2010 TT PDK compared to Nissan GT-R
01-24-2010, 03:36 PM
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2010 TT PDK compared to Nissan GT-R
I know that many owners of these cars have some very strong views on this subject. I have one of each, and do not have strong pre-conceived views on either, (or favorites), so I thought I'd share my observations. (I'll try to keep them to observations, not judgments, so as not to unnecessarily induce any heart attacks on the respective forums).
The cars are very different - but both are truly amazing, in their own way. It would have been hard to imagine, 10 or even 5 years ago, with all the doom and gloom about gas, environment etc. that car companies on all continents could build cars with such extraordinary levels of performance, that can be driven every day (with the air conditioning running)!
As I was looking for a way to sum up each car's "feel", the best that I could come up with was:
The Porsche sounds and feels like a competent, well-behaved Grand Tourer.
The GT-R sounds and feels like a race car. A much more intense experience.
The Porsche actually accelerates faster in a straight line (as verified by my G-tech and V-box), but since its NVH (noise, vibration, harshness), is lower, it does not “feel” any faster - if anything the GT-R may “feel” a bit quicker.
The Porsche TT suspension feels smoother and more compliant on the "normal" suspension settings - the GT-R feels much stiffer and firmer - more like a Porsche GT3.
The Porsche transmission is tuned to give a smooth, more relaxed feel, more like a good quality torque converter automatic. Specifically, it starts off, and shifts up and down much more smoothly (and quietly). The GT-R is much more abrupt and firm on both take-off and on shifts. However, the Nissan gives much quicker, lag-free shifts on the upshifts. (My theory – I have no inside info on this – is that Porsche has designed in a larger capacity main clutch pack into the PDK, and they tune it to use a meaningful amount of clutch slip to both smooth out operation and protect the drive train on “launch” and other quick shifts, while Nissan used a smaller clutch pack, and tuned it to avoid clutch slip, to be more “on or off” like a toggle switch to protect the clutch from overheating).
The engines are equally blessed with lots of torque. The TT has more eventual torque but significantly more turbo lag. (Above 3500 rpm the Nissan has almost zero lag). The Porsche really gets cooking if you have the time and space to "stay on the gas", whereas the GT-R gives a more immediate response.
Handling feel is also very different. The Porsche feels "normal" for a well-balanced sports car ie. competent, solid, smooth. It gives no immediate signals about anything unusual or extraordinary, but performs very well. When you drive the Nissan, you immediately become aware of an extraordinary sensation of a heavy, large car, being sucked onto the pavement with unbelievable force. It “feels” like it sticks and turns and accelerates in and out of corners like no other car. One can get immediately comfortable with driving this car on the street or track very quickly. Whereas in the TT one is largely unaware of the 4 wheel drive (a good thing), in the Nissan you are keenly aware of the way the car uses the transfer of power between the wheels and axles to maximum advantage ( also a good thing, but different).
Sound: Neither car is going to win the "best sounding sports car award" - turbos have a way of muffling nice engine sounds - both cars sound like giant vacuum cleaners - with the TT being a smooth vacuum cleaner, and the GT-R a rough vacuum cleaner. (By the way, anyone familiar with the Nissan will know that it makes lots of sounds - most not very nice - but although at first irritating and certainly a cause for trips back to the dealer to confirm that these sounds are actually normal - I am increasingly convinced that the Nissan engineers chose to leave those sounds in the drivetrain, rather than mask them with sound deadening, since they do give the car a certain character, (earlier I called it race-car-like), even if that character is a bit rough around the edges).
So in summary, both are real fast - handle amazingly well, in dry and crappy conditions, and can be driven all day, any day.
The TT is the more relaxed Grand Tourer - the GT-R the more intense, immediate animal.
The cars are very different - but both are truly amazing, in their own way. It would have been hard to imagine, 10 or even 5 years ago, with all the doom and gloom about gas, environment etc. that car companies on all continents could build cars with such extraordinary levels of performance, that can be driven every day (with the air conditioning running)!
As I was looking for a way to sum up each car's "feel", the best that I could come up with was:
The Porsche sounds and feels like a competent, well-behaved Grand Tourer.
The GT-R sounds and feels like a race car. A much more intense experience.
The Porsche actually accelerates faster in a straight line (as verified by my G-tech and V-box), but since its NVH (noise, vibration, harshness), is lower, it does not “feel” any faster - if anything the GT-R may “feel” a bit quicker.
The Porsche TT suspension feels smoother and more compliant on the "normal" suspension settings - the GT-R feels much stiffer and firmer - more like a Porsche GT3.
The Porsche transmission is tuned to give a smooth, more relaxed feel, more like a good quality torque converter automatic. Specifically, it starts off, and shifts up and down much more smoothly (and quietly). The GT-R is much more abrupt and firm on both take-off and on shifts. However, the Nissan gives much quicker, lag-free shifts on the upshifts. (My theory – I have no inside info on this – is that Porsche has designed in a larger capacity main clutch pack into the PDK, and they tune it to use a meaningful amount of clutch slip to both smooth out operation and protect the drive train on “launch” and other quick shifts, while Nissan used a smaller clutch pack, and tuned it to avoid clutch slip, to be more “on or off” like a toggle switch to protect the clutch from overheating).
The engines are equally blessed with lots of torque. The TT has more eventual torque but significantly more turbo lag. (Above 3500 rpm the Nissan has almost zero lag). The Porsche really gets cooking if you have the time and space to "stay on the gas", whereas the GT-R gives a more immediate response.
Handling feel is also very different. The Porsche feels "normal" for a well-balanced sports car ie. competent, solid, smooth. It gives no immediate signals about anything unusual or extraordinary, but performs very well. When you drive the Nissan, you immediately become aware of an extraordinary sensation of a heavy, large car, being sucked onto the pavement with unbelievable force. It “feels” like it sticks and turns and accelerates in and out of corners like no other car. One can get immediately comfortable with driving this car on the street or track very quickly. Whereas in the TT one is largely unaware of the 4 wheel drive (a good thing), in the Nissan you are keenly aware of the way the car uses the transfer of power between the wheels and axles to maximum advantage ( also a good thing, but different).
Sound: Neither car is going to win the "best sounding sports car award" - turbos have a way of muffling nice engine sounds - both cars sound like giant vacuum cleaners - with the TT being a smooth vacuum cleaner, and the GT-R a rough vacuum cleaner. (By the way, anyone familiar with the Nissan will know that it makes lots of sounds - most not very nice - but although at first irritating and certainly a cause for trips back to the dealer to confirm that these sounds are actually normal - I am increasingly convinced that the Nissan engineers chose to leave those sounds in the drivetrain, rather than mask them with sound deadening, since they do give the car a certain character, (earlier I called it race-car-like), even if that character is a bit rough around the edges).
So in summary, both are real fast - handle amazingly well, in dry and crappy conditions, and can be driven all day, any day.
The TT is the more relaxed Grand Tourer - the GT-R the more intense, immediate animal.
