History will remember only the turbocharged, 4-wheel-drive and 4-wheel-steer VR-4 for its significance. A pair of Mitsubishi turbochargers with individual intercoolers boosted its output to horsepower and lbft of torque remark: domestic car was capped by the voluntary limit of hp, at least on paper. Because the turbos were relatively small, they were quick to spool up and provided a smooth and linear power delivery. Maximum torque arrived at merely rpm, implying a tractability rare for its days.
The driver could alter the sound of exhaust by toggling a by-pass valve, so to achieve maximum power at sport mode or luxury-car quietness at touring mode. The GTO adopted this feature 20 years earlier than the rest of the industry. Like-wise, ride quality could be altered by the electronic-controlled dampers. The driver could select between Touring and Sport mode, while the electronic brain might adjust suspension stiffness by guessing your mood through collecting data about speed, steering angle, throttle and g-force etc.
Again this led the industry for a couple of decades. Advanced technology also extended to aerodynamics. You think McLaren F1 pioneered active aerodynamics? The big Mitsubishi beat it to the market with a lip spoiler that dropped by 80 mm and a rear wing that inclined 15 degrees at speed over 50 mph.
Its center differential normally split torque front to rear, while a viscous coupling could lock up the diff in case of wheel slip. Both front and rear axles were served with LSD. Oversteer was further tamed by active rear-wheel steering. Above 30 mph, the rear wheels turned slightly in the same direction as the front.
All these high-tech hardwares added up to a considerable kg. Front-engined, 4wd, 4ws. A pump of 20 horsepower and upgrade to Getrag 6-speed gearbox in helped it to narrow the gap, but it could never shrug off the bulky feel. Despite of excellent roadholding and all-weather drivability, the GTO or GT VR-4 was criticized for bags of understeer and lack of agility, blamed to its immense weight and weight distribution.
Its complication also hampered the directness of controls. The cable-operated gearshift felt loose. The torque that went through its front wheels numbed its steering. The 4-wheel-drive and full-time 4-wheel-steering systems contributed nothing to agility but acted as an extra layer of insulation between the man and machine, something Nissan Skyline GT-R avoided cleverly.
The GT seems to be a toss-up for reliability if it's stock so always check it out if you can, but I would try to stay away from these cars if they've been modified under the hood as the car doesn't have the best reputation when modified. It's Dodge counter-part is cheap. Values of the Dodge Stealth have remained low.
Seriously low. With Stealth being cheap, it keeps the GT's prices in check because again, they are mechanically the same car and look very similar. Outside of those, they aren't that good, and here's why.
They are heavy and underpowered. Why do you think the GTs are so cheap? Are you glad they are cheap or do you wish they would appreciate in value? Let me know in the comments. If you enjoyed the article give it a bump and don't forget to follow me and join my tribe for more content like this.
I'm a 21 year old petrolhead from Nashville Tennessee. I currently reside in Peachtree City. I've loved cars all my life especially Skyline GT-Rs and they are one of the few things I actually care about besides God and my Family. Talking about the worlds' most unique, and forgotten cars. The VR-4 looks so much better than any Supra imo.
The only one I potentially looks better than the A80 Supra is the 99 model. Don't worry boys, its coming back as a crossover! Seriously though, I've driven a couple of variants of the gto and they're a lot of fun, they sound and feel really good. In a few 90s vhs tapes from best motoring they used to put up power to weight races and I remember on some tracks these cars beating out their competition won't name names, dont want to cause any arguments.
In the UK we don't have any of those issues. No stealth to worry about, vr4 goes for about k and they're never modified. I'm not into JDM that much, so some relations still confuse me. Where does ZX stand there? I've always found it to be extremely good car, but proper enthusiast maybe know better? Owned a VR4 with pop up headlights and 5 speed gearbox. I test drove a bunch of the competition at the time including the RX7 and Supra.
The GT was the best bang for the buck for me The main fragile item were the synchros in 1st and 2nd gear I managed to kill one gearbox fortunately in warranty.
Did you drive it like you stole it everyday? Drove it very hard and maintained it religiously Tim Rodie.
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