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Nissan GT-R and Jaguar F-Type meet for time trial battle [w/poll]

It seems that the Jaguar F-Type Coupe R is the performance coupe du jour. First, Motor Trend challenged it against a Porsche 911 on video to see how it fared. Now, Autocar in the UK is pitting the Jag against the latest iteration of the Nissan GT-R around a small course in a time trial battle.
On paper, it certainly looks like the F-Type Coupe is the clear winner. The two performance cars boast the same 542 horsepower (at least by UK specs), but the Jaguar does it with more torque, less weight and an eight-speed gearbox, compared to the six-speed in the GT-R. That seems like an automatic recipe for victory. However, the Nissan claims a faster sprint to 62 miles per hour and all-wheel drive. Nobody wants to watch a video of the new car running away into the sunset, and once the two of them make it to the track, the playing field appears much more level.
So which would you rather have? Keep in mind, that while the GT-R is cheaper than the F-Type Coupe R by a few thousand pounds in the UK, in the US a base R starts at $99,000, and the Nissan has a base price of $101,770. Scroll down to watch the video, and then make your choice in the poll, below.

Nissan Leaf sales get January jump as Chevy Volt trends downward

The cold January sales dip hit both the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt last month, but when compared 2014 to 2013's first-month-of-the-year sales totals, one of the two early plug-in vehicles obviously came out on top. The top Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months. Last year, the Leaf sold just 650 units in January, but it managed to move 1,252 last month, a 92.6-percent increase over 2013 but a big drop from the 2,529 sold in December 2013. Paige Presley over at Nissan told AutoblogGreen that the Leaf has now broken sales records for 11 months straight and that, "we see unique seasonality with some December pull-ahead demand based on federal and state tax incentives." The number one Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months, moving back to San Francisco. That change could be short-lived. "We had some inventory constraint issues early in the month in Atlanta with end-of-year demand depleting stock," Presley said. "By the time we resolved that, the weather hampered sales." There was not as much good news on the Chevrolet front. Last month, the Volt sold 918 units, down from 1,140 in January 2013 and 2,392 in December 2013. It also marks the first time the Volt has sold in the three-digit range since January 2012, when it sold 603 copies. That string of solid months means that the plug-in hybrid has a roughly 12,000-unit lead over the EV since the two cars brought plug-in vehicles back to the mass market all the way back in December 2010. We will have our full report of January's green car sales up soon.

Nissan Claims 'World's Cleanest Car' Crown

Nissan is claiming the title of "world's cleanest car" by coating a 2015 Nissan Leaf in superhydrophobic and olephobic paint. The paint repels water and oil by creating a protective layer of air between the paint and environment. It rejects water and oils so efficiently that dirt doesn't have a chance to set or streak, according to Nissan. Water and oil bead and wick away from the car's body, leaving the green machine clean. The paint is called Ultra-Ever Dry and it was developed by UltraTech International. It's just an experiment so far that's not yet been added to any production vehicles, but the paint company says Nissan is one of the first automakers to take an interest in the technology. Nissan has been tinkering with the paint for several months, and coated a European Note hatchback to showcase its possibilities. "No matter what the road throws at this Leaf, its Ultra-Ever Dry exterior coating will throw right back," UltraTech International Inc. CEO Mark Shaw told a crowd during a TED talk. Related Gallery Which Green Car Is Right For You? Green Weird Car News Nissan Electric paint