Nissan is keeping tight-lipped, so we don’t know what to expect from the 2017 GT-R, but the fact that it’s shrouded in darkness suggests that it’s safe to expect at least a handful of visual modifications. AutoGuide believes Nissan’s flagship will receive a redesigned front end with trapezoidal air ducts, smaller strips of LED daytime running lights, and a wide rendition of the company’s ubiquitous “V-motion” grille. 2017-specific wheels and a new-look air diffuser will wrap up the subtle facelift.
If history has taught us anything, it’s that a GT-R facelift is usually accompanied by a few minor mechanical tweaks. In its current iteration, Godzilla’s twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V6 engine pumps out 545 horsepower and 463 pound-feet of torque in its most basic state of tune, and its output is bumped to 600 horses and 481 pound-feet of twist in the Nismo-massaged model. The six’s output is channeled to all four wheels via a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission.
The facelift will most likely be the current-gen GT-R’s last. A brand new model is expected to arrive in 2018 at the earliest, packing a plug-in hybrid drivetrain made up of an evolution of the current car’s V6 and a high-capacity battery pack developed jointly by Nissan and Williams F1. Earlier rumors pegged the powertrain’s output at a jaw-dropping 784 horsepower and 737 pound-feet of torque, though we’re taking both figures with a grain of salt until official stats are published.
Nissan’s 2017 GT-R will be presented to the press next week during the New York Auto Show, and Digital Trends Cars will be on location to bring you live images of it as soon as it goes official. Sales will kick off shortly after, and the newest version of Nissan’s flagship will land in showrooms this summer as a 2017 model.
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