Drag race: Nissan GT-R Nismo vs tuned Toyota GR Yaris

Is there any replacement for displacement? We’re putting up two of Japan’s most amazing performance cars up against each other on the Carwow drag strip – the Nissan GT-R Nismo versus a tuned Toyota GR Yaris.

The Nissan’s packing a 3.8-litre engine, while the Toyota has just 1.6 litres to play with. But this is no ordinary GR Yaris, as it’s been fettled and upgraded by Garage Whifbitz to more than double its horsepower. It should make for an interesting head-to-head, but let’s take a closer look at the important stats.

Nissan GT-R Nismo

The Nissan GT-R has been around since 2007 but a constant barrage of facelifts and performance upgrades means it’s kept pace with the best. This Nismo version has a 3.8-litre twin-turbocharged V6 engine which produces 600hp and 650Nm of torque.

All that grunt’s put to the road through a six-speed dual-clutch gearbox and four-wheel drive. It weighs in at 1,725kg, and when it was new would have cost £125,000.

Toyota GR Yaris tuned by Garage Whifbitz

The GR Yaris is one of the most exciting performance cars of the past few years – it’s so good, our own Mat Watson actually owns one. It’s powered by a 1.6-litre, three-cylinder turbocharged engine which in its regular state puts out 261hp and 360Nm of torque.

However, the car we’re running has been tuned by Whifbitz, and gets a fully built engine that makes 630hp and 430Nm of torque – quite the upgrade. As with the regular GR Yaris it still has four-wheel drive, but Whifbitz has replaced the standard six-speed manual gearbox with a seven-speed sequential manual. It tips the scales at 1,280kg, and though you’d be able to buy a brand-new GR Yaris for just over £45,000 this tuned monster comes in at about £130,000.

So which of these bonkers Japanese performance cars will win in a drag race? Will the GT-R’s raw power propel it to the win, or do the Whifbitz upgrades to the GR Yaris give it what it needs to come out on top? You’ll have to watch the video to find out.

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