Toyota competed with the 2000GT domestically, finishing third at Fuji in the 1966 Japanese Grand Prix. In 1966, the 2000GT won the first Suzuka 1000 Kilometres, and in 1967, it also won the 24 Hours of Fuji and the Fuji 1000 Kilometres. In addition, during a 72-hour test at the Yatabe High Speed Test Track in 1966, the vehicle set thirteen FIA world records for both speed and endurance. Sadly, the record-breaking vehicle was totaled in a pace car collision and later demolished. These records soon inspired Porsche to build a 911R specifically to break them.
Additionally, Carroll Shelby registered two 2000GTs to participate in the CP division in the 1968 SCCA production car races. Shelby initially produced three vehicles, one of which was a spare. Even though it did well, it was the car’s last season of competition in the US. One of the vehicles was taken back by Toyota, who rebuilt it into a duplicate of their record vehicle, which is still in Japan. The two remaining Shelby vehicles are still in the country.
One of the Toyota-Shelby 2000GTs was auctioned off in 2022 for US $2.5 million.
[20]
In This Article...
The Toyota 2000GT is quite uncommon.
(CNN) – The most expensive Japanese car ever sold at an auction, a 1967 Toyota Shelby 2000GT for $2.5 million on Friday.
Carroll Shelby’s ability to transform it into a competitive race car accounts for a sizable portion of its value.
In how many Toyota 2000GTs does Australia possess?
The restoration of the 2000GT began recently at a workshop in Sydney, according to Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia.
Nine of the 351 Toyota 2000GT models produced between 1967 and 1970 were shipped to Australian consumers, making it one of the rarest cars ever produced by the Japanese automaker. And among the most priceless.
Depending on the state of the vehicle, auctions in more recent years have brought in around a million dollars. In 2013, a yellow 2000GT set records when it sold for US$1.2 million.
The 2000GT was a joint venture between Toyota and Yamaha and included a 2.0-liter six-cylinder engine from a Toyota Crown that Yamaha improved to produce 110kW and 175Nm.
The Nissan designer Albrecht von Goertz, who also came up with the BMW 507 and is largely recognized with developing the classic shape of the Nissan 240Z, was substantially involved in the styling, which was highly influenced by the Jaguar E-Type.
The 2000GT’s design has traces of the E-Type, although the Toyota was more expensive than the Jaguar. The car’s $9,200 price tag was ambitious compared to Ferrari vehicles from the same era.
Yamaha had previously intended to collaborate with Nissan on the 2000GT, which accounts for the design team’s participation. However, Yamaha withdrew, and Toyota eventually took up the project.
For the Sean Connery-starring James Bond movie You Only Live Twice, two convertible 2000GT models were built. The Petersen Museum in Los Angeles is currently home to one of the movie automobiles.
The local business restoring the Australian 2000GT is a part of the McCarroll’s Automotive Group, which has several dealerships spread out over seven different locations in the Sydney region.
Toyota declared in July 2020 that it would remanufacture gearbox and differential parts for the 2000GT and offer factory parts support.
Where is the Toyota 2000GT used by James Bond?
Return of Bond! No Time To Die, the 25th James Bond movie, is currently playing in theaters and has rekindled interest in the dapper British agent. What better time to remind you about the 1967 film You Only Live Twice, the fifth in the Bond series, which featured James Bond’s Toyota 2000GT.
If there is such a thing as an ordinary Toyota 2000GT, James Bond’s 2000GT, which appeared in the middle of the Swinging Sixties and was mostly driven by primary female star Akiko ‘Aki’ Wakabayashi in the movie, was not it. The 2000GT has earned praise from everyone, including Daniel Craig, who plays Bond in No Time To Die.
We’re able to offer ten fascinating facts about the first Toyota supercar and its role in the 007 canon because of the authorities at CommanderBond.net and 2000GT.net.
- In October 1965, the Toyota 2000GT made its debut at the Tokyo auto show. Albert R. “Cubby” Broccoli, the producer of the James Bond films, is likely to have noticed it when it became the star of the show and afterwards appeared in automobile magazines all over the world.
- Toyota was glad to help with the provision of cars for the You Only Live Twice movie due to the enormous popularity of “Zero-Zero” (as 007 is frequently known in Japan).
- The original two 2000GTs to be used in the movie were coupes, like the one in the image above, but it quickly became clear that Sean Connery was too tall to get inside the vehicle comfortably, making it difficult to film the inside scenes.
