A 56-year-old Toyota 2000GT sports car, one out of only 337 of its kind ever produced, will go on sale in France soon and is poised to bring its seller between €500,000 and €700,000 – a small fortune, but not even nearly a record, either.
The original 2000GT was envisioned as Toyota’s statement that Japanese companies were also capable of producing grand tourers on par with the Jaguar E-Type and the Porsche 911. Co-designed with Yamaha, the car ran on independent suspension and had a 2.0-liter six-pot assisted by three Mikuni-Solex carburetors hitting the wheels with 150 PS (148 hp / 110 kW). The stock five-speed manual transmission let it reach 220 km/h (136 mph).
This example was manufactured for the domestic market and has the drive at the right side. It is also a Series 1 specimen, one out of 230 or so cars like this produced in the early 1960s. At a certain time, it was restored and imported into France, where it stayed motionless in a private collection.
The highest any GT2000 has sold for is U.S. $2,535,000. That car was prepped for North American racing by Carroll Shelby himself. The auction winner acquired it last fall, and some experts believe it was the world’s single most expensive car to come out of Japan.