Grand tourer

Evolution of the Gran Turismo automobile

Grand touring car design evolved from vintage and pre-World War II fast touring cars and streamlined closed sports cars.

Italy developed the first gran turismo cars. The small, light-weight and aerodynamic coupé, named the Berlinetta, originated in the 1930s. A contemporary French concept, known as Grande Routière, emphasized style, elegance, luxury and gentlemanly transcontinental touring, were often larger cars than the smaller Italian Gran Tursimos. Italian designers saw that compared to a traditional open two-seat sports car, the increase in weight and frontal area of an enclosed cabin for the driver and mechanic (or passenger) could be offset by the benefits of streamlining to reduce drag. Independent carrozzeria (coachbuilders) provided light and flexible fabric coachwork for powerful short-wheelbase fast-touring chassis by manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo. Later, Carrozzeria Touring of Milan would pioneer sophisticated Superleggera (super light-weight) aluminium bodywork, allowing for even more aerodynamic forms. The additional comfort of an enclosed cabin was beneficial for the Mille Miglia (Thousand Miles) road-race held in Italy's often wintry north.

1929 Alfa Romeo 6C 1750 GT

The first automobile to be named Gran Turismo was the 1929 Alfa Romeo's 6C 1750 GT, the fabric-bodied Berlinetta model by Carrozzeria Touring being winner of the Vetture Chiuse (closed car) category at the 1931 Mille Miglia. An improved and supercharged version, the 6C 1750 GTC Gran Turismo Compressore, won the Vetture a Guida Interna (internally driven car) category of the 1932 Mille Miglia.

1935 Fiat 508 Balilla

SIATA was a Turin, Italy-based Fiat tuner, typical of a popular class of Italian artisan manufacturers of small gran turismo, sports and racing cars—usually Fiat based—that came to be known in the 1970s as Etceterini, such as Nardi, Abarth, Ermini and, in 1946, Cisitalia. From this design came the SIATA and Fiat aerodynamic gran turismo-style Berlinetta Mille Miglias of 1933 and 1935.

Ferrari

Enzo Ferrari, whose Scuderia Ferrari had been the racing division of Alfa Romeo from 1929 until 1938, parted ways from Alfa Romeo in 1939: Ferrari's first car (itself an Etceterini) the Fiat-based Auto Avio Costruzioni 815 racing sports car, debuted at the 1940 Mille Miglia. Two were produced. The first real Ferrari, the V12 125 S, also a racing sports car, debuted in 1947 at the Piacenza racing circuit. Again, only two were produced, but they rapidly evolved into the 159 and 166 models, including the 1949 Ferarri 166 Inter, a road-going berlinetta coupé with coachwork by Carrozzeria Touring and other coachbuilders.

Cisitalia 202 SC

The Cisitalia 202 SC gained considerable fame for the outstanding design of its Pininfarina coachwork, and is credited with greatly influencing the style of subsequent berlinetta or fastback gran turismo coupés. However, the Fiat based 1100 cc four-cylinder Cisitaila was no match on the race track for Ferrari's hand-built 2000 cc V12, and Ferrari dominated the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa taking the first three places. An 1100 cc class was hurriedly created, but not in time to save Cisitalia's business fortunes—the company's owner Piero Dusio had already decamped to Argentina.

It was initially hoped by Italian motor industry observers that the small and struggling Italian sports and racing car manufacturer, Cisitalia, would find in the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa regulations (initially called Turismo Veloce or Fast Touring) a category for its Cisitalia Tipo 202 SC—the road-going production coupé version of Cisitalia's single-seat D46 racing car and two-seat 202 open sports car.

Maserati A6 1500

The Maserati A6 1500 won the 1500 cc class at the 1949 Coppa-Europa. It was driven by Franco Bordoni, former fighter ace of the Regia Aeronautica who had debuted as a pilota da corsa at the 1949 Mille Miglia. The A6 1500 was the first road going production automobile to be offered by the Maserati factory, featuring a tubular chassis with independent front suspension and coil springs, the 1500 cc six-cylinder being derived from the Maserati brothers pre-war voiturette racing engines. The body of the A6 1500 was an elegant two-door fast-back coupe body, also by Pinin Farina.

