The Nissan Skyline might not include the legendary GT-R badge anymore, but it’s still sold in Japan as a relatively competent sedan, and used as the base of hot models.
Last month, Japanese publication Best Car reported the new Skyline won’t go electric in 2027 as once expected, and will instead carry on with the 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 heart available in the current model, but with the added twist of a three-pedal option.
This followed earlier reports from the US that Nissan and Infiniti dealers were shown a teaser of the upcoming ‘Q50S’, which would run on the platform of the current Japanese-market Skyline and also be powered by a twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6 engine.
Nissan executives have been tight-lipped about the next Skyline until now, with global design director Alfonso Albaisa telling the UK’s Auto Express that the new model will look to the past.
“Think back to the car of 1968 or 1970 [the C10 Skyline]. That expressive shape. Iconic,” Albaisa said at the Japan Mobility show.
“Think big, wide, and blocky. Aggressive and not retro.”
Ironically, the C10 Skyline was the first generation of the model to include the flagship GT-R guise, though it’s unlikely that badge would return to the new Skyline, given the GT-R was split off to become its own model with the R35 in 2007.
Albaisa also gave an extra hint about where the Skyline will fit amongst Nissan’s model lineup, adding: “The Nissan Z is on one side, the GT-R is on the other – Skyline will sit somewhere between.”
The Nissan Z uses an engine previously fitted to the current Skyline, though the executive’s comments suggest the new model would be even further above the sports coupe in terms of performance, or even pricing.
Nissan’s current Skyline was given the Nismo treatment in 2023, producing 309kW and 500Nm from the same engine which now powers the Z sports coupe, the latter of which develops 298kW/474Nm in standard guise and 313kW/521Nm in Nismo trim.
With a reported launch in 2027 for both the Skyline and Q50S, Nissan and Infiniti face a number of financial battles to overcome in the meantime, as well as regulatory changes in different markets.
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