Production Nissan Juke-R at Goodwood

The 545bhp Nissan Juke-R will be entering “very limited run” production, the company has confirmed. Nissan has taken the decision following positive reception to the previously one-off concept in a viral internet marketing campaign. Its making a public appearance in production form for the first time at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

So far, Nissan has received three orders for Juke-Rs, two alone from a “high-profile and well-respected member of Dubai society”.

It was in Dubai where the Juke-R concept was first shown in January, and where a series of videos of the Juke-R outsprinting a Lamborghini Gallardo, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG and Ferrari 458 Italia on closed roads were filmed.

It is the Juke-R’s performance in these videos that has piqued interest in the car, particularly in the Arab state. The Juke’s marketing manager, Gareth Dunsmore, said “people were making offers for the original on the street”.

“With such a strong reaction, and with three genuine offers on the table, we decided we had to make the concept a reality,” he added.

The Juke-R concept used running gear from a 2010-spec Nissan GT-R. For production, it has been upgraded to use the latest all-wheel drive 2012 GT-R running gear. Power comes from a twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre V6 with a mighty 545bhp. The Juke-R is good for a 160mph top speed, and should be able to shave a tenth or two off the 478bhp Juke-R concept’s 0-62mph time.

Nissan is to build the cars upon request and orders can only be placed in the next four weeks. No price has been confirmed by Nissan, but it’s likely to be a substantial six-figure sum.

British engineering firm Ray Mallock Limited (RML) undertook the design and build of the original concept, with support from Nissan’s Cranfield technical centre and its Paddington design studio, and will be involved in the production version.