The AWD Sports Car That Feels More Exotic Than It Looks
9 minutes reading
Thursday, 25 Jun 2026 15:30 0 5 autotech
What kind of cars do you think of when you think of attention grabbers? They’re the ones that people pull their phones out to snap pictures of, people will pose in front of them pretending it’s theirs, and crowds will even sometimes gather around them. They’re the Pagani Huayra’s and the Lamborghini Huracáns of the bunch, soaking up all the attention. Then there are those that still command a ton of power and driving dynamics, but might not be as commanding perception wise.
This is a story about one unassuming brand making something that could keep up with Pagani and Lamborghini. For nearly two decades, it went under the radar to the average onlooker. For those that are well-versed in the automotive space, they know this vehicle all too well. It violently launches itself from all four tires, thanks to its all-wheel-drive drivetrain. Sure, if you take one glance at it, you would know it’s a sports car, but if you didn’t know what it was, then you had no idea what kind of power it actually commanded.
Why The Quickest Cars On The Road Don’t Always Look It
2025 BMW M5 Front Three QuarterWilliam Clavey | TopSpeed
Speed and performance have always been kind of a beauty pageant, so to speak. Perception is everything in this life and some of the most powerful cars also have a powerful presence. There are those, however, that hide under ordinary proportions and familiar silhouettes. Take, for example, the BMW M5 with four doors and an almost limousine quality. You would have no idea that thing could tear up the streets. The Tesla Model S Plaid has a zero to 60 under two seconds. A full-size sedan with an even more understated exterior.
The Gap Between Curb Appeal And Real Speed
Front 3/4 shot of 2026 Audi RS6 Avant Performance in blue parkedAudi
Marketing and acceleration don’t always have to go hand-in-hand. That’s why sleeper cars are such a hit. The Audi RS6 Avant, with a simple glance, just looks like an ordinary station wagon. Wouldn’t you know it, it can hit zero to 60 in about three seconds with your kids in the back and groceries in the trunk. Meanwhile, there are plenty of over-the-top-looking cars like a Chevrolet Camaro with a body mod kit on it; oftentimes, they write checks they can’t cash because they end up having the standard V6 as opposed to the small-block V8.
How All-Wheel Drive Quietly Became The Great Equalizer
Front shot of 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat in red parked outside of garageDodge
The muscle car era popularized big-tire, smoke, and rear-wheel-drive monsters like the Dodge Challenger Hellcat. All-wheel-drive sports cars turned that train of thought on its head when a vehicle with a high-powered engine splits all of its torque across all four tires. It ends up using every last horsepower available. This is why the Volkswagen Golf R, albeit unassuming, can smoke much gaudier-looking vehicles. How could we forget? Audi basically built an empire on the Quattro platform. The 911 Turbo knocked it out of the park, and the Subaru WRX is another great example of speed on four wheels.
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The “Exotic” Feeling Isn’t About The Badge
2025 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Z06 In Sebring Orange TintcoatChevrolet
If you ask any real enthusiast what made whatever car they drove so special, it would be the way it pinned them to the seat, how it gracefully gripped corners, and how it made them feel on the whole. More often than not, it’s a gleeful excitement. Exotic brands are usually the ones selling this, but you can also find it in more obtainable versions like the Corvette Z06 and the Porsche Cayman GT4. There is, however, one Japanese coupe in particular that has been doing it successfully since 2008.
Traction You’ll Never Find On A Spec Sheet
McLaren 720S Spider (2019)McLaren
You can be wowed by a specifications sheet for a vehicle, but none of that actually matters until you get behind the wheel of something that has 700 horsepower. What actually makes a vehicle exotic is the sensation it can deliver while driving it. A McLaren 720S is lighter than most and can deliver it through superb aerodynamics. A well-sorted all-wheel-drive system can do it through unadulterated precision grip and velocity. It practically dares you to push it because it knows it can keep you on the road, while the 720S is sliding off the same tarmac.
