1969 Shelby 2000 GT

Toyota recognised that success in the USA was vital in establishing the car’s quality on an international level and decided it should be entered in SCCA (Sports Car Club of America) competition to demonstrate its abilities against potential showroom rivals such as the Porsche 911, Lotus Elan and Triumph 250.

Initially, Peter Brock, designer of the Cobra Daytona, was to be tasked with the job of preparing the cars, but at the last minute a deal was struck with racing legend Carroll Shelby, Brock’s former boss and the mastermind behind the high-performance versions of the AC Cobra and Ford Mustang.

Shelby’s modifications included fitting new low-profile tyres and uprated suspension to lower the ride height by around 60mm. He also increased the straight-six engine’s displacement and fitted a new DOHC cylinder head to unleash around 200bhp, and improved the power-to-weight ratio by removing all unnecessary items from the interior. Even though the Toyota delivered less power than its rival Porsche 911, it still recorded a number of race victories that season.

Modifications
Fiberglas trunk, Koni adjustable damper kits and adjustable anti roll-bars.

Engine
The three cars were delivered as a "competition" model. The 150hp engine is pushed to 200hp by Toyota. But Shelby only saw 190 horses on the test bench. With help from John Dunn, the Shelby tweaked Toyota/ Yamaha 6-cylinder inline engine engine would deliver 205hp at 8000 rpm and 245 Nm.

To achieve this result, Shelby had to increase the cubic capacity to 2040cm 3. The cast iron block has been polished and reworked for oil circulation, as are the crankshaft and connecting rods. Special pistons are forged from aluminum and Shelby designs a new oil pan, new camshafts, valves and also changes the flywheel. With all these modifications, the 2000GT could reach 240 km/h!

Driven by Scooter Patrick and Dave Jordan, the 2000GT competed in the production class of the SCCA series in 1968. Even though the Toyota had less power that its main rival, the Porsche 911, it still recorded a number of race victories, with Patrick and Jordan finishing the series second and third in the championship respectively.