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Sports car or fighter plane? American tuner’s Nissan GT-R looks like World War II’s Zero

ZG 0

Somewhere along the way, people started calling Nissan’s GT-R, the company’s flagship sports car, “Godzilla.” It’s a fitting nickname, since the GT-R is intimidatingly powerful, and also because with a curb weight of 1,740 kilograms (3,836 pounds), it’s not exactly svelte.

Still, one American turning shop thinks there’s an even more apt comparison to be made that to the King of the Monsters, and has created a customized GT-R with its appearance based on the Imperial Japanese military’s World War II Zero fighter plane.

There’s more to Texas-based Jotech Motorsports’ project than just an old-school wartime aviation aesthetic, though. In addition to having its engine tuned and bored out from 3.8 liters to 4.3, this 2009 GT-R is fitted with an array of go-fast parts such as an HKS twin-turbo setup, GReddy intercooler, and Amuse exhaust, with a staggering final horsepower tally of 1,150.

But this car will attract attention even before people see what’s under the hood. Choosing to leave childishly garish colors and tacked-on neon lighting to the montages of the Fast and Furious movie franchise, the car’s flat green color scheme and Spartan Japanese sun emblem, both taken from the Zero, quietly yet strongly announce that this GT-R is all business. It’s the automotive equivalent of a highly trained man in uniform who doesn’t need to thump his chest or vocalize the mutually understood fact that he could kill you with his bare hands.

▼ Ordinarily we’d be tempted to make a joke about that gigantic rear spoiler, but an oversized wing is entirely in keeping with the airplane motif.

However, one could make the argument that dressing a Nissan GT-R up like a Zero isn’t the most appropriate choice, and not just because the fighter was, and remains, a symbol of Japan’s wars of aggression around the Pacific Rim. See, the Zero was built by one of the many arms of Mitsubishi, which is an automaker in its own right. Mitsubishi Motors even trotted out the Zero Fighter designation for a special model of its halo car, the Lancer Evolution, in the late 1990s, so brand purists might not approve of the mixing of the two companies’ most legendary products.

Still, you have to give Jotech at least one point for uniqueness, and the Zero GT-R is probably a perfect 10 in the eyes of certain military history buffs and anime fans.

Related: Jotech Motorsport website, Facebook
Source: Culture Lab
Top image: Facebook/Jotech Motorsports
Insert images: Wikipedia/Kogo

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