However, at the risk of sounding like an utter hypocrite, I've always had a soft spot for the "LongBoi", and I hardly think I'm alone in that sentiment. While history books may remember the LM Nismo as a failure, I've always held it in high regard not only for Nissan daring to be different and putting money and effort where their mouths were, but also for allowing such a seeming blight on their storied history be immortalised and preserved in Gran Turismo, and I think they can and should be proud of daring to be different. Blessed with a functional hybrid system in the games, the LongBoi sent ALL of its ungodzilly power to its poor front wheels via a 5–speed gearbox, and to say that it's the proverbial one–legged man in an ass kicking contest would be an understatement; it's more a one–legged T–Rex in an ass kicking contest trying to channel a nuclear–powered dropkick through a makeshift shoe out of a well–used echidna condom. Mechanical faults may not be simulated in Gran Turismo, but the digital LM Nismo was nonetheless quite true–to–life in how uncompetitive it was in the games, and it's a fact that has had a radioactive light shone on it when the LongBoi was carried over into Gran Turismo Sport, a game laser–focused on e–sports and categorised racing.
But it's precisely because the LM Nismo is so very ostensibly an underdog that makes anyone who rocks up to a Gr.1 grid in it an instant rock star, guaranteed to catch the attention of everyone else in the same way that an AE86 would command attention lined up beside an FD3S on a mountain pass, or someone pulling out a Pachirisu in the finals of a Pokémon Tournament. A unit so evidently underpowered and goofy looking rubbing shoulders with the established big guns in any competitive environment just promises a dazzling display of confidence, skill, and chicanery from its wielder. In the same way that overlooked and off–meta choices exist in other games, I opine that the FF LM Nismo more than deserves to be in Gran Turismo, not in spite of its flaws, but because of.
But the cars' lack of competitiveness on either side of the digital divide is not at all to say that the concept of a front–engined LMP that maximises its aerodynamics within the LMP1 rulebook is a flawed one; it only proves that an LMP that routes all its power to the front wheels is a bad idea. Ten years after the LM Nismo's abysmal real–life outing at Le Mans, its digital counterpart would get one hell of a glow–up; Update 1.60 of GT7, released in late June of 2025, reworked the LM Nismo such that its electric motors now drove the rear wheels instead of the fronts. One might question the realism and legitimacy of the LM Nismo sending its electric drive to its rear wheels, as Nissan themselves quote the LongBoi to be FF in what little remains of their official press releases. However, according to the chief engineer of the project in an episode of Jay Leno's Garage, Zack Eakin reveals that the hybrid system was to be capable of driving the rear wheels, and that they were debating at the time whether or not the extra drive lines, effects on mass distribution, and other complications were worth the benefits. Of course, history will now tell us that the hybrid system wound up driving none of the wheels, and so I think the depiction of the LongBoi with AWD is just as fair as an FF LM Nismo. One thing is for certain though: Godzilla is a hell of a lot more competitive in GT7 now that its thousand–plus HP is split between all four wheels instead of just two.
Of course, even when making better use of its rear wheels, the LongBoi still understeers on corner exits; it's still a front–heavy car trying to put over 600HP through the front wheels. It's just that now, we also have to deal with the oversteer in the rear as the front end understeers. The LM Nismo has staggered tyres, but not in the way that one might perhaps expect: the front tyres are 14" wide, and only 9" wide at the rear. In sensible speak, that's 355mm front and 230mm rear, and for some context, the rear tyres are barely wider than those on a production R32 GT-R, which is hardly a stable car with 307HP. That's just an insanely tiny contact patch to be attempting to put down yet another 600+HP with, racing slicks or not. With a 65:35 mass distribution, the front tyres will still wear at a much faster rate than the rears, even with a fully rearward Brake Bias of +5. As a result of all that, the LM Nismo will still severely lag behind the more conventional LMP1s of Toyota and Porsche going into and coming out of corners, having to instead rely on its slightly higher top speed to reel back in its contemporary peers.
