ITT: Excellent ideas that fell short of their target.
Example 1: A Truly lamentable case tbhm8s. The 3KGT Mitsubishi's entry into the surging mid-level sports coupe trend sweeping Japan, and was a particularly obvious counter to Honda's breakout NSX. However, upon release it became clear that this was to be little more than a gadget-stocked experiment on wheels that couldn't really match the visionary ambitions of Mitsubishi engineers. Overweight and arguably under-powered, the 3000GT was eventually shelved thanks in to rising costs and an unfriendly economic environment that was to be the scourge of late 90s Japanese industry.
What the fuck? It was a great car though you moron
Evan Watson
>particularly obvious counter to Honda's breakout NSX No it wasn't. The NSX was the "revolutionary" lightweight mid-engine Accord. The GTO was supposed to be a pigfat grand tourer with lots of 90s Jap tech (read; gremlins) and creature comforts for long trips.
Lincoln Davis
The single biggest problem the GTO had wasn't its cost or weight or reliability. It's that it didn't really have a clear purpose with the Eclipse and Lancer Evolution already existing. What does it actually do better than either of its siblings?
Jaxon Wright
he did say "fell short" and not "total failure", meaning that it was a decent attempt but not exactly the thing it was trying to be
Brandon Wilson
thank you Looking faster and more agile than it is is the one thing it does right.
Nolan Collins
>) and creature comforts for long trips.
stop this meme . this isn't america
James Sanchez
They where mostly a test-bed in a lot of ways back when companies had flagships so to speak to say 'I have arrived' and where mostly aspiration or supported some motorsports. GTO's did get used in some races and did relatively well in some of them, but the competition was extremely fierce all through the 90s. To some extent the RX7, GTR, 300ZX, NSX etc where all more or less that whole 90s JP economy boom and the amount of money sunk into them wasn't really ever recouped through sales- but they where the top of the production tree that showed what the company could do.
Aaron Sanders
Holy shit this.Goddamn Mitsubishi was up to something great when the thought up the GTO because all those crazy performance technologies were all supposed to make it the unbeatable 2dr coupe but the execution of the whole project was just bad. If it weren't so fucking pigfat and had at least a 380HP motor, it would have BTFO all its rivals (FD, Supra, GTR Skyline, NSX, SVX) easily even without all of that Jap electro magic it had, which frustratingly enough, became standard equipment on high end exotics almost a decade later
Jackson Morris
Couldn't the 6G72 take stupid amounts of boost on stock internals too?
Hudson Morgan
I suppose. The 2G Eclipse GSX is a quick-looking car, though. Especially when it's green with ricer decals.
The Lancer Evolution has been Mitsubishi's flagship since it was introduced. The GTO is just an also-ran.
>Mitsubishi would have won if they had ignored the Gentlemen's Agreement and started a horsepower war Debatable. Nissan and Toyota would have had two legs up on Mitsubishi. Hell, I'd even bet on Mazda over Mitsubishi in a mid 90s horsepower arms race.
Nolan Nelson
They're a tough engine, iron block, alloy heads with very good flow rates through them. Even just with a wee bit of fiddling mines around 245kw and 475Nm of torque at all 4 wheels, been running like that for the better part of the last 7 or years since I diddled it without complaint. I would like larger turbos to flow out into the upper rpm, but that sort of a next step I'm just not really ready to commit to.
Kayden Peterson
>heavier than a skyline what the fuck were they thinking?
Nathan Stewart
>back when companies had flagships so to speak to say 'I have arrived' and where mostly aspiration or supported some motorsports
The term is "halo car."
Dylan Stewart
Except it managed to outperform c4 corvettes and keep up with supras, skylines and the rx7. It was faster than those three in a straight line as well. Mitaubishi hit their target but it didn't age well.
Joshua Ward
It was quick, but not ludicrously fast.
Nicholas Richardson
...
Camden Jenkins
explain
Luke Murphy
It was exactly the thing it was trying to be. That image isn't even right, the regular GTOs weighed about 3700-3800 and later made over 300HP. The GTO MR weighs like 3100. It was never overweight or underpowered, OP just wasn't alive in the 1990s.
Caleb Ramirez
>it was quick but not ludicrously fast >the only cars beating it are far more powerful and it matches the 380HP 355.
Parker Parker
I always thought that the 3000GT/Stealth problem was the same problem that all the Japanese auto manufacturers had in the us in the 90'. The price of the only flagship cars worth having (the turbo models) reached Corvette prices (non ZR1). In the US at the time that was not going to fly. The affordable 3000gts, 300zx, and Supras (the NA ones) were barely quicker than a W-body GM.
Kevin King
First gen vr4s don't even weigh 3700. You can dump tons of weight ditching the aws and active aero bullshit along woth other useless gadgets on it too.
