DEFINITELY. NO MAYBE

Three Japanese performance icons - Lexus LFA, Subaru Impreza 22B and Nissan GT-R. Over three days on some of our favourite roads we explore what makes each uniquely thrilling, but also the car culture that unites them

- RICHARD MEADEN

JAPAN. NO OTHER NATION EXPRESSES ITS PASSION for engineering through such esoteric cars or pursues its individual ideas of perfection with such fanatical dedication. With the values of Japanese modern classics now rising to meet those of European counterparts, these once-obscure cult icons are finally getting the wider attention they deserve.

So what better way to celebrate than by bringing together three of the greatest Japanese performance cars of the last 25 years? Not for a fleeting afternoon, but for several days on some of our favourite roads. Ample time to dig deep into their characters, explore their capabilities and remind ourselves what makes each of them so special.

You know you're dealing with an elite level of car when two commend themselves for inclusion without the need for debate. I'm talking about the Lexus LFA and Subaru Impreza 22B STI. One a bona fide exotic, the other true rallying royalty, each occupies a unique place in the pantheon of Japanese modern classics and is held in the highest possible esteem by this magazine.

Somewhere in between those contrasting extremes sits Nissan's formidable and inimitable GT-R. The legend formerly known as Skyline, the GT-R is another shoo-in for our test, but with four generations from which to choose (I know there are more, but this is a modern icons test) the selection process wasn't so straightforward.

In the end we skip the older, RB26DETT-powered R32, 33 and 34 and instead opt for the 2020 R35 GT-R Nismo. Partly because this was the final Nismo version to be officially imported to the UK, but mostly because it was also the last iteration to introduce extensive chassis, powertrain, aerodynamic and lightweighting upgrades. As such it is the apogee of Nissan's determined, obsessive and relentless evolution of a truly extraordinary car.