and recorded a flying kilometer speed of 185.6km/h in the C/G test at Yatabe, so even considering the fact that the new car is 45kg heavier (at 1145kg) and has a slightly larger frontal projection area, it still also ended up not being able to fully demonstrate the power it should have. The maximum speed of each gear was 68km/h in first gear, 102km/h in second gear, 149km/h in third gear, and 172km/h in fourth gear, which topped out at 6700rpm. In terms of acceleration, it recorded 0-400m in 17.3 seconds, and 0-1000m in 32.3 seconds. The 0-100km/h time of 11.2 seconds was not enough to surpass the standards of a 2-liter sports car, and was far inferior to the Galant GTO 2000GSR that was tested at the same time.
It must be an extremely difficult task to perfectly maintain the three Solex 40PHH carburetors of this semi-racing unit and always keep the clearance of the 24 valves correct, but despite the lackluster ultimate power performance mentioned above, there was almost no fussiness at low rpm. Except for starting it up in the cold, early morning, there was no need to even touch the choke knob, and just by pumping the organ-type throttle pedal two or three times, the engine roared to life with the high-pitched metallic roar that is typical of twin-cam units, and even without any load, the water temperature reached 60°C after maintaining 2000rpm for about two minutes, and it was immediately ready to go. This is an exceptionally fast warm-up time for a 2-liter high-performance engine that does not have a fluid coupler on the fan. However, even during continuous high-speed driving or slow driving in the city, the needle on the water temperature gauge never reached above 80°C.
There is more than enough margin of flexibility, and in extreme cases, even at 1100rpm and 30km/h in fifth gear, the car can continue to run without any jerking. If you accelerate slowly, the lower limit is 20km/h in third gear, 30km/h in fourth gear, and 40km/h in fifth gear. However, this is only possible, and with the original driving pattern of this car, which is to fully step on the throttle, the engine will sigh heavily and struggle at speeds below 40km/h, even in third gear. Even if you continue driving at such low speeds, it doesn’t get too cranky, probably due to the full transistor ignition. Even if it starts to sputter a little, if you keep it above 2500rpm for a while, it recovers quickly and smoothly revs up to the 7500rpm limit. The test car had a slight flat spot at around 6000rpm, but it was hardly noticeable.
The thing that made the strongest impression on me while driving was the sound it made. When you rev it up, in addition to the metallic roar mentioned above, the loud air cleaner intake sound and the high, dry exhaust note fill the cabin, enveloping the driver. This is because the soundproofing materials in various parts of the body have been significantly reduced compared to the normal Skyline GT, but the sound of the powertrain itself is probably also loud. At low speeds, the main mechanical sounds inside the engine are the most noticeable, and at the same time, the high-pitched operating sound of the electromagnetic fuel pump attached to the back of the rear bulkhead assaults your ears from behind like a woodpecker.
The floor-shift 5-speed gearbox has a Porsche-type servo synchromesh inherited from the previous model, and the ratio settings of 2.906 / 1.902 / 1.308 / 1.000 / 0.864 are appropriate for road use, but the shift stroke is excessive, a common drawback of the Porsche type, and quick shifts require exaggerated movements. The synchro was not particularly powerful in the test car, which must have been roughly treated for 6,000km already, and it was easily defeated in quick shifts such as those in the acceleration tests. Gear noise was also clearly audible. The clutch, which requires a pedal force of 19kg, was always secure even during repeated harsh racing starts. It provides a strong bite, and perhaps due to a synergistic effect with the limited slip differential, during the acceleration tests, when I hastily engaged the clutch, the engine speed dropped sharply and I lost power. On the other hand, even if I was reckless and stepped on the throttle, held the revs at 6000rpm and side-stepped the clutch, the resulting time was almost the same. However, the pedal force is too heavy. It is difficult to understand why the clutch pedal is so heavy, even though it has almost the same pedal travel as the normal GT. It is beyond the limits of practical use, and after driving for a while in a crowded city where frequent operations is required, my left knee started to hurt.
Another big focus of interest is maneuverability (the main points of this type of car are only power performance and maneuverability). The handling of the normal Skyline GT on which this car is based is generally stable but extremely insensitive. In other words, it does not surpass the standard of an average domestic passenger car. However, the new GT-R, which has a spring rate of 2.5kg/mm in the front and 2.6kg/mm in the rear (the damping force of the dampers is the same as the normal GT), which is more than 30% higher, has reached a much higher standard, and has a more refined chassis than the previous GT-R, being equipped with stabilizers not only in the front but also in the rear, and with 5J x 14 wheels and 175HR-14 tires, it always provides a stable cornering posture and behavior regardless of the cornering speed. The handling is quite strong understeer (the steering force is slightly heavier than the standard GT, and it is difficult to maintain it through an entire corner), and there is not much roll, so you can run through the corners smoothly. Even though the 175-width tires look disproportionately thin with the large overfenders, the absolute value of grip is high, and all four wheels draw a fixed trajectory even at high speeds.
