IEDEI

i love finding cool older cars which I am not familiar with….which i really start digging.  The as-posted-the-other-day Isuzu 117 Coupe is one of those cars; and here is another one by the obscure, underdog, and defunct japanese carmaker Isuzu.  Isuzu still makes commercial trucks, engines, and transport materials; however they stopped making cars in the past decade.

I have a soft spot for 60s Japanese cars, especially built by underdog companies like Isuzu; because i feel it represents a time in the japanese automotive industry where they had passion for what they were trying to make.  Sure they were copying the italian style of the 60s (Alfa, Lancia, Fiat….) however those cars were cool; so they were in turn copying cool cars, but with their own japanese twist which made for some very cool, small coupes and sedans.  The perfect example of this is the Isuzu Bellett GT and GTR Coupe.  I have to say that i really love the chunky round shape of this coupe; it is very unique even for its time.  I love the light curve on the roofline.  I’ve never seen one in person, but i hope to.  I found a few used i Japan, and they sell for between $20-30k now.

“The GT-R, more specifically GT Type-R (for “racing”), was a racing version of the GT, also available to individual customers. First presented in September 1969, the GT-R featured a 1.6 L DOHC engine from the 117 Coupe, power brakes and numerous other modifications. It was visually different from other Belletts primarily by a specific paint scheme, which included a completely black hood. The GT-R achieved many successes in racing, and has gained its own fan community. Only about 1,400 GT-Rs were manufactured.

Though the GT-R was one of the first cars to be called “GT-R”, the Nissan Skyline GT-R was in fact earlier, with the PGC10 GT-R being released six months beforehand, in March 1969. The Holden Torana GTR was released in October 1969. However, there was a Bridgestone GTR motorbike which predates all of these. It is also worth noting that Isuzu used the Type-R designation long before Honda adopted it.” (WP)

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