Ferrari 166 'Inter'

The Ferrari 166 'Inter' S coupé model won the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa. Regulations stipulated body form and dimensions but did not at this time specify a minimum production quantity. The car was driven by Bruno Sterzi, and is recognized as the first Ferrari gran turismo.

After that race, governing body CSAI officially introduced a new class, called Gran Turismo Internazionale, for cars with production over thirty units per year, thereby ruling out Ferrari's hand-built berlinettas.

1951 Ferrari 212 Export

Ferrari's response for the new Gran Tursimo championship was the road/race Ferrari 212. Twenty-seven short-wheelbase competition versions called Export, some with increasingly popular gran turismo-style berlinetta coupé coachwork, were produced for enthusiasts (Ferrari called the very first example 212 MM) while the road verson was called Inter. The Ferrari 212 Export featured long-range fuel tanks, high compression pistons and triple Weber 32 DCF carburettors; power was 170 bhp from the 2600cc Gioacchino Colombo-designed 'short-block' V12 engine, evolved from the earlier Ferrari 166 (2000cc) and 195 (2300cc). All versions came with the standard Ferrari five-speed non-synchromesh gearbox and hydraulic drum brakes. All 1951 Ferraris shared a double tube frame chassis design evolved from the 166. Double-wishbone front suspension with transverse leaf spring, and live rear axle with semi-elliptic leaf springs and radius rods were employed. The Ferrari 212 Export (212 MM) gran turismo berlinetta (chassis no. 0070M) debuted in first-place overall at the April 1951 Coppa Inter-Europa, driven by Luigi Villoresi, and in June (chassis no. 0092E) was first in the Gran Turismo category at the Coppa della Toscana driven by Milanese Ferrari concessionaire and proprietor of Scuderia Guastalla, Franco Cornacchia. The 212 Export continued to serve Ferrari well in the Sports and GT categories until replaced by the 225 S, and although it would later be overshadowed by the internationally famous 250 GT, the 212 Export was an important model in the successful line of Colombo-engined V12 GT cars that made Ferrari legendary.

1951 Lancia Aurelia B20 GT

Even more impressive than the new Ferrari in 1951 was the stunnng Gran Turismo racing debut of Lancia's Aurelia B20 GT.

Lancia had begun production in 1950 of their technically advanced Aurelia sedan. At the 1951 Turin Motor Show, the Pinin Farina-bodied Gran Tursimo B20 Coupé version was unveiled to an enthusiastic motoring public. Here, finally, according to author Jonathan Wood, was a fully realized production GT car, representing the starting point of the definitive Grand Tourer:

"This outwardly conventional saloon bristled with innovation and ingenuity, in which the masterly hand of Vittorio Jano is apparent. In the B20 are elements of the Cistalia of 1947, coupés which Pinin undertook on a 6C Alfa Romeo and Maserati in 1948, along with the Fiat 1100 S coupé with its rear accommodation for children. The original Aurelia had been under-powered and, in 1951, the V6 was enlarged to 1991 cc, which was also extended to the coupé, though in 75 rather than 70 bhp form as the B20 was developed as a sporting model in its own right. In addition the B20 had a shorter wheelbase and a higher rear axle ratio, making it a 100 mph car. Lancia chose the Gran Turismo name for its new model and the suggestion could only have come from Vittorio Jano hinself, for had he not been responsible for the original 1750 Alfa Romeo of the same name back in 1929?"