- Toyota thus built two 2000GT roadsters to make sure the production team could get all the necessary shots. These were the sole open-top 2000GTs that were ever formally manufactured.
- Akiko “Aki” Wakabayashi, the film’s leading lady, was unable to use the pedals and gears, so two Toyota test drivers did it for her.
- Toyota equipped James Bond’s Toyota 2000GT with a variety of Sony devices, along with “Q” of course. These featured two-way radios, a voice-controlled tape recorder, a VCR, cameras behind the front license plate, CCTV, and an audio system.
- The first coupes were sold and stayed in private hands in the UK up until 1995. Now that they are both back in Japan,
- Less is known about what happened to the cars utilized in the movie. One of them was allegedly destroyed in the 1970s, though it was allegedly sold to a private buyer by the corporation assigned with getting rid of them.
- The other 2000GT roadster was found in Hawaii in 1977, moved to Japan for restoration, and is currently prominently displayed in the Toyota Museum. It is recognized as one of the collection’s most expensive vehicles.
- 150 of the 351 2000GTs producedincluding those used in movies and racingwere exported from Japan. Although the exact number is unknown, those placed up for auction can be expected to fetch hundreds of thousands of pounds.
A 1969 Toyota 2000GT is how much?
We kept a careful eye on the BH Auction in Tokyo over the weekend because of a few sports cars that are considered to be forbidden fruit. Less than half of the 22 lots up for auction were ultimately sold at the event, but the selling lots do include some of the really rare cars that were offered, such the 1969 Toyota 2000GT prototype and the first production 1982 Lancia 037 Rally Stradale, as well as a few beautiful Porsches.
Although this auction featured various fascinating vehicles, the 1969 Toyota 2000GT “MF12L” was arguably the most noteworthy and thrilling vehicle present. This car is the first of nine prototypes developed with a larger 2.3-liter inline-six engine instead of the 2.0-liter engine the production car arrived with. The 2000GT is already an incredibly rare car with only 337 copies ever produced. This car is very unique because the larger engine was never made; the auction company pegs its value at between 65 million and 80 million (about $600,000 to $750,000 USD). Even though it sold for more than expected at 88 million (US$821,000), the price is still significantly lower than the $1.16 million someone paid for a 2000GT in the U.S. in 2013.
This 1982 Lancia 037 Rally Stradalea, a road-going variant of the Lancia Rally Group B racercar, was another noteworthy vehicle up for auction. The total number of these homologation automobiles, the first of which is this one (VIN: 001), were only produced in 217 units between 1982 and 1984. It’s understandable why the restoration of this car took 18 years given the low production numbers! This rally-bred Lancia sold for 70.4 million ($657,000 USD), exceeding expectations that it would get between 60 and 70 million (about $561,000 and $655,000 USD).
The Toyota 2000GT costs a lot; why is that?
This magnificent car is a rare item that wasn’t produced in large quantities. In actuality, only 351, of which 60 were intended for the American market, were produced. And even if the typical individual wanted to purchase a 2000GT, its price was excessive from the start.
The Japanese car was priced at $7,150 in the U.S. market at a time when the average yearly salary was $7,300. The majority of its competitors were substantially less expensive, thus the American people didn’t take to it and sales weren’t great. Surprisingly, this benefited Toyota because it is now nearly impossible to find a 2000GT at an auction. The car’s worth has increased naturally as a result of the imbalance between supply and demand, making it even more valuable.
Having said that, this unique car has other qualities that make it appealing besides its rarity. Another standout selling point is the fact that it broke 13 national and three world records.
Naturally, the fact that the 2000GT has been restored to its original red color and is stunning doesn’t hurt. The luxurious cabin’s wood accents, which were made from the same wood as Yamaha grand pianos, are a notable feature.
Last but not least, the 2000GT’s potent 2.0-liter double overhead-cam straight-six engine would enable it to hit 137 mph.
The 2000GT: Is it a Supra?
Nissan started working on the first high-performance sports automobile made in Japan in 1963. The A550X was the first prototype of a GT at Hamamatsu at Yamaha, with the front portion being modeled on the Corvette, as Joachim Kuch discovered when conducting research for his book “Cars that Made History – NISSAN – Datsun Z.” The 1965 Tokyo Motor Show was to be the debut event for the Nissan 2000GT. The inline four-cylinder engine from the Fairlady was being developed, but due to technical difficulties, the project stopped and was mutually agreed to be terminated in 1964.
