2010 Nissan GT-R to lose launch control
November 21, 2008 by Karl Peskett
Broken gearboxes, voided warranties, angry customers – sounds like a recipe for disaster, right? Well that could be the reason why Nissan has taken the unprecedented step of removing Launch Control.
Speculation was rife that Nissan was going to move in that direction, but now, apparently, a “high-ranking Nissan executive” has confirmed the decision.
According to Inside Line, three contacts at Nissan were pestered until one of them finally broke the news:
“It’s gone,” he said when asked if launch control would return in 2010. “We just don’t want to deal with the warranty nightmare anymore. It’ll make the 2009 GT-R really special. It’ll be the only R35 with launch control.”
So, although it will hurt the 0-100km/h times, do you think this is good news, or bad news? Would you have used LC anyway?
Print it: 
Personally, my own sense of mechanical sympathy would have prevented me from using LC if i was priviliged enough to own a GTR. It’s really only for race tracks, the problem is you get all these tough nuts with too much money buying cars like this and then showing off to their mates repeatedly doing LC launches and they screw they’re gearboxes and then wonder why!
hey thats what its for, had owners known it would void warranties or break their car i’m sure they wouldn’t have used it as much.
it sure is a shame, even without launch control, that car is of super extreme value and i can’t wait to get one.
They should have put in a better gearbox – bloody penny pinching.
This incidently is the exact reason that Mitsubishi didn’t put launch control on the EVO SST hence why the slow acceleration times. I read that apparently Mitsubishi DID develop a launch control for it but deemed it just too fragile, fine for race applications but would cause too many warranty problems if it went into the production model. Apparently though it would sneak under 5 seconds in 0-100 times if fitted!
or perhaps they should consider a limited launch control system whereby you can only use it about .. 5 times? Makes you think twice before using it!
But yes, essentially they would be losing money if the gearboxes keep breaking.
Any Volkswagen/Audi/Bugatti DSG drivers out there breaking their cars?
If not, maybe the lower horsepower might contribute though, haha.
Go buy a new wrx and launch it at 6k rpm and see how many times you can do that without breaking something! Or do it with a brand new porsche.
Why do people think that nissan suddenly came up with an un-breakable car? Treat the car with respect and im sure it will keep performing for many years to come
Stevo the Devo Says: They should have put in a better gearbox – bloody penny pinching.
Given what you get for the price, i really wouldn’t say that…
To the idiot that mentioned the wrx….Buy an Sti and launch it all day every day with well over 300kw atw and it will last as long as you have the car. The STi 6spd gearbox is tough as nails.
On the GTRs GB…….That’s why the Porsche GT2 is still teh king. Unlimited use of LC and NO breakages!!!!
^^ I absoloutely agree.
“Penny pinching” and the R35 dont really belong in the same sentence.
Yeah but with the WRX’s when you grab second you’ll break it a LOT with that sorta power. If you talking about your own car and your own experience I’d just say your lucky, I work for Subaru, and overall they’re an excellent car, but the Gearboxes seem to be one of the first things to break (not uncommon with plenty of cars) when you start to make a figure anywhere near that.
Alex – thats simply not true mate, SO many people have broken WRX, WRX STi and EVO gearbox’s doing too many 6k clutch dumps. Thats simply fact mate, no matter what your mates dads brother says
Also the Porsche GT2 costs over 300k.. perspective eh?
For my 2 cents worth I would like to add that a car like the Nissan GTR serves up performance waaay outside my driving ability. And really how much difference will there be in times without Launch Control? Before it was 3.5secs now it might be 4. That is still faster than the fastest car I have ever driven, and probably still faster than who ever it is I want to race at the time (In my dreams of driving one of these babies, that is).
911 GT2 launch control is comletely different from the toyota version, as it is based on a normal manual gearbox and not a dual-clutch style box.
This has been on ongoing problem for many manufacturers for quite a few years now. The BMW SMG I and SMG II were a prime example of why this type of function should really only be offered for ‘track’ versions of these vehilces. NO car will tollerate constant abuse of the driveline, and that includes STi’s. I have rebuilt enough to know.
Sounds like an under-engineered car. It is not a cheap car, they should have done better. I will keep my Challenger with is sound Mopar 8.75″ diff, sweet shifting but rugged Mopar A833 gearbox, large single plate clutch and strong 340 V8.
You’ll probably also wake up sometime soon too eh? :P
What a failure of a car, honestly nissan.
Doesn’t XR6T have LC – wonder how it’s gearbox is holding up?
Is it really gonna matter? If you have a GTR, only a fool would take you on. Guys driving a 911 GT2 have no interest in racing from the lights, coz they’ve got nothing to prove (and they want other people to be able to stare at them in awe and wonder for longer). Really, IMO (and I might be wrong) the people who want to run from lights are the guys driving cheaper cars who want to show why their sub $50K car is better than your $150K car, and it is just dangerous to race them if they are overpowered but otherwise under engineered. If you have the $170K GTR, the novelty of launching hard is gonna wear off sooner or later. You’d be looking after it. Where I think the GTR is more of a concern is that people will be taking them well over 200kph, and with no tracks around you wouldnt want to be on the road with them…
“hey thats what its for, had owners known it would void warranties or break their car i’m sure they wouldn’t have used it as much.”
