Here are the totals: We drove for three days, covered 2000 miles, killed 4,236,465 bugs, touched 170 mph, met hundreds of Inside Line readers, burned through 115 gallons of 91 octane gasoline, used 8 bottles of octane booster, talked our way out of two 91 mph speeding tickets, did donuts on one dry lake, raced at one drag strip and lapped one state-of-the-art road course. We broke speed limits in three states (California, Nevada and Utah), let four Inside Line readers drive the GT-R, ate $100 worth of fast food, stopped at one very flooded, very beautiful, very large salt lake bed named for Captain B.L.E. Bonneville, used the GT-R's launch-control 14 times, answered the question "Is that the new Skyline?" 2,677 times, used our Verizon wireless card a total of 23 hours, killed no one, crashed never and hit one car wash in downtown Reno, the trip's finish line.

Basically it was the trip of a lifetime. No, we didn't cover the 3,000 miles I originally predicted, but I should have known better. You can't do all the things we did and cover that kind of ground in just three days unless you never sleep. And I'm just too old for that sh*t.

But we did prove one thing: The 2009 Nissan GT-R is an incredible car. Fast, comfortable (relatively) and dead reliable. Nissan's new supercar is a real workhorse that can be driven to work, on the racetrack or across the country. And it likes to go fast.

Yesterday, near the end of the run, I drove the GT-R over 100 mph for several hours. Highway 50 through Nevada is just that kind of road: dead straight, flat and empty for hundred of miles. During this time the GT-R averaged over 17 mpg and kept us cool with its air-conditioning, safe with its stability and on course with its navigation system. Heck, at one point I set the cruise control at 112 mph. Modern cars are simply awesome, and the new GT-R is as good as they get.

And now here's the best part. We're buying one. That's right. Edmunds' Inside Line is buying a new GT-R. We've ordered a white one. A white GT-R Premium with a black interior, the optional floor mats and an iPod jack. We're even paying for it with our own money, no freebies on this one, and should take delivery in July. Then it will do a year's duty in our long-term test fleet and see weekly updates on our long-term test blog.

So there's more GT-R durability testing to be done, and we're looking forward to it. Hey, it's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it.

And now I'm on a road trip kick. Where should we go next and in what car?

Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 1,961.7 miles

After taking our hot laps at Miller Motorsports Park, we took a tour of the rest of the facility. It’s a gearheads dream, and in this case, the gearhead’s name is Larry Miller, a prominent local car dealer. He built the place with his own money and spared no expense in the process.

The main attraction is the road course which features four different loops, the longest being a 4.5-mile layout with 23 turns. There’s also a nearly mile long go kart track with dirt sections on either end for running super motos. A row of world class pit garages sits on the 3,500 foot long main straight and well-situated grandstands are sprinkled throughout the edge of the course. The press box is as advanced as anything at Daytona and heck, even the bathrooms are impressively spotless.

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What can we say? The GT-R is popular with the law enforcement crowd. First it was the CHP, then one of Sandy City’s finest. Yesterday, it was Officer J. Travis Keel of the Millard County Sheriff’s office who just had to take a look. Actually, he clocked us at just over 90 mph on Highway 50, otherwise known as the Loneliest Highway in America, so his roadside inspection was more than just curiosity about the GT-R.

He asked about the car and what we were doing with it. We gave him the background story and apologized for not keeping better tabs on our speed. He then took a long, hard look at the GT-R’s bug-covered nose and its Michigan manufacturer plates.

After a little background check to make sure our story checked out, Officer Keel came back to the window and delivered a firm warning with a surprisingly pleasant manner. “And make sure to tell everybody that the sheriffs in Millard County are all right,” he said with a smile and a tip of his hat. “You can count on it,” we replied with a sigh of relief.

So there you have it. Be honest and respectful if you get pulled over, and keep it safe when driving through Millard County. And if you see Officer Keel at the local café, buy him lunch and send us the tab; we owe him one.

Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 1,496 miles

Got up early this morning to head over to Miller Motorsports Park in the city of Tooele (that's Two-ella) just east of Salt Lake City. We've seen this relatively new track on TV a few times before, but not even a good HD telecast could do justice to the almost surreal facility in the Utah desert. It's easily the most modern, well thought out race track we've ever seen.

