Nissan GT-R50 by Italdesign Bound for Production

Matthew Guy
by Matthew Guy

It seems to be a prime week for frightening headlight arrangements. Following all hands being turned to stone after casting their eyes upon the LT-trimmed 2020 Silverado HD, we learn this Italdesign creation will be entering production next year.

Dubbed the “Nissan GT-R50 by Italdesign,” it’s obviously based upon the R35 GT-R. In addition to its alarming front fascia, the company has also upped the power ante to 710 horses.

And, oh yeah – it’ll set you back a cool million.

The price tag is set at 999,000 Euros to be exact, a sum which converts to roughly $1.1 million USD at today’s exchange rate. Don’t worry about seeing yourself on every street corner, either. A run of just 50 units is planned.

That’s quite the face, with the standard R35’s headlamps earning some angry slashes of LED lights across their section. Its mouthy grille surround earns a contrasting color, one which is copied and pasted onto the car’s hood vents.

Around back buyers will find a stylized version of the GT-R’s famous quad-taillamp setup, with the rear bodywork sculpted and shorn away around those rear peepers. A big wing shaped not unlike that of a Ferengi shuttlecraft makes its home atop the rear deck.

Output allegedly jumps to 710 horsepower, a significant increase from the 600 ponies living inside a stock NISMO GT-R. Details are scanty as to how that gain was achieved. Acceleration from 0-60mph of a stock GT-R is often quoted in the three second range.

Members of the 1 percent sitting behind the GT-R50’s wheel will find themselves staring at a bespoke interior bearing a, erm, unique mix of carbon fiber and copperish-colored trim. Alcantara fuzz covers the dash padding and what appears to be a standard spec of GT-R gauges.

Nissan debuted a version of this special GT-R last summer ahead of the 2018 Goodwood Festival of Speed. The car’s styling was a joint effort by Nissan and Italdesign. It will be hand built by the latter’s design and engineering team at its headquarters in Turin, Italy. Hopefully the Italians are in charge of just the flamboyant bodywork and have left the fiddly wiring bits to Nissan.

The company has been mum on the production GT-R’s future, so this may be a swan song of sorts for this iteration of Godzilla. Nissan has bigger fish to fry right now, after all.

[Images: Nissan]

Matthew Guy
Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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  • Ttacgreg Ttacgreg on Dec 08, 2018

    Italdesign over the years has just seems to do no wrong when it comes to styling. They can even make a tasteful rendition of the current whale shark big grille trend. On another note, what possible motive is there to make a >$1,000,000 vehicle? It is profitable? For whatever reason, this is a surefire indication that wealth polarization around the world is at an ever increasing extreme.

  • Lon888 Lon888 on Dec 10, 2018

    "Alarming front fascia" - that's being polite.

  • Allen Fischer It all started with the 1973 Arab oil embargo. High gas prices made people look to the Japanese for fuel efficiency, then realized the other benefits, like longevity. The Toyota Camry has many times been seen as "the most Ameican made car" in the U.S. I own one and question why "the big three" have not been duplicate this, its just a car. Toyota and Honda have lean business models and know how to "trim the fat". May the lean survive!
  • SCE to AUX If Pontiac died by 1000 cuts, this had to be at least 10 of them.
  • Bd2 Another excellent article Murilee, I have always admired the engineering, quality and styling of these vehicles and credit their inspiration with the legendary Hyundai Tiburon which can fetch low six figures these days at private auctions.
  • Ravenuer Looking forward to it!
  • Daniel J I love my mazda 6. It's getting harder and harder to drive it around where I live as municipalities fail to repair roads. SUVs are just easier to drive with all of the potholes.
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