Nissan to debut GT-R in Japan's Super GT series

click above image to view more high-res pics of the 2008 Nissan GT-R

During the live unveiling of the Nissan GT-R, CEO Carlos Ghosn made hints at Nissan running the GT-R in Japan's Super GT series. While it was pretty inevitable the GT-R would eventually be unleashed on the racetrack, it was unknown how long it would take before cars were constructed and tested. Today Nissan announced the NISMO entry of a GT-R in the GT500 class for the upcoming 2008 season. It has been four years since Nissan last ran a GT-R in this series. They have since been running V8 powered 350Zs. The Super GT GT-R's technical details will be released during a NISMO press conference in February. Since the 350Z underwent an incredible transformation when built for Super G it will be very interesting to see how the new GT-R will appear with some added diffusers and canards. Follow the jump for the official press release.

Good to be King: Lewis Hamilton borrows TechArt Porsche for LA trip

Lewis Hamilton caught a plane headed west after dominating in Monaco, and when you're a rising F1 star in Los Angeles, you're certainly not going to hit up Avis to rent a Ford Focus – you want your vents to be functional. So Claus Ettensberger, owner of the So. Cal. tuning shop CEC, was kind enough to provide Hamilton with a fully-kitted Techart Porsche 997 911 during his stay in L.A. Granted, anything is kind of a demotion from his McLaren Formula One car, but we could think of worse ways for Hamilton to get around while mixing it up with L.A's elite.

VIDEO: Mismatched much? Challenger SRT8 vs. Civic Si

We've driven the Honda Civic Si,
and have found it to be an entertaining vehicle to attack some
twisties. A drag racer, though, it is most assuredly not. Sure,
offering just shy of two-hundred horsepower from such a small engine is
impressive, but the distinct lack of torque and the stratospheric
rev-ceiling required to extract those ponies will surely limit the
straight-line drag numbers. The new Dodge Challenger SRT8, on the other
hand, does not require high-rev shenanigans in order to scorch the
1320, and this point is proven in the video
posted after the break. Although only covering an eighth mile, the
Challenger has no problem keeping the Si at bay. We're not knocking the
Si, as this type of activity is clearly not its proper playground, but
listen closely when playing the video and you'll hear that the
Challenger's pilot was toying with the Civic driver. It's not until the
last few hundred feet that the Hemi driver dips into the throttle,
leading to a few chuckles from the crowd.