1200bhp Litchfield Nissan GT-R targets Nürburgring lap record

Renowned British Nissan GT-R specialist Litchfield Motors will this summer attempt to set a new lap record for road-legal cars on the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

The current record holder is the 691bhp Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR, developed by Manthey Racing. With more aggressive suspension geometry and greater downforce than the standard GT2 RS, that car’s time of 6min 40sec has stood since 2018, when it dislodged the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ.

Whereas both supercars had the full might – and expectation – of major manufacturers behind them, family-run Litchfield is treating this attempt as more of a ‘fun’ project that provides learning opportunities for its mainstream upgrade packages, and it has had to box clever with limited resources, according to founder Iain Litchfield. 

He says personal connections have helped enlist the expertise of Swedish suspension expert Ã–hlins and secure time not only at its testing facility but also in the wind tunnel at MIRA proving ground, where the car’s aero performance has been improved. Hiroshi Tamura, the man behind the R35 GT-R project from concept stage and involved in Nissan’s famous Nürburgring spats with Porsche, has also advised Litchfield on how to pry the very quickest times out of the car. 

The GT-R LM1 RS, as it's known, is a version of the R35 GT-R with the 3.8-litre V6 tuned to 1200bhp, helped along by Indycar-spec turbochargers and an enormous intercooler, among other serious modifications. The shell is largely carried over from standard but weighs 35kg less than standard, even when fitted with a GT3-spec roll cage. The bonnet, rear wing and bumper come directly from the GT-R Nismo GT3 racer, while the Alcon brakes are similarly GT3 standard (this time from the latest Aston Martin Vantage), albeit with GT1-spec carbon-ceramic discs. 

Aero will of course play an enormous role, and in this respect the GT3 wing dominated the original setup to such an extent that side-exit exhausts have been developed (one for each cylinder bank) to make way for an entirely flat underbody and substantial diffuser. So far Litchfield has made two visits to the Nürburgring to hone the car’s geometry and aero, and there will be one final trip to Germany before the attempt is made, most likely in September.