Four semi-ufficiali works B20 GTs, together with a number of privateer entrants, were sent to the Mille Miglia in April, 1951, where the factory Bracco / Maglioli car finished second overall, behind only a Ferarri sports racer of twice the engine capacity. Lancia Aurelias swept the GT 2.0 Liter division. In June 1951, Bracco was partnered with the 'father of GT racing' himself, Johnny Lurani, to race a B20 GT at Le Mans, where they were victorious in the 2.0 Liter sportscar division, placing a very creditable 12th overall. A 1–2 finish at the famous Coppa d’Oro delle Dolomiti, among other victories including the 6 Ore di Pescara, rounded out an astonishing debut racing season for this ground-breaking automobile, winning its division in the Italian GT Championship for Umberto Castiglionoi in 1951. Lancia B20 GTs would go on to win the Over 2.0 Liter Italian GT Championship in 1953, 1954 and 1955 with the B20-2500.

1952 Fiat 8V "Otto Vu"

A surprise to the international press, who were not expecting a gran turismo berlinetta from Italy's largest manufacturer of standard touring models, the Fiat 8V "Otto Vu" was unveiled at the Geneva Salon in March 1952 to international acclaim. Although not raced by the factory, the Otto Vu was raced by a number of private owners. Vincenzo Auricchio and Piero Bozzinio raced to fifth in the Gran Turismo category of the 1952 Mille Miglia, and Ovidio Capelli placed third in the GT 2000 cc class at the Giro della Toscana in June, with a special race-spec lightweight Zagato coupe; the GT category overall at this event was won by Franco Cornacchia's Ferrari 212 Export (refer above). Capelli and the 8V Zagato topped this accomplishment by winning the GT category of the Pescara 12 Hours in August, ahead of two Lancias. The new Fiat 8V garnered sufficient competition points over the season to become the national two-liter GT Champion (a feat it repeated every year until 1959). Elio Zagato, the coachbuilder's son, was successful in competition with the Otto Vu in 1954 and 1955, attracting further customer interest and leading Zagato to eventually develop two different GT racing versions.

The 8V Otto Vu earned its name courtesy of its high performance V8 engine (Ford having already trademarked "V8").

1956 Ferrari 250 GT

"The 250GT Ferrari must surely represent the ultimate in modern high-speed sporting travel, or GT competition, and holds today a position similar to the Bugatti 57SC of 1939. In 1962 the GTO Ferrari coupés had a remarkable season of successes in G.T. racing and have become the standard by which any competition coupé is measured, and by steady development [the Ferrari 250GT] has become one of the world's greatest cars." MOTOR SPORT, March 1963.

1953 saw the first serious attempt to series produce the Ferrari motor car, two models of the Type 250 Europa being produced. The cars were an evolution of the previous models, available with either the Colombo or Lampredi versions of the 250 V12 engine, coil spring front suspension, an improved sports gearbox (four speeds) with Porsche synchromesh, large drum brakes and luxurious outfitting. A few appeared in motorsports but did not initially threaten the international Mercedes-Benz 300 SL and Porsche 356 competition.

"In the Mille Miglia of 1956 the first of the lightweight Grand Touring coupés, driven by Gendebien, battled with the Mercedes 300SL of Metternich and Einsendel to come in fifth overall and first in G.T. over 2,000 c.c. The G.T. Ferrari had arrived!" MOTOR SPORT, March 1963.

After its 1956 debut, the 250 GT "went from strength to strength". Powered by the Colombo 250 engine, output was up to 240 b.h.p. at 7,000 r.p.m. A short-wheelbase (SWB) version of the 250 chassis was employed for improved handling and road-holding in corners, and top speed was up to 157 m.p.h. In 1957 Gendebien finished third overall in the Mille Miglia, and won the "index of performance". Alfonso de Portago won the Tour de France and GT races at Montlhéry and Castelfusano in a lightweight Carrozzeria Scaglietti 250 GT. Gendebien became a gran turismo specialist in 250 GTs when he wasn't driving sports racing Ferrari Testa Rossas ("Red Heads" for their red engine covers), achieving success in both the Giro Sicilia and Tour de France.

