Nissan R35 GTR Performance: The Haltech GTR's 11.1-Second Quarter Mile Run

Back in 2008, the automotive performance world was buzzing about the newly released Nissan R35 GTR and its remarkable capabilities. Among the standout builds of that era was a Haltech-equipped GTR that achieved impressive quarter-mile times at the drag strip, with footage originally shared on Viddler.com by NAGTROC.

The Haltech GTR's Impressive Performance

According to discussions from the Mitsubishi 4G Forum, this particular GTR managed to clock an 11.1-second quarter-mile run on pump gas, demonstrating the potential of the R35 platform even in its early days. What made this achievement particularly notable was that it occurred during the car's very first track outing.

Forum members at the time noted that stock GTRs with just the speed limiter removed were capable of running 11.3 seconds at 120-121 mph. The Haltech-equipped example, with its estimated 100 additional horsepower, reached 126 mph on a subsequent pass, suggesting it had the potential to break into the 10-second range with more driver familiarity.

The Learning Curve

Despite the R35 GTR's reputation for electronic driver aids and traction management systems, contemporary accounts suggest the car still required skill and practice to extract its full potential. According to forum discussions, the driver needed time to master the car's launch control system, which involved configuring various settings before each run.

This particular GTR reportedly made several passes that day, with times varying from the quickest 11.1 seconds to 11.8 and 12.4 seconds, highlighting the importance of driver technique and launch setup.

The R35 GTR Legacy

Even in stock form, the R35 GTR was revolutionary for its time, with forum members noting it was "supposedly meant to already run 11s stock." This baseline performance made it an excellent platform for tuning companies like Haltech to demonstrate their engine management capabilities.

The original video that documented this run was hosted on Viddler.com, a video sharing platform that operated from 2006 to 2022. While that specific content is no longer available, it represented an important moment in the early R35 GTR tuning scene, demonstrating what was possible with aftermarket engine management and proper tuning on an already capable platform.

Historical Context

The performance figures discussed in these forum threads provide an interesting historical perspective on the evolution of the R35 GTR. In the years since, tuned GTRs have pushed well into the 9-second and even 8-second range, but these early achievements helped establish the platform's reputation for exceptional performance potential.

While we can no longer view the original Viddler video that showcased this achievement, the discussions preserved on forums like 4gtuner.com help document the continual progression of automotive performance technology and the excitement that surrounded the R35 GTR's introduction to the global performance car market.