One to Buy: #20 of 44 Sonic Silver 1996 Nissan R33 Skyline GT-R Nismo 400R
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Although Nissan’s standard RB26DETT straight six offered formidable tuning potential as evidenced by the litany of circa 1000bhp GT-Rs that had been tweaked with aftermarket parts, when it came to producing the ultimate R33-based limited run special, something even more extraordinary was used: the RB-X GT2 power unit.
Developed for motor sport, the RB-X GT2 was a collaboration between Nismo and another of Nissan’s competition partners, REINIK.
Enlarged by 203cc over the regular GT-R engine, the RB-X GT2 engine also came with forged pistons, crankshaft and connecting rods, an optimised cylinder head, polished ports, high-lift camshafts, N1 turbos hiked to 1.1 bar, trick manifolds, a new engine management system, high flow air filter and a titanium exhaust system.
With 400bhp at 6800rpm and a monster torque gain of 346lb-ft at 4400rpm, this was the most potent engine ever fitted to a production GT-R.
Elsewhere, what Nissan dubbed the Nismo 400R came with a reinforced carbonfibre driveshaft, a beefier twin-plate clutch, special Bilstein dampers with more aggressive Nismo Type D springs, a 30mm lower ride height, Nismo Type 2 brake pads and a brake master cylinder stopper designed to reduce any fore/aft play.
Externally, the 400R could be identified on account of its bigger three-piece Nismo LM GT1 forged alloy wheels shod with Bridgestone RE 710 tyres and an aggressive new body kit with myriad new airflow solutions. Inside, each car came with front bucket seats, a custom steering wheel, a titanium shift knob and special gauges.
Nissan had hoped to sell 100 examples of the V-spec based Nismo 400R to celebrate its success at the 1995 Le Mans 24 Hours where Hideo Fukuyama, Masahiko Kondo and Shunji Kasuya finished tenth overall in a specially prepared GT1-class R33.
However, only 44 units were ultimately produced between 1996 and ‘98, making this not only arguably the most sought after GT-R, but also the rarest.
Set to go under the hammer at Broad Arrow Auctions’ sale at The Quail in Carmel scheduled for August 13th and 14th is one of the most handsomely configured 400Rs: chassis BCNR33023463.
The 20th of the 44 400Rs produced, chassis ‘23463’ was manufactured in July 1996. Painted Sonic Silver, it spent the first 27 years of its life in Japan’s Sagami Province before being exported to the UK by the consigning owner where it was registered in December 2023. Having landed in the United States during June 2026, chassis ‘23463’ heads to auction showing a little over 93,033km on the odometer. The car is accompanied by its original book pack and a file of Japanese inspection reports that indicate consistent maintenance from new. After market enhancements include a set of Defi gauges.
