How Much Does It Cost to Rent a Nissan GT-R?

It costs $595 to $795 a day to rent a Nissan GT-R before delivery. Many people expect a Nissan to be the cheap pick on an exotic rental site. The GT-R is not cheap, because it reaches 60 mph in 2.9 seconds. That launch matches cars that cost twice as much to buy. So what it costs to rent a Nissan sits next to a Lotus or a Porsche, not next to an economy car.

Two things set the price. The first is the model year and the paint, and the second is the city where the car is based. Everything under the hood is the same 565 horsepower twin-turbo V6.

The two Nissan GT-R rental prices

Here are the daily rates as each listing shows them, cheapest first.

• 2019 GT-R, white over black, $595 a day, based in Los Angeles
• 2024 GT-R Premium, Bayside Blue over black, $795 a day, based in San Diego

Both cars carry a $1,000 deposit and include 100 miles a day. The white car bills extra miles at $4 a mile, and the blue car bills them at $5 a mile.

Picture the white one rolling out of a garage in Pasadena on a Tuesday morning. You hear whirring and clicking from behind the seats before you reach the street. That sound is the gearbox, which Nissan mounts at the rear axle and joins to the engine with a carbon driveshaft. Most cars hide that noise, but the GT-R lets you hear every part of it.

What the extra $200 a day gets you

The Bayside Blue car costs $200 more a day than the white one, even though the engine and the drivetrain are the same. You pay the extra for the newer car and for the color.

Bayside Blue is the color the GT-R name is tied to. In direct sun it turns bright, with a hint of purple. The black wheels, the black mesh grille and the red brake calipers stand out against it. After dark it looks navy, so it photographs best in daylight. Pull it onto the Coronado Bridge approach in the afternoon and people walking past will reach for their phones.

The 2024 car is the late GT-R with the honeycomb mesh grille. Its engine is built by hand in Yokohama by a single builder, and a plaque under the hood carries that builder's name. Open the hood for a friend and that plaque is the first thing they read.

White is the color the car wore in the films that made it famous. So the white car costs less, and car people still know it as the real one before they read the badge. Park it outside a store in Beverly Hills and someone will ask if it is the one from the movies.

How much does it cost to rent a Nissan for more than two days

The daily rate drops the longer you keep the car. One or two days are at the full rate. The discount after that is automatic, and you don't have to ask for it.

• 3 to 4 days, 10% off
• 5 to 6 days, 15% off
• 7 to 13 days, 20% off
• 14 to 20 days, 30% off
• 21 to 27 days, 40% off
• 28 days or more, 50% off

Here is the math on the white car. A 3 day rental comes to $535.50 a day, which is $1,606.50 for the three days. A full week comes to $476 a day, or $3,332 total.

The blue car works the same way. A 3 day rental comes to $715.50 a day, or $2,146.50 total. A week comes to $636 a day, and that week totals $4,452.

A week is enough time to live with the car. You drive it to dinner in Newport Beach on Friday and up a mountain road on Sunday morning. By Wednesday the launch still pushes you into the seat every time the light turns green.

The deposit, the miles and the rules

The $1,000 deposit is a hold on your card rather than a charge. The hold is released once the car comes back in the condition it left. The deposit covers small things like a curbed wheel, and your own insurance covers damage subject to your deductible.

Miles are pooled across the rental. A 2 day rental gives you 200 miles to use however you like. Say you drive the white car 250 miles over those two days. You would pay for 50 extra miles at $4 each, which adds $200. If you know the trip runs long, say so at booking so the miles are priced in ahead of time.

The blue car is based in San Diego. Its listing points it at Sunrise Highway up to Mount Laguna, where the grip is the point of the drive. That road is a good use of the pooled miles. Track use, racing and off-road driving are not permitted on any car in the fleet. The GT-R launch belongs on a public road at a legal speed, from a stop sign with nobody behind you.

To rent either car, you need to be 18 or older with a valid driver's license and full coverage insurance in your own name. A larger deposit may apply under 25. Your policy has to extend comprehensive and collision to a rental car that isn't on your policy, which is called non-owner vehicle coverage. We call your insurance company on a recorded line to confirm it before you get the keys.

Delivery is quoted by address. The white car delivers across Los Angeles, Orange County and the Inland Empire. The blue car delivers across San Diego, Orange County and the Inland Empire. It can meet you at the airport curb when you land at San Diego Airport.

A Nissan GT-R next to a Lotus, a Porsche and a McLaren

Three other cars sit near this price. Here is how the GT-R lines up against each of them.

The green Lotus Emira V6 rents for $595 a day, which is the same rate as the white GT-R. The Emira makes 400 horsepower and reaches 60 mph in 4.2 seconds. It has two seats and drives the rear wheels. You book the Emira for the steering, and you book the GT-R for the launch.

The Porsche 911 Carrera starts lower. A blue 2018 911 Carrera rents for $395 a day in Orange County, which is $200 less than the white GT-R. The 911 badge is better known at a valet stand, while the GT-R is the harder launch from a stop.

The McLaren 570S sits above both. A Curacao Blue 2018 570S coupe rents for $895 a day, also in Orange County. It carries a $2,500 deposit. The 570S makes 562 horsepower, three less than the GT-R. Its doors swing up when you open them, and people stop walking to watch. The GT-R gets you nearly the same power for $300 less a day than that McLaren.

The GT-R also seats four on paper, but the rear seats are best for bags or small kids. The trunk holds 8.8 cubic feet, enough for a couple of weekend bags. The Emira and the 570S each have two seats.

When to book a GT-R

A week or two of notice covers most dates. Summer weekends, holiday weekends and prom season go first. The GT-R is a common pick for a birthday or a canyon run, so earlier is better for a Saturday.

The GT-R is easier to drive fast than its reputation suggests. All-wheel drive removes most of the wheelspin a rear-drive car can have. The brake pedal is firm and easy to control. Leave the three console switches in comfort around town and save R for the open road.

A Nissan GT-R costs about the same to rent as a Lotus Emira, and it gets to 60 mph faster than the McLaren. The extra $200 for the blue car buys the color and the newer build, not more speed. The lesson is that the launch costs the same in either paint.