In 1958, sports racing Testa Rossas swept the Manufacturer's Championship, and in 1959 the T.R. engine was adapted to the 250 GT. The spark plugs were relocated and each cylinder now had a separate intake port. Larger Weber twin-choke carburetors were employed in a triple configuration (sports racing T.R.s employed six) and some special customer cars had three four-choke Webers (one choke per cylinder). Dry-sump lubrication was employed, and the camshaft valve timing was only slightly less than the full-race Testa Rossas. G.T. power was up to 267 b.h.p. at 7,000 r.p.m. (240 b.h.p at 6,800 rpm for road versions). Experiments were conducted with Dunlop disc brakes, which were adopted in 1960, along with an even shorter wheelbase for competizione versions.

In 1962, the definitive competition gran turismo was unveiled, the 250 GTO. A full Testa Rossa engine was employed (albeit with black crinkle-finish engine covers) with six twin-choke Webers. Power was up to 300 b.h.p. at 7,400 r.p.m. and with a lightweight 2000 lb body and chassis: the car was an immediate winner.

"Remarkable as it might be on the circuit, it is also a remarkable machine on the road. One American Ferrarist, who owned and raced many G.T. Ferraris, commented that the G.T.O. is an even more pleasant car on the road! He maintains that it is most tractable and overheating in traffic congestions is no problem. In its short lifetime the 250GTO has established an enviable record. It is also one of the most sought after competition cars as evidenced by recent European suggestions that "black market" G.T.O.s bring higher prices than new ones. The demand is greater than the supply." MOTOR SPORT, March 1963.

In November 2016, it was reported that a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO was being offered for public sale—normally brokers negotiate deals between extremely wealthy collectors "behind closed doors". GTOs had previoulsy been auctioned in 2014 and 1990. The 2017 sale was expected to reach USD $56,000,000.00, the particular GTO concerned (the second of just thirty-six ever made) thus set to become the world's most expensive car.

Impact of Racing

The Italian Mille Miglia, held from 1927 to 1957, was central to the evolution of the gran turismo concept. The event was one of the most important on the Italian motor-sport calendar, and could attract up to five million spectators. Winning drivers such as Tazio Nuvolari, Rudolf Caracciola, and Stirling Moss; and manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche would become household names.

According to Enzo Ferrari:

"In my opinion, the Mille Miglia was an epoch-making event, which told a wonderful story. The Mille Miglia created our cars and the Italian automobile industry. The Mille Miglia permitted the birth of GT, or grand touring cars, which are now sold all over the world. The Mille Miglia proved that by racing over open roads for 1,000 miles, there were great technical lessons to be learned by the petrol and oil companies and by brake, clutch, transmission, electrical and lighting component manufacturers, fully justifying the old adage that motor racing improves the breed."

The Mille Miglia is still celebrated today as one of the world's premier historic racing events.

A closed sports coupé almost prevailed at Le Mans in 1938, when a Carrozziera Touring-bodied Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B, driven by Raymond Sommer and Clemente Bionedetti, led the famous 24-hour race from the third lap until early Sunday afternoon, retiring only due to engine problems.

CSAI

Italy's national governing body of motorsport was the Commissione Sportiva Automobilistica Italiana (CSAI). Count Giovanni Lurani Cernuschi (popularly known as Johnny Lurani was a key commissioner. He was also a senior member of the world governing body, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA)).

Lurani was impressed by the dominant performance at the Mille Miglia in 1940, by a Carroziera Touring-bodied BMW 328 coupé, winning the event at over 100 mph average speed, driven by Fritz Huschke von Hanstein and Walter Bäumer:

"The BMW team included a splendid aerodynamic Berlinetta, wind tunnel designed by German specialists, that was extremely fast at 135 mph... I couldn't believe the speeds these BMWs were capable of."

