In preparation for my inaugural trip to the fabled Nürburgring in Germany, I decided to treat the GTR to a few goodies. The Accusump kit I had bought was expertly fitted by Gary Hayward at AP Tuning and at last I had the peace of mind this fantastic investment provides. It would make me feel slightly less guilty about the sound thrashing the car would receive in the coming weeks. I had also decided to add some Luk harnesses and a rather gorgeous dished suede Sparco wheel with the obligatory HICAS boss. The harnesses were there to stop my substantial 19 stone frame sliding around and to try and make my wife feel a little more secure in the car when cornering. Tanya had only been in the GTR a couple of times prior to our trip, complaining that the car was a little noisy.

So with brake pads changed and the mighty 8 litre oil change done again, we were just about ready for the trip.

Eighteen of us made the pilgrimage in September, many for the first time. One thing that really surprised me about the R32 is that it really is a decent long distance companion. The two hundred and eighty odd miles from Calais to the circuit were devoured in comfort, despatched in good time and with very respectable fuel economy. As silly as it sounds when driving a car with over four hundred brake horse power, good economy and a decent range between fill ups really allows you to get into the groove of longer distance stuff. Only the dreadful Belgian road surface raised the aggravation levels; well that and some of the locals with unusual lane discipline.

The experience of driving your own car on the Nürburgring is something that everyone with any petrol in their veins should experience. [Indeed. Also see Rob Knox's epic story -ed.] Within a hundred yards of leaving the famous toll gates you are faced with the first of the rollercoaster style swoops and crests that await you for the next nine minutes or so. The Skyline felt seriously undertaxed at moderate speeds and it was only a massive feeling of being out of my depth that stopped me pressing on. After we had a few laps under our collective belts, we retired for the day and headed off to the Pistenklause restaurant, another 'must do' for anyone serious about cars and motorsport. The BitBurger Pils certainly helped calm the nerves. For the evening at least!

Our second day on track saw lap times fall and engine temps rise. I must confess that I never got confident on the circuit and only managed to get comfortable for short periods. If ever a circuit needs to be learnt section by section, this is it. The GTR pulled like a steam train when I had the bottle to let it off the leash with an indicated 140mph easily achievable on two sections. What would a better and more confident driver have reached in my car?

The clutch in the GTR has always provided me with some concern. The combination of its hair trigger pick up and a biting point that would make a yoga instructor wince told me that a bill of four figures was on the way. With that in mind, what better way of finishing it off than a trip to a combined track, quarter mile and Vmax day?

The event was run at nearby RAF Honington and would be my last opportunity to really extend the car before major work was needed. The circuit was a mixture of really fast sweepers, an enormous straight and some of the most devious brake destroying chicanes. The format was track sessions in the morning, some quarter mile runs before lunch, the top speed runs after lunch and then some more track sessions just in case you have any nerves/tyres/brakes or petrol left. This was my first airfield day in the GTR and the prospect of hitting cones as opposed to Armco was just the encouragement I needed to see just how far I could lean on the cars legendary combination of grip and handling. I can honestly say that the car amazed me. After nearly a year under my belt, several trackdays and the 'Ring trip I thought I knew all of its tricks. How wrong could I be? In a nutshell, just at the point when a normal car would throw the towel in or try and kill you the GTR accepted the challenge and flattered you. It was stunning, simply stunning.

The brakes started to fade a bit by the second session so I headed over to the quarter mile area. The times were appalling so I won't quote them here; suffice to say that my personal best of 12.6 seconds was safe, so I decided to save the car for the top speed and track sessions. The main straight of nearly 1.25 miles sounded like plenty of room to achieve a genuine top speed, particularly if one could get a decent start from one of the entry roads. Even with all this room I couldn't do any better than a genuine 155mph, although I still had a fair few revs to use, just not the power to use them. After two attempts the undertray at the front started to come away taking the brake ducts with them and this was just a taster for things to come. I should have heeded the warnings but when you're having fun, well, you know what it's like…

The track sessions followed and I was really getting confident in the car, pushing harder and harder, enjoying the poise, grip and pace as the GTR started to show just how quick it could be. And then the inevitable: after one lap too many the brakes disappeared. Completely. Without warning. The approach to the chicanes loomed and the customary stab of the brakes resulted in many expletives and many dead cones. The resultant trapped cones made me look like Tsuchiya coming around the sweeping bend on the way back to the pits. The scarred bodywork from the impact made it look like a very tired GTR indeed. Smashed splitter, scuffed wings, bonnet, front bumper, bits of cone everywhere, destroyed undertray, no brakes and a heavily slipping clutch meant that this was the end of my day.

I can't tell you how much fun it was though!

The Nismo twin plate clutch was ordered despite the usual teeth-sucking/head-shaking price, as well as a beautiful Jun carbon splitter to replace my smashed original one. Whilst I was at it I thought I'd better invest in some new brakes too. I would have loved to have bought AP racing or the like but my modest budget meant that I had to watch the pennies. I decided to go for the R34 Brembo brake upgrade as this is a significant improvement for a fraction of the price. In theory these are a straight fit so the job of getting these on and working should be quite straight forward. Yeah right! After lots of swearing and head scratching, the fronts were fitted. The rears will be left for another time when I have more patience.

The car is presently off the road after trips to Santa Pod and Cadwell Park have well and truly finished it off. I am now faced with large bills for the suspension, engine and bodywork. The suspension, my beloved St Bosoe coilovers, are leaking and need to be binned as it's not cost effective to send them back to Japan to be serviced. The engine has developed an intermittent fault making it sound like an Impreza when warm. The coil packs have been changed as have the plugs. It may be an earth or even a fuelling thing. The bodywork damage I have caused from trips to the gravel, tyre walls and cone impacts needs to be sorted before the GTR looks like a wreck, so all in all I have a busy winter ahead getting the R32 back to fighting fitness. I hope to compete in next year's Club Class of the Time Attack championships so a little investment in the car and my driving skills is required. I can't wait!

Photos: Matt Woods