2000 GT
The first great japanese sports car arrives through a joint-venture between Toyota and Yamaha by the late sixties.
The 2000 GT was the first bet from the Japanese giant in the great sports cars’ segment. With a clear focus on exports, Toyota wanted to show off its best know-how with this brilliantly crafted two-seater coupé introduced in 1967.
An instrument tuned by Yamaha.
The car was developed almost entirely by Yamaha, which had previously signed a joint venture agreement with Toyota. The renowned musical instrument company, which had attempted to launch its own sports car a few years earlier, was also responsible for manufacturing the 2000 GT.
State-of-the-art packaging.
The 2000 GT was designed based on a central beam chassis already seen in Colin Chapman’s magnificent Lotus Elan. For optimal weight distribution, the engine was located in a mid front position.
The packaging was completed with the fuel tank and spare wheel at the rear. The boot, also located at the rear, was quite practical thanks to the rear hatch.
Even the battery was placed behind the front axle, requiring a lateral opening on the wing.
One single engine option.
During its short production run, no additional engines were developed beyond the 150 PS inline six cylinder engine found in the 2000 GT launch.
Sharp design.
The bodywork of the Toyota 2000 GT was the result of the work of Saturo Nozaki, an in-house designer from Toyota itself. It was a very unique design proposition in terms of the front end, featuring a very rearward cabin where the pronounced angle of the windscreen takes centre stage.
Its front end is the most distinctive part of the bodywork (even more so with the retractable headlights raised).
It is currently considered one of the finest examples of Japanese automotive design. For this reason (and due to its limited production), it is Toyota’s most highly valued sports car.