It was built to be a Japanese take on the GT category, providing comfort, speed and excitement in equal measure. However, the 3000GT was not designed to be a track monster or “everyday supercar”. This is because the Mitsubishi is heavier, slower (at least around a track) and bulkier than competitors such as Nissan’s GTRs of the time or the Honda NSX. The 3000GT/GTO has not fared as well as some other vehicles from Japan’s golden era of performance motoring in the 1990s and early 2000s.
In our view, GT cars such as the 3000GT/GTO are often a bit misunderstood. You also get a powerful engine, and excellent handling and grip thanks to the car’s all wheel drive system. Compared to other vehicles of the era like Mazda’s RX7, there is far greater practicality on offer.
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The GTO/3000GT features 2 + 2 seating, with excellent comfort for the driver and front seat passenger. The interior of a Mitsubishi 3000GT – nicely laid out for “grand touring” with a blend of driver-centric controls, good (for the time) creature comforts and drivability. Furthermore, a Grand Tourer needs to be able to ‘dial in the thrills’ when the road becomes more accommodating to sport driving.Ī great example of a “modern GT” car is the Mitsubishi GTO/3000GT ( read our buyer’s guide for this car here). On the other hand, a Grand Tourer/GT car is meant to be able to allow its driver and passenger(s) to cover long distances with ease, in comfort and luxury, and also have enough practicality to allow for longer trips and journeys. With a Grand Tourer/GT car, there is meant to be a focus on balance.Ī supercar is designed for outright performance, with considerations like luxury and comfort taking the back seat so to speak. How GT Cars Differ From Other Sports CarsĪs we alluded to above, Grand Tourers differ from other types of sports cars, especially lightweight track-focused cars and supercars. Maserati 3500GT – another example of a “classic” Grand Tourer from the golden age of this category of vehicle. This was a homologation special vehicle, hence the term GTO which is short for gran turismo omologato – Grand Touring Homologation. The 250 GTO was a Grand Tourer that was also very successful in motorsport in its heyday. Only 36 exist, and prices can reach up to tens of millions of dollars per car. The Ferrari 250 GTO – one of the rarest and most desirable classic cars ever produced. The legendary Aston Martin DB5 – an example of a true “Grand Tourer” In this era, we saw a number of now legendary GT cars, such as the Aston Martin DB5, Ferrari 250 GTO and Maserati 3500GT. The “golden age” of Grand Tourers was in the mid 20th Century (particularly the 1950s and 1960s). When the roads become twisty and winding, your Grand Tourer still has the chops to handle well and provide a thrilling, driver-focused experience.įor doing this kind of grand tour, a Grand Touring/GT car makes perfect sense – hence the development of the term. There is room for you and a companion (possibly even more if you have a 2+2 seater) as well as your luggage. With a Grand Tourer, you get to enjoy luxury and comfort as you cruise the motorways at high speed. Furthermore, many supercars and lightweight sports cars have little in the way of creature comforts and storage space. Track/racing-focused supercars and lightweight sports cars can become tiring to drive in a short space of time (especially if you are driving at high speeds over long distances). While you could do so in a conventional supercar or sportscar from the likes of Ferrari or Lamborghini, to do so would involve a number of compromises. Let’s say you wanted to head down to the French Riviera from Paris, as a well-heeled individual in the 1960s.
The idea of a Grand Tourer was a vehicle that combined speed, handling, relative practicality and luxury into one desirable and exciting package. Gran Turismo as a term came to refer to a generation of cars that were designed and built for long-distance, high-speed cruising in luxury and comfort but which could also step up to the plate and be credible sports cars when the road became twistier and more challenging. The first thing to understand is that Grand Tourer/GT comes from the Italian Gran Turismo (yes, that’s the same Gran Turismo that we all know from the Playstation game series). Where Does The Term Grand Tourer/GT Come From? However, Grand Tourer as a term has a specific origin, and there is a very particular type of car that truly fits the bill – let’s explore that further. These days, Grand Tourer/GT tends to refer to higher-performing, better-equipped and specified versions of existing vehicles OR as a way of denoting a brand’s premium vehicle. Sometimes, it refers to Grand Touring as well. How GT Cars Differ From Other Sports Cars.Where Does The Term Grand Tourer/GT Come From?.