When some of the world’s wealthiest nations are fighting pollution this very minute through ongoing legislation preventing cars from entering big cities’ – in other areas of CO2-polluting ownership; road-going versions of race cars and their track-based variants are staying ever-so-strong.
In fact, it’s celebrated.
An amalgamation of show plates and show cars, and mind-blowing 4-wheeled treasures from the yesteryear’s that dominated the skylines of every major circuit you can recall from playing Gran Turismo, since kidulthood.
This year, mesmerising examples of Nissan’s most legendary vehicles descended upon the famous Fuji Circuit in Japan, with disciples revelling in the brilliance of thundery tailpipes to make even the sportiest of V8-powered Mercedes AMG’s shudder.
Collections of vehicles on display included those from the manufacturer’s museums of old, and private collectors embracing the public with their priceless and unseen gems.
If you’re thinking about ‘RB26-powered Godzilla’s’, or the newer more tepid GTR, then you’re in for a visual treat.
Of the hundreds of examples on parade; some had even spent most their time battling on the world’s most gruelling stages; most notably Group C to Le mans, and the infamous GTR R32 Godzilla’s from the Group A series.
The GTR R32 made history as the first Japanese-made car to win Bathurst.
In fact, it won for 2 consecutive years (1991 and 1992) which led the press to dub the unstoppable GTR as ‘Godzilla’.
The car was then banned from the championship because of its incredible motorsport success. No Ford or Holden could come close.
As part of the festival’s appeal, petrol-heads in their thousands could head out on track in tour busses all the while race cars of the old, and the present whizz past decked in a multitude of rainbow vinyl.
In case you did want to view the Nissan Motorsport Festival 2016 in its entirety, the Nismo YouTube channel has uploaded a recording of the full event – which we’ve embedded below for you to view.
Or, if you’d prefer the shorter, but glitzier version, here’s a video from Tokyo Tuner with more RB-powered Skyline’s on display to make you Supra fans turn envious.