Launch Control And The Art Of Bending The Horizon
2027 Ram 1500 SRT TRX InteriorRam
Launch control has lost a lot of its charm because it’s so accessible nowadays. You used to have to do it in something like a Dodge Viper with a delicate dance of the clutch and the throttle. Now, the computer literally just does it for you. Some of them actually work well in modern cars, like the 911 Turbo S and the Lamborghini Urus. Others, it’s just a simple party trick like on the Hyundai Elantra N and the Genesis G80. Party trick or not, it is one of the most intense things a car can do, providing the wheels with the largest amount of power in one burst, inevitably gluing you to your seat with ridiculous G-force.
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The Nissan GT-R – The Car That’s Been Humbling Supercars For Years
A side on shot of a White 2015 Nissan GT-R NismoNissan
Enough beating around the bush — let’s talk about the Nissan GT-R. This thing has done more damage to an exotic car’s ego than anyone who mishandles a Ferrari and gets sued for it. When it originally came out, it lapped the Porsche 911 Turbo on the Nürburgring for practically half the price. Porsche was so upset by this, they put out a PR statement disputing the time. Seventeen years after production started, the GT-R barely changed. It never changed its stripes because it didn’t need to.
Godzilla Earned The Nickname The Hard Way
A rare metallic green Nissan R32 Skyline GT-R V-Spec IIBring a Trailer
It was nicknamed “Godzilla” in 1989 when the R32 Skyline GT-R (a new one has been teased as well) blazed through a touring race so effectively that organizers ended up banning it. It won 29 races in Japan and even conquered the Bathurst 1000. The R35 inherited the nickname and kept it through continued embarrassments for Ferrari and Audi in comparison tests. Here are some key moments for the R32 and R35:
The R32 had 29 consecutive wins in the Japanese Touring Car Championship.
Bathurst 1000 victories in 1991 and 1992.
A 7:08.679 Nürburgring lap from the R35 NISMO, making it the fastest of the time.
Sub-three-second: 0–60 runs for the R35.
A Cockpit That Sells The Exotic Story
Arguably, the Nissan GT-R’s interior is more exotic than the exterior. It also might feel more exotic than some Ferraris. It vacillates between fighter jet aesthetics, pure functionality, and video game controls, giving it a modern edge unlike anything seen before. It came with a multifunctional display co-developed with Polyphony Digital, the studio behind Gran Turismo. With it, you could monitor turbo boost, G-forces, and transmission temperatures. Later, they did add some creature comforts like Napa leather and noise deadening for the cabin. The Ferrari Roma’s interior whispers; meanwhile, the GT-R’s screams with you screaming in it.
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2015 Nissan GT-R Nismo rear 3/4 shotNissan
Truly, it depends on who you ask, because the exterior of the Nissan GT-R definitely looks like a sports car, but certainly doesn’t have the same exotic looks that some European cars do. The hardware, on the other hand, is anything but standard. Nissan built the R35 on its own bespoke platform that mounts the transmission on the rear axle for balance, as well as the engine right behind the front axle for, again, insane performance. Every engine was assembled by hand by certified Takumi craftspeople in Yokohama, Japan. Every block is even signed by the builder.
Base Trim Engine
3.8L Twin-Turbo V6 Gas
Base Trim Transmission
6-Speed Automatic
Base Trim Drivetrain
All-Wheel Drive
Base Trim Horsepower
565 hp
Base Trim Torque
467 lb-ft @ 3300 rpm
Fuel Economy
16/22/18 mpg
Make
Nissan
Model
GT-R
Segment
Supercar
The Twin-Turbo Heart Of The Machine
A shot of a 2023 Nissan GT-R’s engineNissan
Even though the VR38DETT has a long name, the engine itself is a longstanding legend. As we’ve stated, it is a hand-built, twin-turbocharged V6 that is perfectly happy being tuned and is practically indestructible. There have been some aftermarket builds that can reach four digits in horsepower. Even though it is an all-wheel-drive system, the ATTESA E-TS can put 100 percent of the torque on the rear axle if the traction allows.
The Numbers That Still Embarrass The Competition
Profile action shot of 2010 Nissan GT-R in silver being driven on roadNissan
Toward the end of its production run, you would think that there would be other cars that came out that could beat it at its own game, but you would be wrong. A final-year iteration could still beat out a Mercedes-AMG GT and easily keep pace with a McLaren GT. All of that while undercutting both aforementioned vehicles by tens of thousands of dollars. If you’re still not convinced, here are some more numbers:
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