Nissan creates Japanese GT concepts for Yamaha. Joachim Kuch’s book, Cars That Made History: Nissan.
Toyota has already begun work on their GT project. Following Nissan’s departure in December 1964, Toyota and Yamaha worked on the GT project together. Yamaha created a cylinder head with two overhead camshafts for Toyota. According to Yamaha Motor History, the official contract was signed on September 8, 1965, and a partnership that still exists today was established. Kuch claims that at the 1965 autumn show, Toyota displayed the Nissan vehicle with the Yamaha-developed 150 horsepower six-cylinder engine. Yamaha claims that Toyota introduced a prototype under the name Toyota 2000 GT. (presumably prototype 1)
The 2000 GT’s chassis is comparable to the Lotus Elan’s (Source Road & Track)
Yamaha quickly created a DOHC head based on the 1988 cc 6-cylinder (3M) block of the Toyopet (Toyota) Crown S4 after barely half a year, according to Road & Track. 150 horsepower at 6400 rpm is the standard output (Solex licensed Mikuini 3 x 32 PHH flat-stream carburettors). It produced 200 horsepower @ 7200 rpm while in racing mode (3x Weber 40 DCOE carburettors). In their book “A History of the First 50 Years,” Toyota oddly leaves out mentioning the partnership with Yamaha (no index entry)
Two Toyota 2000 GTs celebrated a double win at the Japanese Grand Prix in Suzuka as early as 1966. On the Yatabe high-speed test track, the GT even broke 13 international records for speed and endurance a year later. (Tacoma 2000 GT brochure source)
There were only 109 facelift units still available. (Frame 10401 – 10509). Not every frame (or frame number) is used. The 2000GT with automatic transmission is the MF 10-C. Unfortunately, the information I do have may only be in Japanese.
Because Toyota’s production was not set up for manual small series, all Toyota 2000 GTs were built by Yamaha in Iwata. According to NEKO, there were precisely 337 MF10 vehicles equipped with the 3M machine between 1967 and 1970.
What’s the market value of a 1967 Toyota 2000GT?
When this 1967 Toyota-Shelby 2000 GT fetched USD $2,535,000 on March 4, 2022, at Gooding & Company’s Amelia Island auction, it set a record for the most expensive Japanese vehicle ever.
The Toyota 2000GT was released when?
Toyota built the 2000GT from 1967 to 1970. During that period, the company sold 351 units globally, 62 of which made it to American shores. It’s strange that it wasn’t sold in more numbers, especially because a special edition convertible 2000GT model co-starred with Sean Connery in the 1967 James Bond film You Only Live Twice.
One of these cars cost slightly more than $7000 fifty years ago. Today, these vehicles fetch significantly higher prices; in 2013, a 2000GT went for $1.2 million, making it the most expensive Asian vehicle ever to be sold at auction. Recently, a white Japan-market example sold for $511,000 through RM Sotheby’s, demonstrating that these vehicles continue to be true collector pieces even though their sales may not reach previous highs. There aren’t any dollar signs next to the Solar Red automobile yet, so we can only guess how much it’s worth when it goes up for auction in May.
To assist users in providing their email addresses, this content was produced and maintained by a third party and imported onto this website. You might be able to discover more details on this and related material at piano.io.
Which Toyota is featured in the James Bond film?
Not an Aston Martin is the coolest vehicle in the newest James Bond movie.
The Toyota Land Cruiser is a favorite among Australians. The James Bond movies are so great because of their gorgeous automobiles.
In You Only Live Twice, what kind of vehicle does James Bond operate?
It has been revealed that a rare sports car made famous in a vintage James Bond film is expected to sell for much to $1.3 million at auction.
The 1967 Toyota 2000 GT, sometimes known as the “Japanese E-Type,” will be offered for sale as part of a $66 million auction in Monterey, California, the following month.
The movie “You Only Live Twice” featured a specially manufactured convertible version of the car. There were only 351 units of the version that was for sale.
This vintage 1967 Toyota 2000 GT may sell for more than $1 million at an auction in California.
The car is described as being “totally unrestored and exceptionally beautifully preserved.”
A custom-built convertible version of the car was seen in the James Bond film “You Only Live Twice,” starring Sean Connery.
In the 1967 movie, Bond, represented by Sean Connery, switches from his more recognizable Aston Martin to the 2000 GT.
The modest-looking red automobile, which is described as being “totally unrestored and very beautifully preserved,” is expected to sell for well over $1 million at RM Sotheby’s “Pinnacle” auction.