Lurani was instrumental in designing the regulations for the Italian 1937 Turismo Nazionale championship, whereby production vehicles approved by the CSAI were raced with the original chassis and engine layout as specified in the factory catalog and available for customers to buy; engines could be tuned and bored out, but the bodywork had to conform to regulations. The CSAI were concerned that FIA (known as AIACR at the time) 'Annexe C' Sports cars were becoming little more than thinly-disguised two-seat Grand Prix racers, far removed from the cars ordinary motorists could purchase from the manufacturers' catalogs.

The CSAI was shut down by the Italian Fascist government under Mussolini at the end of 1937, and replaced with a new organisation called FASI. The Italian Fascists, as in Nazi Germany, sought control of motor racing as an important vehicle for national prestige and propaganda. FASI replaced Turismo Nazionale with the less strictly regulated Sports Nazionale championship, which ran in 1938 and 1939. Postwar, the CSAI was re-established and in 1947 Italian national championships were held for both Sports Internazionale (FIA Annexe C sports cars) and Sports Nazionale. Sports Nazionale was abolished in 1948, creating the opportunity for a new category in 1949.

1949 Coppa Inter-Europa

The first race specifically for grand touring motor cars was the 1949 Coppa Inter-Europa, held over three hours on 29 May, at the 6.3 kilometer Autodromo Nazionale di Monza (Italy). It was won by a limited production Ferrari V12.

After this race, governing body CSAI officially introduced a new class, called Gran Turismo Internazionale, for 1950. The regulations were drawn up by Johhny Lurani and fellow Italian motor racing journalist and organizer Corrado Filippini, requiring for qualification the production of thirty models per year, thereby ruling out, for the time being, Ferrari's hand-built berlinettas.

1950 Mille Miglia

On the third weekend of April 1950, it was the turn of the annual Mille Miglia, one-thousand miles from Brescia to Rome and back over closed public roads, to include a Gran Turismo Internazionale category for the first time. Twenty-four cars were entered in the Gran Turismo Internazionale category, including Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Coupé Touring, Cisitalia 202B berlinetta and Fiat 1100 S coupé. The field was rounded out by a solitary Fiat-based SIATA Daina. Alfa Romeo took first place in the Gran Turismo Internazionale category (a creditable tenth overall) and also second place in category, followed by three Cisitalias. The overall race winning Ferrari 195 S was also a berlinetta coupe, but in the over 2000 Sports car class.

Schwelm Cruz and Alfa Romeo repeated the success the 1950 Targa Florio and Mille Miglia by winning the Gran Turismo category at the Coppa della Toscana in June. An Alfa Romeo 6C 2500, driven by Salvatore Amendola, was also victorious in the Gran Turismo category of the Coppa d' Oro delle Dolomiti in July, run through the Dolomite Mountains, starting and finishing in the town of Cortina d'Ampezzo. An Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 took the Gran Turismo honours again at the Giro delle Calabria in August. Like the Bristol 400, the Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 was based on a pre-war design, and is considered by some to be the last of the classic Alfa Romeos.

1950 Coppa Inter-Europa

The 1950 Coppa Inter-Europa at Monza was held in March. Separate races were held for sports cars, and for Gran Turismo cars in four classes: 750, 1100, 1500 and over 1500.

Ferrari entered, and won, the Sports car 2000 class with a Ferrari 166 MM berlinetta, while an Alfa Romeo Sperimentale (over 2000 class) won the sports car race overall.

The Gran Turismo race was contested by Lancia Aprilia, Cisitalia 202B, Stanguellini GT 1100, Fiat 500, Alfa Romeo 2500 and Fiat Zagato. The overall winner was WWII fighter ace Franco Bordoni's Maserati A6 1500.

1950 Targa Florio

The annual Targa Florio in Sicily was held the first weekend of April, and featured a Gran Turismo Internazionale category for the first time, in two classes: 1500 and over 1500. Contested by Lancia Aprilia, Cisitalia 202, Fiat 1100, Maserati A6, and even a solitary British Bristol (based on the successful pre-war BMW 328), the Gran Turismo Internaionzle category was won by Argentinian driver, Adolfo Schwelm Cruz, in an Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS.

