When is a brand-new car worthy of featuring on CC? When it’s a superbly handmade replica of a legendary classic car, of course! The famous (and famously gorgeous) 1967-70 Toyota 2000GT has one major defect: it’s extremely rare. Only 349 coupés and two drop-tops were made over five decades ago, so getting a hold of one is not exactly easy. Or affordable.
When I happened upon this very recognizable rear end in the Ginza district one Sunday, I thought I had scored the ultimate JDM unicorn. I wasn’t the only one gawking and taking photos, either – which doesn’t happen all that often.
But then, this badge didn’t add up. There was 1000 too many on that thing. What the…? Did they do a 3-litre version? No, that couldn’t be right.
Turns out Toyota never did make a 3000GT (not in this shape anyway). This is a replica made by an outfit called Rocky Auto, out of Nagoya. Their bread-and-butter is high-end classic car restorations, restomods and sales of either rare and pre-war imports, or sought-after domestic fare like Fairlady Zs or Skyline GT-Rs. They started making replicas of Skyline C10 and C110 GT-Rs, which are also near-unobtainium, before setting their sights upon the real challenge: a completely re-engineered version of the Toyota 2000GT.
Unlike most replicas, the Rocky 3000GT was created ex nihilo from the ground up: Rocky Auto designed a chassis, developed and fine-tuned the suspension and opted for a 3-litre 220hp 2JZ engine for getting those rear wheels going. They took a real Toyota 2000GT and meticulously measured every curve, crease and crevice of the body to re-create the original car’s dramatic appearance, and lo and behold, by 2015, the Rocky 3000GT was born.
Source: Carview.yahoo.co.jp
Liberties were taken with the interior: modern HVAC, more comfortable seats and other mod cons were deemed necessary, as well as a rather ugly type of wood veneer. I did not photograph the inside of the featured car (the owner was either inside it or very close by), but this shot captures what I saw when I had a glance – and a mental recoil. I’m all for A/C and can understand the requirement for 21st Century gauges and the like, but this is the one aspect of the 3000GT that fails to impress.
Other than that, the 3000GT is absolutely amazing. I’m not sure when production really started (these are strictly built-to-order), but the fact that you can buy one of these new in 2023 – with their token bumpers, tiny fender mirrors, zero airbags and 15-year-old engine – is pretty amazing. Who said Japanese car regulations were overly strict?
Because it’s built-to-order, quite a lot of customization is on offer. This includes any colour one might like (though the classic white will always be preferred), a 5-speed manual transmission, a bit of engine tuning and/or turbocharging for those who like a bit more oomph from their 2JZ, or even a hybrid variant. The latest addition to the options list is a 007-style convertible – licensed to thrill!
Prices start around the US$200,000 mark for a “base” model. Sounds like a lot (and it is), but that’s still five or six times cheaper than a genuine Toyota 2000GT that you’d probably never dare drive on the road. Just be careful when you parallel park.
Related posts:
Vintage Review: 1968 Toyota 2000GT – April 1968 Car and Driver Road Test, by GN
Freaking awesome… I’ve owned 18 Nissan/Datsun zcars, s130s and z31 cars. What a thrill it would be to rock this beauty… Now to save up the $200k
Lovely recreation -only the Japanese could do that so attentively.
Why did they rob an old TVR of its dash, though?
$200k seems like not very much money in this case. It certainly gets one a more distinctive car than something like a McLaren, Ferrari, Lamborghini or whatever the supercar du jour is. And frankly a 2JZ is plenty of engine for most people anyway. It may well be more reliable and require less maintenance than the others listed above to boot! On the other hand it’s more money than something like a Shelby Daytona Coupe replica, which though doesn’t seem as well finished or with as much detail nuance.
Swap that wood out for something else, even just a vinyl or flat black painted panel, and it’s improved already. Quite the find, Tatra-san, and kudos to the owner for not subtly just removing the 3000GT badge, quite likely he’s proud to own it as is.
Dump the cash and the auto box and fit a six speed manual from Toyota..
That is a good looking and very exotic looking car. I’ve always liked this model. Shame they didn’t make them for a longer period of time back in the day. Wonder why they stopped after just four model years?
The Toyota 2000GT is probably the most beautiful car to ever come from Japan, or maybe anywhere else. It drove quite well too (at least if you were short enough to fit in it; tall people need not apply from what I’ve read everywhere). The replica is quite amazing except that the grille looks off to me. Even the interior, if not as faithful, is much better than I usually see in replicars, which often are just that of the donor car’s interior with a few mods.
> They took a real Toyota 2000GT and meticulously measured every curve, crease and crevice of the body to re-create the original car’s dramatic appearance
I’m surprised this is legal in Japan though. I know in the US even if every dimension is different, if the overall appearance is that of another brand, that company can take action and prevent the car from being sold. There was an outfit in the 1980s that turned Pontiac Fieros into Ferrari 308 GTB clones called the Mera, though they were quick to point out no body parts were the same dimensions and that their car’s attractiveness resulted from its unique design. They never uttered the name “Ferrari” in any of their marketing or PR. Didn’t matter; Ferrari sued and won the case and the clone was taken off the market.
“the grille looks off to me”
I think it’s the thick ribbed chrome strip at the top that offends here. The original didn’t have that. Likewise the strip across the tailgate. Interestingly their prototype in the brochure photo doesn’t have these.
Some time ago, manufacturers started patenting their designs.