But the owners do know. They have to sign a piece of paper that outlines that if they use the launch control it can break the gearbox and the warranty is voided. This is required to take the car home.
These people whinging are just idiots who expected to be able to constantly thrash a car and it not break. No car will ever do that, not even fourwheelbikie’s Challenger would stand up to that kind of abuse.
J – thats launch control for a manual gearbox, not a DSG gearbox, the way they work and the strain it puts on the hardware is completely different
Any body that loves there car arnt going to do heaps of these launch take offs so its no issue realy when i get one.Ive been in cars using very high rpm then just droping clutch and i can tell you its very violet thing to do to your car for what a few tenths quicker.Evey awd car sold here that uses this kind of take off al the time always has massive probs with drive line and belive me i know
Funny huh, you’d expect that Borg Warner which is the same company that manufactured the mighty 7 speed dual clutcher that takes unlimited amounts of Lc from the 1000 hp Veyron would have no problem in making a box to deal with the ~500 on offer from the R35. And yet the GR6 fails…
Lord Zenu.
Ricardo manufactures the Veyron’s DSG. Not Borg-Warner.
Borg-Warner did the hydraulics and valve body plus some software input etc.
Supercujo-real steel cars do stand up. I had a Valiant Charger Six Pack used in club level motrosport as well as daily driver and did 1 clutch in 12 years. The Challenger and most if not all American muscle cars are similarly strong. My Challenger is on only its second clutch since 1989. Rice byurners and most new cars are not in the samme league.
Great Car but they should have not put it in to begin with if the gearbox wasnt up for the task.
It must be hard to develope a LC for a 4WD car with that much power and grip. But no excuses nissan, You put LC in the car, you should do the warranty repairs.
Does anyone know how durable the Golf GTI’s LC is? I very rarely use it, but just in case, I don’t want a GTR LC situation with my car.
Cheers
I found this somewhere else and if true seems to strengthen Nissan’s position on warranty.
“The Launch Control feature was always undocumented, but secrets are hard to keep in an Internet age. Most GT-R owners know about Launch Control and how to use it. The process involves disabling the traction control and pushing a combination of buttons — nothing needs to be physically tampered with.”
maybe most GTR owners also have ferraris and lamborghinis. and having another toy which is way way cheaper but still alot faster then they dont really need to care about the mechanicals and can abuse it as much as it like. if i had a f430 and a gtr i know which one i would abuse a bit more.
Richo the Evo X does have a launch control. You just have to know how to activate it! The dealers won’t tell you.
Personally, if you’re resorting to driver assistance of this type maybe you should enlist in some advanced training.
Secondly, think about the market of buyers who are purchasing the GTR. The Playstation generation will launch the car all day long. If anything, Nissan should have probably taken out LC before even thinking about it. Silly to think otherwise.
what richo said, post 1.
+ LC was for F1. proved its point but driver aids have been removed from F1 to help lower costs and bring back some skill and aptitude.
Now its for t*ssers.
antispam=300Kw
Richo, the 2001-on STi 6-speed gearbox will handle 6000rpm clutch-drops fine. I know this because I abuse the hell out of mine and it shows no signs of wearing or damage what-so-ever, and it is thoroughly documented how much abuse these partially Porsche-designed gearboxes can take.
The 5-speed Subaru gearboxes are the weak ones, particularly the early MY89-MY98 “4-bolt” boxes used on early GC8s, Libertys, Legacys, etc.
^Kevin, just curious, why would you abuse your 6 speed STi?
Kevin do you also have over 300kw atw?
Because it is a lot of fun WVB. What’s the point of getting a performance car and not using the full scope of its performance?
Howie, no I don’t have 300kW, but then not many Subaru owners do.
The only reason I asked Kevin is because the original comment came from Alex saying you can launch a WRX STI with well over 300kw all day every day without any breakages. I was basically pointing out that even with the STI box being strong, I doubt it would handle that sort of strain, the standard clutch wouldn’t last too long thats for sure.
i love this car..
Actually, an auto enthusiast group called GT Auto went straight to Nissan Chief Vehicle Engineer Kazutoshi Mizuno to clarify the “launch control” situation. Accodring to him, the GT-R NEVER HAD A “LAUNCH CONTROL” in the first place. It was called Launch Control only by the drivers of the car because it so happened that by coincidence it did improve the car’s 0-60 acceleration time, but it was never meant for that purpose at all. In fact Mizuno jokingly called it “Mud Launch” or something because that’s what it’s really for – turning off VDC will help the car get out of being stuck in mud or snow (not that it would happen often, as one driver went all out to drive the GT-R on the Nurburgring in snowy conditions and handled the car well). This “patch” is just for the sake of giving “launch control” characteristics on the car even with VDC on. See video below for the interview.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1bHGaV-Lvw
I didn’t even know what LC was before reading this article. But I have wanted a GTR since it was announced and hearing about this LC crap makes no difference to me.
As soon as I have the money to get one, I’m getting one, LC or not.