1951 Campionato Gran Turismo Internazionale

For 1951 the CSAI organised an Italian national championship for the Gran Turismo Internazionale category in four classes: 750, 1500, 2000 and over 2000 cc. Interest was attracted from manufacturers such as Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Maserati, Ferrari, Fiat and SIATA. The championship was held over ten events, including all the classic long-distance road races (the Giro di Sicilia, the Mille Miglia, the Coppa della Toscana, the Giro dell'Umbria, the Coppa d' Oro delle Dolomiti, the Giro delle Calabrie and the Stella Alpina) as well as three circuit races (the Coppa Inter-Europa at Monza, the Circuito di Caracalla night race in Rome, and the 6 Ore di Pescara).

Grand Tourer Characteristics

The terms "grand tourer", "grand turismo", "grand routiere", and "GT" are among the most misused terms in motoring. The grand touring designation generally "means motoring at speed, in style, safety, and comfort." "Purists define "gran turismo" as the enjoyment, excitement and comfort of open-road touring."

According to one author, "the ideal is of a car with the ability to cross a continent at speed and in comfort yet provide driving thrills when demanded" and it should exhibit the following:

Grand tourers emphasize comfort and handling over straight-out high performance or ascetic, spartan accommodations. In comparison, sports cars (also a "much abused and confused term") are typically more "crude" compared to "sophisticated Grand Touring machinery." However, the popularity of using GT for marketing purposes has meant that it has become a "much misused term, eventually signifying no more than a slightly tuned version of a family car with trendy wheels and a go-faster stripe on the side."

Historically, most GTs have been front-engined with rear-wheel drive, which creates more space for the cabin than mid-mounted engine layouts. Softer suspensions, greater storage, and more luxurious appointments add to their driving appeal.

GT abbreviation in marketing

The GT abbreviation is popular across the automotive industry, because of its positive associations with wealth, speed and style. Many vehicles that are not actually gran turismo use this appellation to increase sales.

Among the many variations of GT are:

Grand tourers in racing

The term grand tourer, or gran turismo, is sometimes used for race versions of serial production-based sports cars (even those not fitting the traditional grand tourer definition, but not including non-production prototypes) that take part in sports car racing, including endurance races like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, 24 Hours of Daytona, 12 Hours of Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Mille Miglia, Targa Florio, Spa 24 Hours, Bathurst 12 Hour, and Carrera Panamericana.

Examples of race grand tourers include:

Motorsport classification

In some professional motorsport classifications, such as the Grand Touring categories promoted by the FIA, the GT car is defined as an open or closed automobile with no more than one door on each side and at least two seats, one on each side of the longitudinal centre line of the car; these two seats must be crossed by the same transversal plane. This car must be legal to drive on the open road, and adapted for racing on circuits or closed courses.

GT cars are divided, from most powerful to least powerful, into GT1 (formerly GTS and GT) and GT2 (formerly GT and N-GT) in most championships, although the ACO has canceled further GT1 involvement not only in the 24 Hours of Le Mans but in every other Le Mans Series (LMS, ALMS, ILMC, JLMC) sanctioned by the ACO. This only left room for GT1 cars to race in the FIA GT1 World Championship, while in turn GT2 cars only competed in ACO sanctioned event due to the absence of the FIA GT2 European Championship. GT3 and GT4 class cars also have their own championships, as well as being eligible for several National GT championships.

Examples of grand tourers

A true grand tourer is a luxury or performance vehicle intended for long-distance spirited travel in both comfort and style. The placement of "GT" on an automobile does not necessarily classify it as a "grand tourer." Some examples include:

Concept Cars

Grand touring car tires

The term grand touring is used amongst manufacturers of tires to describe all-season tires that are designed to have higher performance and handling capabilities than a regular passenger car all-season tire with a smoother, more luxurious ride than a performance tire. Most D-segment and larger cars sold in North America come with grand touring tires as original equipment.