Ostensibly, it was to prevent the Chinese manufacturers blatantly plagiarising fakes (Landwind’s Evoque!) and it’s where a lot of ‘scoops’ arise.
But Ferrari might have been the first to do it, in order to prevent kit-bodied MR2s etc before then.
Rolls Royce patented their grille (now I remember…) to stop those Beetle kits mentioned here a while back. They were probably the start of it.
There was (is?) an outfit in the US making replicas of Chevy’s Corvair Monza SS show cars.
They got the outside right. It looks the part for sure. Nobody would ever know outside of that tacky bar of LEDs.
Inside, I guess this is where all kit cars are likely to let down, but these are “unforced errors” so to speak. The mass-market auto gearshift looks silly in there. I also see a parking brake pedal, a decision that I can’t understand. I don’t know what a real 2000GT dash looks like, but i’m imagining a lot of sewn black vinyl, a look that should still be easy to do. I think this is a place where a set of clearly marked aftermarket type gauges would’ve looked right at home alongside a chrome metal gearshift with a leather boot and round ball. If it’s an automatic, it should have a gated shifter hidden under the boot so it appears manual to someone peeking inside. That’s how I’d have done it, but I didn’t. Hats off to them for getting as much right as they did, if I had seen that car especially without time to study it at all, it’d have made my day.
I looked it up and the dash is a better approximation of the real thing than I would’ve ever thought, but still let down by weird veneer and RAV4 gearshift.
The original had a “twist to release” pull handle parking brake that’s also present on the replica (ahead of the shifter). Since there is a foot pedal parking brake the pull handle could be a dummy.
The gauges are all wrong. Shouldn’t be hard to find more period-appropriate gauges, with so many 60s replicas on the market. Not sure what the strange chrome strips on the rear window are all about either.
Is it louvered window glass? The “strips” would be the joints.
Massive “flow through” ventilation?
Original dash.
Amazing car. The dash is such a let down and doesn’t fit the price. But in a slightly more rational dream garage this would have a place for me
OMG! It was once my pleasure to have a short ride in an original 2000GT and the thing was just exquisite! Lovely, refined but tuneful motor, beautifully made, but tiny inside.
The 3000GT instantly advances to #1 on my want list!
Or a huge replica fan, and at the time I wasn’t a huge 2000GT fan (hey, I was pretty young) but this is very nice. As Jim Klein said, if the quality is good seems much more fun than a mass-production Ferrari or Lamborghini. I’m surprised that only 350 were made; I have seen several though maybe they were all the same car. The ones I’ve seen plus most photos were all the same slightly off-white shade as this 3000.
The original 2000GT has a rosewood veneer dash from the Yamaha Piano division or something like that, in other words not something you’re going to see nowadays. As a BRZ owner it’s neat to see my car’s great grandpa but one that can be driven more often realistically compared to the real one. I was wondering what size rims/tires the 3000GT has compared to the original?? I imagine the original 2000GT would have 14 inch rims at most, the ones on the 3000GT look more like 15 or 16″..
Can’t say for sure what tyre size is used on the 3000GT, but the 2000GT wore 15”.
In 2019 I was part of a group of docents at a Frank Lloyd Wright house in Los Angeles who toured the Frederick Weisman art collection at his home in Holmby Hills. Upon departure, we had a brief opportunity to see some vehicles in the garage, on of which was Mr. Weisman’s 2000GT. We were told it was one of a small number of pre-production prototypes. The reason given for his ownership of the car was that Mr. Weisman had established and developed Mid-Atlantic Toyota in 1970, the first of four Toyota distributorships in the United States. Otherwise the tour guide knew little about the history of this particular car and I was able to grab only a couple of quick, not-great photos.
Another quickly taken shot of the car, wedged in among others in the garage, including a blue Corniche convertible.
It’s near perfection. Just need a manual transmission, lose the LED light strip below the grille, and replace the garish wood grain with black leather.
Nice of Toyota not to file a copyright claim. Doubt Ferrari, Porsche, Lamborghini, etc. would be that generous.
The interior shot is not from this car, so it could have a manual transmission and better dashboard and gauges.
Just exquisite, the ultimate Japanese GT car. I saw a 2000 on the street in Oakland’s Chinatown in the early 1970’s, and knew exactly what it was. I suppose that Toyota realized that they couldn’t produce these in a financially responsible way. Datsun had the same idea for a GT, but made the concessions necessary for large scale production. I’ve read some speculation that the same designer of the 2000 also tried to sell the idea to Datsun. The early Zs certainly were made to a price, and the detailing and quality reflect this. But the engine was robust, the styling beautiful, and they became a legend on their own.
I never thought about it, but the BRZ is the current popular spiritual descendant of the 2000 GT. Although the Supra holds the more exclusive position.
I wish that I was rich, I’d put my order in today!
Here’s one in a decidedly non-factory shade of orange. 🙂
That’s a great find – I wasn’t aware of these re-creations. I could tell something was off proportion-wise from the first photo.
I won’t bore you with my story of having the opportunity to buy a real 2000GT in 1981 – and turning it down – my top “the one that got away” regret…
I think we’d all like to hear that story Jim.
The wheel diameter is larger than original, probably because it’s hard to find high performance tires in the original 15″ size.
Well I know where my lotto win will be going, thats one hell of a replica.
MSRP 23,800,000 yen, or about 170,787 USD.
That’s actually less expensive than some Shelby Mustang replicas.
Apparently there’s a place in Japan that makes 2000GT ‘lookalikes’ out of Miatas too. Starts at 1.07 in this video.