Classic Nissan R32 Skyline GT-R to get electric power

Nissan is preparing to remove the twin-turbo petrol engine from one of its iconic 1990s Skyline GT-Rs and replace it with an electric motor.

Japanese car-maker Nissan has announced it will fit one of its most iconic models – the R32 Skyline GT-R – with an electric motor, but don’t expect the conversion service to be carried out at your local dealer.

In a post on social media platform Twitter, Nissan uploaded a 20-second video which shows lights fading up on the back of an R32-generation Skyline GT-R – built between 1989 and 1995 – before transitioning to reveal text which reads “R32 EV”.

Despite the concept car being powered by a silent electric motor, the video includes the sound of the Nissan Skyline GT-R’s 2.6-litre twin-turbo six-cylinder engine idling in the background – hinting at the concept car being fitted with a speaker to recreate the coupe’s exhaust noise.

【R32EV】vol.1
日産はR32型スカイラインGT-RのEV試作車製作に挑戦します。https://t.co/4eNjF3KdiI
この取り組みは、GT-Rに憧れて入社した技術者が「最高に好きなクルマに、今自分が関わる最新の電動化技術を載せて、もっとワクワクするクルマを造りたい」という思いから始まりました。#GTR #R32EV pic.twitter.com/pGBHqgeSBo

— 日産自動車株式会社 (@NissanJP) March 28, 2023

The Twitter post also includes a link to Nissan’s Japanese website for the project, which confirms the electric-powered Skyline GT-R will be a one-off concept.

“34 years after its debut, this legendary car continues to fascinate many fans,” the translated website reads.

“We at Nissan will produce a concept model of this R32 (Skyline) GT-R that has been converted to EV with the latest electrification technology.”

According to Nissan, the electric Skyline GT-R is the brainchild of one engineer who was inspired to join the Japanese car-maker due to his love of the all-wheel-drive sports coupe.

A Nissan R32 Skyline GT-R road car (left) and the 1991 Bathurst 1000 winning race car (right)

When the R32-generation Nissan Skyline GT-R was launched in August 1989, it became an overnight classic on the road and racetrack, with its 2.6-litre engine delivering a claimed 206kW and 353Nm to all four wheels through a five-speed manual transmission.

In 1991, 100 examples of the R32 Skyline GT-R were imported by Nissan Australia in 1991 and sold for close to $107,000 each, arriving just as the model was starting to dominate the Australian Touring Car Championship.

The Skyline GT-R’s four-wheel-drive and four-wheel-steering systems meant it had a massive grip advantage compared to its rivals, leading to the factory-backed Nissan team – Gibson Motorsport – to win the 1990, 1991 and 1992 Australian Touring Car Championships, as well as the 1991 and 1992 Bathurst 1000 endurance races.

While production of the R32-generation Skyline GT-R wrapped up in 1994, Nissan announced a “heritage program” for the cult classic model in 2017, allowing owners to order brand new spare parts for their cars from Japan.

Six generations of Nissans have been fitted with the GT-R badge

The GT-R nameplate continued across the Skyline’s R33 (1995-1998) and R34 (1999-2002) generations before being revived as its own standalone model from 2007.

The Nissan GT-R – also known as the R35 – is entering its 16th year of production, with a replacement expected to arrive in the coming years.

While previous reports have suggested the next-generation ‘R36’ GT-R will go electric in 2030, former Nissan engineer Hiroshi Tamura told media in August 2022 the car-maker had not yet decided whether the upcoming model will switch to electric power.

The announcement of the electric-powered Nissan Skyline GT-R concept follows Toyota’s presentation of two zero-emissions Corolla AE86 coupes in January, powered by batteries and a petrol engine converted to run on hydrogen, respectively.

Nissan is yet to announce specific details about the electric Skyline GT-R, such as how much power it will make and when we can expect to see the finished project.

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