How Normal will a GT-R seem without Launch Control?

A nasty little rumor started circulating recently that the 2010 GT-R would be hitting dealer lots without its vaunted (and controversial) launch control system. We asked Nissan for the official word and the reply was that no such decision has been made.

It stands to reason that they're considering it, however, given all the negative publicity (real and imagined) they've been receiving about $20,000 warranty claims (real and imagined) on the dual clutch transmission, so we went back into our testing records to see how a launch control-less GT-R performs.

But first, let's clear up a few things. According to Nissan's PR department, using launch control on the GT-R does not automatically void warranty claims on damage to the car. Ditto for turning off the VDC. In addition, using launch control with VDC off does not automatically void warranty coverage. But abuse of any these features can result in the warranty coverage being voided. How does one define abuse? That's where the grey area starts and forum rants begin.

While no one but Nissan's claims department is privy to the formula it uses to determine when acceptable use becomes outright abuse, it is important to note that Nissan is far from the only manufacturer that can and will deny a warranty claim due to blatant misuse of a vehicle. Virtually every automaker has such clauses in their warranties, even BMW's vaunted Ultimate Service program, which promises no routine maintenance costs for four years or 50,000 miles. Check the fine print. Such clauses aren't just for high performance cars either. Bring your car back to the dealership with only 200 miles on clock and a smoked clutch, and it won't matter if it's a Corvette ZR-1 or Hyundai Elantra, the service writer will slowly start shaking his head.

But enough blathering about the warranty controversy. Assuming Nissan bean counters win and the 2010 GT-R wades across the Pacific sans launch control, what can we except?

No more 3.2-second runs to 60 mph, but still a stonkingly fast car.

Last spring when we first got our hands on the GT-R (the red one pictured here) we tested it at El Toro Marine Corps Air Station with full launch control mode engaged. For giggles, we quarter-miled it in regular mode as well, a situation I remember well because of the distinct lack of drama. There was no squatting, no grunting, or jerky four wheel spinning rollout. The GT-R left the line smoothly and slowly -- so slowly it looked like it might turn in a 5- or 6- sec. 0-60 time.

Indeed it was slower, but not that much. Turns out, you can still be a superhero in the GT-R simply by mashing the throttle; 60 mph arrives in 3.9-sec., the 1/4-mile in 12.2-sec. at 119.2 miles per hour. Here are the full numbers:

Speed (mph) Time (sec)
0-30 1.9
0-40 2.5
0-50 3.2
0-60 3.9
0-70 4.9
0-80 6.0
0-90 7.2
0-100 8.6
1/4-mile 12.2 sec. @ 119.2 mph

Note that these are our standard corrected numbers (including a one foot roll out and corrections for temperature and elevation), but conditions that day didn't warrant any massive correction. In fact, the 0-60 time didn't change appreciably with correction.

To put the GT-R's launch control-less performance into perspective, here are the performances of the four cars we had in our October 2007 Science of Speed shootout:

0-60 mph 1/4-mile
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 3.7 sec 11.8 sec @ 121.6mph
Dodge Viper SRT-10 3.7 sec 11.7 sec @ 124.4mph
Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 4.0 sec 12.0 sec @ 123.8mph
Porsche 911 GT3 3.8 sec 12.2 sec @ 115.2mph

It's worth noting that of the players in this list, only the Z06 comes close to the GT-R's price as tested. The rest are at least $15,000 more (or $300,000 in the case of the Lambo), assuming no dealer mark up on the Nissan.

So what does this all mean? Not a whole lot. Sure, a launch control-less GT-R is still a fast, high performance value, but like we said at the beginning -- Nissan has not stated definitively that launch control would be deleted from the 2010 GT-R. In addition, there are rumors that the new car will receive a minor bump in horsepower and perhaps a few more tweaks. When have all the details, you can be sure we'll bring them to you first.