EV-swapping classic and iconic cars will forever be a hot topic up for debate. On one hand, there are those who say it’s one way of keeping these cars on the road. At the same time, there are also those who call it straight-up blasphemy as the engine is part of what gives a classic its heart and soul.
As that argument rages on, the folks from Nissan recently took an R32 Nissan Skyline GT-R, ripped out its 2.6-liter twin-turbo inline-six, and replaced it with two electric motors and a heap of batteries. We can already see people seething with rage from behind the screen.
Dubbed the Nissan Skyline GT-R EV Concept, it’s an electric reimagining of the car that was once called Godzilla. The project was done by a small band of Nissan engineers to explore the electric potential of the classic car.
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Specs are impressive with the electric motor making 215hp and 340Nm. Given that there are two of these, the combined output is well over 400hp and 650Nm of torque. For comparison, the twin-turbocharged straight-six in the original car made 276hp and 353Nm.
We have no doubts that the EV version will be faster despite the added weight of the batteries. That said, we reckon the 62kWh battery pack will go flat in no time if this car were to be driven the same way GT-Rs are intended to be pushed hard on the track.
Inside, it looks like a bone-stock R32, but one will notice a pair of screens on board. The instrument cluster is a digital facsimile of the real deal, while the center stack’s display shows a digitized climate control panel, radio, and other gauges. One will also notice the manual transmission as it comes with simulated shifting. For those who don’t want to use it, there are paddle shifters at their disposal.
Now, for the sound...well, take a listen:
Truth be told, we were expecting a similar treatment to what Hyundai did with the Ioniq 5 N by making sounds from the outside. Instead, we’re greeted by the sound of, well, tires humming. Not even whirring EV sounds were present. It’s amusing, for sure, but we don’t know what we feel about it.
We have, um, more opinions on how it sounds like from the inside with the simulated engine, which photographer extraordinaire Larry Chen shall now demonstrate:
Yup, the revs sound like that. Your thoughts, internet? Well, Chen summed it up as it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. At least that’s something we can all agree on.
