V6 engine by hand, with only five master craftsmen called Takumi being allowed to handle the process.
Each individual 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 takes about takes about six hours to assemble and once it’s done the Takumi craftsman get to mount a plaque with his name on it.
Severn Valley Motorsport (SVM), in the UK, that created the 3.8-litre twin-turbo Qashqai, have taken one of these hand built engines and inserted it into a Navara. This nearly 600kW bakkie is described as ‘one of the nicest way to transport your GT-R around with a trailer’.
Still a work in progress, the bakkie’s top speed target is 321 km/h (yikes!), and in order to achieve this performance SVM doesn’t just transplant the engine, but makes some chassis modifaiations as well. The company will even bolt the Navara’s body over the R35 GT-R’s powertrain, if that’s what you fancy.
Top Gear says that’s about £175,000 before VAT (R3 731 142), but anything can be accomplished according to SVM’s Luke Anthony: “Anything is possible, we are open to the craziest of ideas.”
“We can produce these types of vehicles if we get the go-ahead for one from a customer. The go-ahead, of course, including an appropriately sized payment.”