Tuned Nissan GT-R crushes the quarter mile in 8.61 seconds

At 545 hp, a stock Nissan GT-R is no slouch. In fact, it bursts to 60 mph from a standstill in around 2.7 seconds, making it one of the fastest cars on the planet. So why would you take it to a tuner and make it faster? Well, because you can, of course.

This particular GT-R pumps out 1,300 hp, and derives from the small town of Oberlin, Ohio, where a tuner company named Switzer Performance resides. I've met the mad folks at Switzer before, and had the pleasure of driving one of their 1,000 hp GT-Rs last summer. Following my drive, I had a smile the size of Asia. And required a pit stop at Walmart for new boxers.

So a GT-R this fast remains mind-blowing, and yet there's a market for this kind of power. John Shepherd, the owner of this particular GT-R, is one such buyer, and he received enough power to demolish the quarter mile in a staggering 8.61 seconds at 170.47 mph -- a time Switzer claim to be a new GT-R record.

Switzer utilize monster turbos, as well as other trickery, to coax the motors up to these ludicrous power figures, but replacing the factory ECU with a Syvecs SGTR ECU - an ECU created by Switzer's sister company - appears to have put this particular model over the edge. Take a look at the video below to see the madness unfold.