The response of the recirculating ball steering seems very uncertain when going straight due to the unpleasant elastic play, and even if you swing the wheel violently 45 degrees left and right while going straight at high speed, the long nose of the car hardly responds. However, once you pass this play zone and it starts to work, the response is almost satisfactory and certain. Even when venturing into a tough slalom, just by turning the steering wheel hard, the car’s line does not push excessively, and it can run lightly for its body size. The final breakaway point is signaled by the rear wheels starting to slide gently, but it is very easy to correct at the high limit speed. By simply returning the steering wheel appropriately without changing the throttle position, you can regain control that you are about to lose. However, unlike the old model, the steering wheel now has four turns from lock to lock, which is exactly the same as the normal Skyline GT (and the steering wheel diameter is 40cm), so when you carelessly apply too much power in a tight corner in second gear, for example, it is extremely busy at the wheel, and even in a downhill corner, the tail does not become light like the normal GT. This can be said to be the effect of the newly installed rear stabilizer. Perhaps because of this, I got the impression that the grip of the rear wheels in particular is several orders of magnitude higher than that of the old GT-R. Despite this, the understeer is not overly emphasized.
The change in rear brakes from drums to discs is mainly a matter of specs, or perhaps to take racing tuning into consideration. In reality, the difference is hardly noticeable, but you can tell from the fact that, even with the addition of a new 6-inch servo, there is almost no reduction in pedal effort compared to the previous GT-R. The braking force is sufficient for the car’s power and weight, and there is not much change in posture during sudden braking, so you can step on the large pedal with confidence. In particular, the tail hardly lifts up when braking, which makes it easy to feel at ease right at the start of cornering. I think its strength is that even if you delay braking until the last moment before corner entry, it does not adversely affect the handling. However, it is not fade-free as you might imagine from the amount of force required. In the severe fade test we call “0-100-0,” the initial force of 15kg increased to 46kg by the tenth stop, which is one of the worst cases of fade in C/G road tests to date. It did not cause smoke or burning smells, but the increased effort was a clear symptom of brake fade. I have not confirmed the grade of pads installed on the test car, but to prevent this it would be necessary to change to a stronger grade (because the car is heavy, the reliability of the brakes cannot be neglected), and then the force required during normal driving would be hopelessly large, so the servo would have to be enlarged, to 8 or 9 inches. As I said before, all the controls on this car are unnecessarily heavy, even for a model aimed at a very limited number of enthusiasts.
Contrary to what you might expect from the specs, the livability, especially the ride comfort, is excellent. The chassis is set up for high speeds, so it is of course stiff, but thanks to the heavy body and long wheelbase, it always feels solid and stable, and even if you drive over cat’s eyes, you won’t feel a jolt. The full bucket seat, which has an integrated backrest and cannot be reclined, holds the driver snugly, so that you don’t need to use a seat belt to keep your body in place even when driving fast on a winding road. Not only does it provide good support, it also has a high shock absorption capacity. The impression of good livability is further emphasized by the solid construction of the body. The ride quality of the old GT-R was slightly stiffer than the new model, but somehow the body felt loose, and there were constant creaking noises in various parts depending on the unevenness of the road surface. This has been greatly improved by the model change, and apart from the natural noise caused by the omission of soundproofing materials, the car body itself does not make any noise.
Consdering the car’s intended use, it is natural that various accessories have been omitted. However, even though the purpose is to save on homologation weight for racing, the removal of such practically essential equipment such as a heater and defroster is a bit questionable. During the test, not only was it cold without a heater, but in the early morning, the film of ice on the windows was difficult to remove, and even without that the inside would fog up, causing a lot of trouble. If you are going to spend a lot of money on this car, don’t be stingy and just install the optional heater/defroster at the extra cost of 19,000 yen (after all, you can’t go fast wearing thick clothing). Other features that are included in the standard Skyline GT but are omitted in the GT-R include a radio, rear window defroster, clock, tilt steering column, and anti-glare mirrors.
As expected from its specs and dynamic performance, fuel consumption was generally poor, and was particularly bad on winding roads where high rpm are used requently in line with the characteristics of the car. The average fuel consumption for a day spent flying through the mountains of Izu and Hakone was a whopping 4.5km/l, and premium gasoline is required. The average fuel consumption for the Yatabe session, which included the top speed test, was 4.9km/l, also due to the full use of high rpm, and 3.6km/l in city traffic where only low gears can be used (especially in this test example, where the car was driven on particularly congested roads). On the other hand, when driving on the highway at around 100km/h, the average fuel consumption was 9.3km/l.
To be honest, no matter how strong a car was in the past in races, and no matter how much it influenced car sales, we cannot understand why they would go to the trouble of developing such an exotic car at a time when safety and pollution concerns are becoming a big issue. Unlike the normal GT model, it is not practical at all, and although it is fun to drive, it is too crude, which is fine, but since it is targeted at users who can buy a car just for fun, there is no need to be so concerned about the 5-number license plate number and keep it to 2 liters. Why not just go for the SOHC 2.4-liter unit, just like the Fairlady 240Z? The exhaust sound and atmosphere will not be as good as a DOHC, but maintenance will be easier and reliability will be higher, and it will be smoother and quieter, and from our experience of trying out various Fairlady models, it should be faster than a 2-liter unit thanks to the larger displacement.
In the past, most fast cars were rough around the edges. In times when technology was low, something had to be sacrificed for the sake of performance, but in today’s world, it is by no means impossible to create a car that is smooth, quiet, and effortlessly fast. As the flagship of the Skyline fleet that defined an era in the history of domestic automobiles, isn’t it about time that it took on this new possibility?