However, the thing that drivers of the LM Nismo need watch out the most for isn't understeer nor oversteer. It's... well, I don't know, actually. The LM Nismo has a nasty, NASTY tendency to suddenly lose its rear end over certain corners on certain tracks for reasons nigh inexplicable both on acceleration and deceleration, and this is a common experience had by other COTW participants both on controller and wheel, from the imperfect public roads of Le Mans to the smooth paved tarmac of Spa. I don't know what, if anything else, was changed on the LM Nismo when it went from FF to AWD, but referencing my old GT Sport screenshots, the current LM Nismo has had its spring rates increased by a whole Hertz to 5Hz on both ends, and its alignment figures now look downright unintuitive with 0.45 Toe–Out front and a ridiculous 0.90 Toe–In rear. For some context, both the 919 and TS050's default spring rates are at 4Hz front and rear. This absurd stiffness in the springs results in a Godzilla that assaults its driver relentlessly through just force feedback on a wheel, so much so that the public roads of la Sarthe feel as unruly a gravel track, with the car fighting its driver to be let off the leash that is the steering wheel even on the straights, and that is even with the FFB on my T300RS turned all the way down to the minimum. This incredibly stiff suspension setup, coupled with the front biased downforce and narrow rear tyres I suspect is what makes the LM Nismo's rear end so violently allergic to microscopic bumps and elevation changes at high speed. In other words, the rear end of the LM Nismo simply doesn't have enough grip to cash the cheques the front writes, and for as god–awful as the FF LM Nismo was, I don't ever recall it being this dangerous and unpredictable to drive in either GT Sport or GT7. The right kink before Indianapolis and the uphill section of Eau Rouge are just two examples of where the LongBoi consistently spins out. Because the LongBoi is so inherently unstable at the rear, it's also exceptionally prone to being pit maneuvered if the drivers behind (pretend to) make a mistake.
That all being written, the AWD LongBoi is still a massive improvement over the FF car we had, and the gap in performance is now small enough that BoP can easily close the distance should the powers that be deem it fit to decree so. The de–facto meta cars of Gr.1, the Porsche 919 and Toyota TS050, both share a common weakness in having low top speeds, since their hybrid systems are programmed in stone in these games to recharge the battery using the ICE past a certain speed, giving them super sharp acceleration in low to mid speeds, and then suddenly becoming utterly flaccid past 240km/h (149mph) or when they run out of charge. This makes them incredibly quick and fuel efficient at most tracks in the game where there are corners that necessitate braking for every once in a while, but ironically some of the worst choices to bring to a high–speed track like la Sarthe. The LM Nismo's hybrid system, unlike the battery systems in those cars, is a flywheel system that I don't even want to pretend I know the basics of, but in practice, it charges and discharges much quicker than the Lithium–Ion batteries of the 919 and TS050, and most importantly, doesn't sap engine power at all. This gives the LM Nismo an incredible advantage on long straights, 5–speed gearbox be damned, capable of speeds in excess of 320km/h (193mph) in clean air before having to brake for the Mulsanne chicanes, whereas the 919 and TS050 struggle to crack 310km/h (174mph). To really seal the deal, the LM Nismo I've noticed drinks ever so slightly less fuel than said contemporaries, meaning that it's a high–speed monster with the immediate handling and fuel efficiency of a modern LMP1 to back it up, making it a compelling package in high–speed tracks, especially when high fuel use multipliers are in play. It... will just take a bit of trial and error to know which corners will unsettle its rear end, and then actively drive around that weakness by going extra slowly.
With the LM Nismo now being AWD, it really has become the best of both worlds. It's still the underdog we all loved to root for, and yet at the same time, it's competitive enough now that it just might prove competitive once in a blue moon should the track and BoP favour it. More than that however, the LongBoi is an endlessly fascinating piece of motorsport history and an engineering showpiece even ten years after its outing at Le Mans, and to have it scrubbed off history books and forgotten is just such a crying shame. In lieu of direct recognition from Nissan, Gran Turismo has become a foster museum for the unloved child, and the LM Nismo's story might just continue under PD's care. The GT games have always taken failed racecars and given them a whole new purpose and audience, in so doing giving them a second chance at life, such as Jaguar XJ13, Chaparral 2J, and Toyota TS020. Will the LM Nismo be next in line in becoming a Gran Turismo legend? Time will tell, but I sure as hell hope that it will be the next fondly–remembered failed racecar; with Nissan seemingly hell–bent on scraping it off their history books, we GT players might be on a strict timer to enjoy the LongBoi before another generational leap in consoles and graphics fidelity leaves the car behind for good.
Bonus Ramble:
Yes, I actually re–installed GT Sport just for that second photo in this post. It took 6 hours of installation, not counting the shenanigans of my PS5 somehow refusing to download the last 4 items of the update in Sleep Mode, so it actually took half a damn day in real time. Just a cautionary tale here for anyone who still hasn't uninstalled GTS from their console.
I'm actually pretty surprised that the "Season's Greetings" curation of Scapes didn't make the transition from GTS to GT7. I thought I must've been tripping some exotic balls when I remember we had that exact location on a body of water with artificial lights strewn in with a mountain looming in the background. These Season's Greeting Scapes even have fully animated elements in them, like flowing water and a CUTE CAT!
Also, the Photo Mode menu in GTS seem a bit more responsive than GT7's. What the heck is with all that, Kaz?! Are you really happy with being the god of a world so flawed? Can you really look your parents in their eyes and say they can be proud of you? HUH?!
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