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Nismo GT-R poised to be fastest Nissan ever

For almost every year since the Nissan GT-R first debuted, Nissan has been figuring out how to cram more power under the hood or give it 911-like quickness around the Nürburgring. Looking to create a brand image for its performance arm, we already knew that a hotter, Nismo-branded GT-R was in the works, but it seems some details may have leaked regarding this new Nismo GT-R.
While little has been spoken of this Super GT-R since February, Top Gear is reporting that Nismo is planning to make improvements to the coupe's power, handing and styling - three things that we're sure few have complained about since 2009. What could this mean for the GT-R? According to the article, Nismo could be looking to raise horsepower from the current 545-hp mark to more than 570 hp, and handling upgrades could give the car a 'Ring lap time of seven minutes and 22 seconds, which as Top Gear points out, is four seconds quicker than the new 911 GT3.

Alpine unveils N36 LMP2 car that will race in 24 Hours of Le Mans

This is the Alpine LMP2 competitor you'll see contesting European endurance races this year, including The 24 Hours of Le Mans in June. Parent company Renault showed off the N36 racer at its atelier in Paris, the blue and orange a switch from the yellow, black and white livery Alpine wore last time it was seen in Le Mans way back in 1978 when it won the race.
The team will be run by Signatech-Nissan and the chassis will be powered by a Nissan engine. Nelson Panciatici and Pierre Ragues will contest World Endurance Championship rounds throughout the year, they'll be joined by endurance and IndyCar veteran Tristan Gommendy for Le Mans and Paul-Loup Chatin as the team's reserve driver.
The Alpine N36 will get into its first test this week at Paul Ricard, then experience its first racing miles at the European Le Mans Series round at Silverstone on April 13. The press release below has the full scoop, the photos above have the past and present in high-res glory.

Daimler and Nissan venture to build cars in Mexico

Nissan and Daimler have been partnering ever closer for years, and now an unnamed source has told Reuters that the automakers have agreed to a 50-50 joint venture in Mexico that would build Infiniti and Mercedes-Benz models. Given that the rumors about just such a deal go back nearly six months and similar rumblings are years old, this arrangement has been a long time coming.
The insider tells Reuters that a memorandum of understanding was signed between them last month to build the Mercedes GLA-Class and new Infinitis at Nissan's Aguascalientes factory. The rumor didn't say when production would begin. It wouldn't be the first time the two automakers have decided to share this platform - Infiniti will build its Q30 compact on it in the UK next year.
The partnership between the Renault-Nissan Alliance and Daimler goes back to 2010 when the companies signed an agreement to share engines, factories and platforms. Since then, products of the partnership have included the underpinnings for the next-generation Smart and Renault Twingo and shared engines among some other models.