10 things you didn’t know about Nissan Skylines

1. There were Skylines long before the R32, R33 and R34 GT-Rs everybody knows and loves. The first one appeared in 1957 and packed a mighty 60bhp!
2. The first ever GT-R Skyline was built in 1969 and the famous KPGC10 has been an icon ever since. Mint examples go for serious money!
3. In 1980 the Skyline GT-EX was released. It was the first ever turbocharged production car made in Japan, and kicked out a tidy 145bhp from its 2.0ltr turbo engine.
4. Production Skylines finally broke the 200bhp mark in 1983 with the R30 RS-X packing a 205bhp 2.0ltr FJ20, still regarded as one of the most tuneable 4-cylinder engines in existence.
5. The R30 range spawned the wildest Skyline ever, the Skyline Silhouette Grp5 Racer. This insane-looking car weighed under a ton and packed well over 500bhp.
6. Nissan brought out the R31 GTS-R in an attempt to win Touring Car championships across the world, but was left behind by the even faster Sierra RS500s. This prompted them to build the more powerful R32 GT-R.
7. The R32 GT-R has been hugely successful in racing. In its day it totally dominated the GrpA and GrpN Touring Car championships all over the world from 1989 to 1993.
8. The R32 GTST-4 combines the GTS-Ts RB20 engine with the GT-R’s impressive 4WD system. Its lightweight and low price makes it popular with drag racers worldwide who transplant GT-R engines into them.
9. Not all Skylines are the powerful sports cars many people believe they are; there have always been non-performance versions of all the Skyline models. Since the ’80s there have been single-cam 2.0ltr engines, 1.8s, and even diesels.
10. The 3.0ltr RB30 block is becoming an increasingly common mod for many Skyline owners going for big power, but it was never actually made in Japan. It was produced in South Africa and Australia for their mid-’80s R31 Skylines.