John Gardner, Media Manager for Miller Motorsports Park, invited us over to stretch the legs of the GT-R around the West Loop. It's just over two miles long and features 10 turns. John then introduced us to Mitch Wright, Director of Racing, who gave us a few tips on the correct lines before letting us loose at full speed.



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Just topped off the GT-R's tank for the 7th time. As you may have noticed from previous posts, we haven't exactly been feathering the throttle. It hasn't killed our overall average though as it now stands at 17.54 mpg. We did leave out the tank we used this morning while lapping at Miller Motorsports Park as it seemed to disappear at an alarming rate. Still not bad for a supercar.

Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 1,581 miles

After Officer Cunningham's go it was Nigel Williams' turn. The 47-year-old software development manager is originally from Tasmania, but now lives and works in Provo, Utah with his wife and children. His daily ride is a new BMW 335 Xi.
 
Just a few minutes on the road and Nigel was already commenting on the GT-R's firm ride. "The ride is certainly challenging, but I like how it feels nailed down. And the steering is nice and direct. Reminds me of a tuned-up Subaru WRX STi or the old 1999 STi before they got fat, quiet and well-mannered."

Out on the I-15 between Sandy and Salt Lake City, Nigel redlined a few gears. "Wow. It is fast. I see what people mean when they say the engine is seamless. I'm also impressed by the visibility. You can see out of it, unlike some supercars."

Then he adds with a laugh, "If I could find a Nissan dealer willing to sell one at MSRP then I would buy one. And then I'd find a good chiropractor to fix my back after a long drive."

Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 1,158 miles

After the third full-on, full-throttle, all-out, wheel spinning, launch control abusing hole shot in the parking lot of the Sandy City, Utah police station last night I realized something: "It's fun to hang out with the cops."

We were there to let Inside Line reader and Sandy City policeman Eric Cunningham drive the 2009 Nissan GT-R we've been living in for the last two days. The 29-year-old is an 8-year veteran of the Sandy City police force. His days are spent busting bad guys in either a front-wheel-drive Impala (for the snow) or a full-pack Harley-Davidson (even in the dead of winter), so the GT-R was going to feel quick.



And Eric wasted no time. He pulled out of the cop shop and nailed it. Let's face it; he wasn't exactly going to get a ticket. Three full throttle upshifts later he said this: "It's amazing. I can't get over how quick off the line it is. It feels faster than my friends Lamborghini Murcielago. Smoother power delivery, too. For a six it's incredible."

What about the ride? "It isn't as stiff as I thought it would be, but then again, I'm not driving it thousands of miles like you." Which is true. I also pointed out to Officer Cunningham that the city streets of Sandy City make a pool table look rough.

So is the GT-R worth the asking price? "Definitely," Cunningham said while further exercising his over the local speed limit privileges. "I'd pay $100,000 for this thing if I could."

Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 1,150 miles




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When we finally arrived at the Bonneville Salt Flats late yesterday afternoon, we found most of it covered in five inches of water. The GT-R may have achieved mythical status over the years, but even the R35 can't walk on the wet stuff.

There was, however, a long, desolate access road, so we decided to shoot a quick video of the launch control in action from inside the car. Hope it gives you some idea how violent it is when this thing takes off. We'll have to come back later to see how the GT-R feels at its top speed of 193 mph.

Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 989 miles

A nutritious meal on the road is hard to come by. Knowing how far we were behind schedule, a drive thru lunch was the only option yesterday afternoon. Needless to say, we’re pretty sure it’s the first time a GT-R has navigated a gut busting, house of calories like Burger King. We’re happy to report that the cupholders in the center console are some of the best we’ve ever seen in a car with over 450 horsepower. And when we were finished, the ample door pockets held two crumpled up bags of trash without a problem despite the fact they were already bulging with beef jerky wrappers and flash card readers. Yes, the GT-R really can do it all.

Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ approx. 949 miles

We're back on the road to Reno after spending the morning at Miller Motorsports Park. It's an unbelievable place. It may be in Utah, but we might want to move there anyway, it's that cool.

We'll have photos and video up later to give you an idea what's its like and how the GT-R performed on one of Miller's numerous road courses. For now, we'll be catching up with some posts from yesterday afternoon and last night's reader visit.

Stay tuned.

Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 1120 miles