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End of an era: Godzilla rampage is over
Richard Bosselman
August 27, 2025
Nissan has bid sayonara to a legend.
GOODBYE Godzilla.
The final R35 GT-R has rolled off the production line at Nissan’s plant in Tochigi, Japan.
After 18 years and about 48,000 units produced, the era of the R35 has come to a close, with a Midnight Purple T-Spec being the final unit in the production run.
The Japan domestic market was the final sales region for the model and th last car will go to an owner there.
In a modest release, Nissan has reminded that since its launch in 2007, the R35 GT-R has become a symbol of performance and innovation, captivating automotive enthusiasts and setting benchmarks in the high-performance sports car segment.
Workers at Nissan’s Tochigi plant, located about 100km north of Tokyo, gathered to celebrate the extensive legacy of the R35 as the very last unit rolled off the line.
Rather than the typical product lifecycle involving a major update midlife cycle, the R35 GT-R continually evolved throughout each model year.
Depending on the grade, Nissan’s engineers in Japan aimed to unleash either more power or greater levels of control, increased comfort and luxury, or in the case of GT-R NISMO, breathtaking track-honed performance.
With its powerful VR38DETT twin-turbo V6 engine, acclaimed ATTESA ET-S all-wheel-drive system, and innovative aerodynamics, the R35 GT-R consistently delivered exhilarating driving experiences both on the road and the track.
Remarkably, over the course of its production run, a core team of just nine master craftsman – called Takumi – at Nissan's plant in Yokohama, Japan hand assembled the engines. Their names are immortalised on a plaque attached to each engine.
Throughout the course of production, maximum power rose from 353kW at launch, up to 419kW from the 2017 model year onwards.
In parallel, NISMO engineers were able to extract even more, adopting GT3 racecar-spec turbochargers as well as high-precision, weight-balanced parts including the piston rings, connecting rods, crankshaft, flywheel, crank pulley and valve springs. The result was faster revs and quicker spooling turbo, delivering up to 441kW for GT-R NISMO models.
The R35 GT-R departs having achieved an enviable list of track and motorsports accolades.
The extensive list includes five GT500 class and three GT300 class wins in Japan’s SUPER GT Championship, victory in the 2013 Blancpain GT Series Pro-Am class, a Bathurst 12-hour victory in 2015 and five Super Taikyu Japanese endurance racing series victories.
In 2007, a production R35 GT-R set a lap time of seven minutes, 38 seconds at the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit in Germany, one of the fastest laps achieved by a production car despite conditions being slightly damp on two corners.
The team were back in early 2008 with a base specification R35 GT-R fitted with the standard Japan-domestic market tires.
On a dry track, chief test driver Toshio Suzuki bettered their lap time by nine seconds, achieving seven minutes, 29 seconds and cracking the seven and half minute barrier for the first time.
A testament to their commitment to continually evolving and improving the GT-R, a year later they returned to the ‘Ring’ to set an even faster lap time of 7min 26 seconds.
In October 2012, the GT-R had improved its time to seven minutes and 18 seconds.
In November 2013, Nissan engineers and a group of elite drivers had another go.
This time, and ahead of its official reveal, they used a GT-R NISMO equipped with track options that included aerodynamic tuning, weight-reduction measures, and a uniquely tuned suspension system. The resultant 7 minutes 8.679 seconds stands as the R35’s best ever time at the hallowed circuit.
In 2016, the R35 GT-R set the Guinness World Records title for the fastest ever drift. At Fujairah International Airport, in the United Arab Emirates, a specially tuned MY16 R35 GT-R drifted at 304.96kmh and 30 degrees angle.
Nissan says this isn't the end for the GT-R nameplate, but it hasn't yet formalised a plan on what the R36 will be.