Facts
-
Year of manufacture
1999 -
Movie
Fast & Furious (2009) -
Movie role
Brian O’Conners Skyline -
Screen driver
Paul Walker -
Status
original Hero Car used in the film
Blue, wide-bodied and closely associated with Paul Walker: in Fast & Furious: New Model. Original Parts, Brian O’Conner drives a Nissan R34 GT-R once again. A small fleet of virtually identical R34s was assembled for the film shoot in 2009, each prepared for different roles in front of the camera.
The automobile on display at the Red Bull Ring Classics belonged to this original film fleet. ChromeCars presents it as a ‘hero car’ in its original condition; the chassis number ER34-023415 is documented. According to the Red Bull Ring, this car was also driven by Paul Walker himself in action scenes.
The vehicle
The R34 GT-R is one of the most iconic Japanese sports cars of its era. In Fast & Furious, Brian’s blue car was presented in a relatively clean and straightforward way: a vivid blue finish, large wheels, and a distinctive appearance that feels noticeably more restrained than many of the heavily stickered tuning cars featured in the earlier films.
For the movie, several R34s were given the same exterior styling and prepared for different roles. ER34-023415 is a member of this original film fleet and was used for driving and action scenes.
The movie character
In the fourth film, Brian O’Conner is back working for the FBI. Planning an undercover mission, he puts together a new patrol car from a selection of impounded vehicles – and once again opts for a Nissan R34 GT-R.
This choice nicely ties the film in with 2 Fast 2 Furious, in which Brian already drives an R34. The Skyline ultimately becomes one of his most iconic cars. In the 2009 episode, it has a much more understated appearance than many of the colourfully wrapped tuned cars from the earlier films: bold blue paintwork, large wheels and a comparatively clean look.
Fun fact
What appears on screen as a single car was actually a division of labor behind the scenes: some R34s were used for detailed close-ups and hero shots, while others handled high-speed driving, drifting, and action sequences.
According to the event organizer, the example displayed at the Red Bull Ring Classics is one of the action cars and it was also driven by Paul Walker himself.
The story behind the car
For Fast & Furious, Brian’s Skyline was intended to look more mature than many of the overly decorated cars from the earlier instalments. A small fleet of prop cars was therefore assembled around the blue R34, all sharing a consistent look but with different technical roles. According to later reports, Paul Walker had a say in the comparatively minimalist look of the main film car. In addition to automobiles built to a particularly high level of detail, the production team also used R34s for driving, drifting and stunt scenes. This sharing out of duties proved practical on set: the cars could each be optimised for their specific task, whilst appearing on screen as one and the same GT-R.
Chassis number ER34-023415 is part of this original production. ChromeCars presents the vehicle as a hero car in its original condition and roadworthy. In doing so, it also tells the story of the work behind the scenes that made the driving scenes in the movie possible.
The legend
- One Skyline, many cars: On screen, Brian’s blue R34 appears as a single automobile. In reality, multiple cars were on hand, each with a different role.
- The million-dollar Skyline: A particularly meticulously built BNR34 from the same film production was auctioned in 2023 for more than one million US dollars. ER34-023415 is another original member of this film fleet.
- Its involvement in the film production, its use in action scenes and its connection to Paul Walker are all well documented.