They are still to this day capable of going 11s and 12s with minimal bolt on shit and tuning. Main issue is that even the newest ones are 17 fucking years old and most are in need of restoration at this point. Add to that the lack of factory replacements for things like the VCU and it makes you not want to beat the shit out of it.
Angel Reyes
trying to make something that would be a direct competition to the miata was a great idea
thinking that it was simply a matter of making a small car with removeable top was defenitely not
Jacob Anderson
THIS. The Del Sol is the better example of a excellent idea that fell short
Alexander Morgan
Was it a miata competitor though? I always thought it was just an extension of the civic brand
>using edmunds as a knowledge base for the 3S platform bet you think dell makes the best computers, too.
Carson Reed
I'm convinced everyone 8nvolved with the 3S is named Josh. > guy who sold me my stealth Josh > guy who towed it back to my house after and accident Josh > guy who I got my hood and bumper from Josh > guy who replaced the transmission Josh > me Dan
Eli Brown
...
Benjamin Cooper
I have the base model, it was a car ahead of its time in design but its performance was too easily matched by its competitors, i think that's one of the reasons it fell through, it left a lot to be desired and didnt bring enough to the table to set itself apart. I really like that the vr4's were AWD, the base model 220 hp is nothing to awe about, but im stuck in a fit of 90's sports car nostalgia that pulls me back to this car every time i try to justify what its missing.
Its still a fun car to drive either way, i have a blast in this thing and i still see it catch peoples eyes almost 22 years after it was made, that's what i mean by ahead of its time design.
James Cox
Dell workstations are servers are pretty nice.
Kayden Thomas
Fiero. Originally it was supposed to be a MR Corvette killer. Then GM realized how good it would be and kept declining the idea.
They eventually greenlight the Fiero when it was presented as a small economy commuter that just happened to be MR with the solid turd Iron Duke i4.
Connor Ward
what was wrong with it please explain
Grayson Russell
...
Brandon Garcia
its slow as all hell
Jordan Lopez
...............was this every produced?
Camden Barnes
*ever
Austin Scott
>Main issue is that even the newest ones are 17 fucking years old and most are in need of restoration at this point. I live in California and there's way more VR4s in decent condition than there are FDs. They're much cheaper, too.
Carter Reed
Yes Okay user.
Anthony Jackson
>Mitsubishi GTO >slow
>Looking faster and more agile than it is is the one thing it does right.
Uhm... No.
>Mazda over Mitsubishi in a mid 90s horsepower arms race.
>It was quick, but not ludicrously fast. Jusr like the R33 user
Even the affordable models were selling at 50K in today's currency, not exactly cheap either. (FWD 3000GT)
Not really
>Last owner Michael >Me Paul
Julian Wright
Wait... Wut?
John Morgan
Is that an MR in the image?
Blake Powell
>N/A 3s
Mein nigga
For me it's actually the perfect DD
>222hp >Race pipe and mandrel bent cat back exhaust with a flowmaster super 44 and beefier quad exhaust tips >Eibach springs >poly bushings all around >poly mounts >LSD >front and rear addco sway bars >lightweight cam gears >lightweight pulleys >over-sound deadened interior >2nd gen VR4 brakes >1st gen VR4 rear calipers
The engine response is amazingly good and the suspension modifications made it fucking fun to drive. This car is a fucking attention whore though, boyracer magnet.
The calipers are unnecessarily big but really wanted more stopping power because why not.
Pic related
Gavin Edwards
Its a TT race converted. It has got the Z16 Chassis instead of the MRs Z15
Jace Harris
The car itself was fine. The looks were polarizing even back in the day. But its main flaw was that it was an orphan in the FoMoCo family and wasn't managed well as a brand.
Owen Gonzalez
...
Liam Collins
???
Austin Bailey
Optispark used with GM's LT1 motors. A great step in the right direction from distributors, but its location under the water pump would prove to be a fatal flaw.
Nathaniel Ross
Veloster Turbo.
Brandon Clark
>Mazda over Mitsubishi in a mid 90s horsepower arms race Need I remind you that Mazda had an engine just lying around that offered potentially 50% more performance than their 6-cylinder equivalent 13B? GTOs are unreliable even before you crank the boost up to 2 bar.
Eli Edwards
And the correlation between that and a GTO is exactly??
Christopher Hill
He just read the OP and skipped the GTO-hate.
Cooper Diaz
OP literally asked for >Excellent ideas that fell short of their target.
Leo Wright
>Mazda dorito >more reliable
The 6G72 is a tank. It can handle 700awhp stock internals. Just because they didn't put massive tarbos on them means that they are unreliable under boost. They can get normally 15psi max under the normal conditions, although you could set it higher but you just would be blowing hot air and not getting any power gains.
If you just upgrade your exhaust system, you could go a bit more.
The FD Can't handle more than 10-11psi without a new fuel pump, ECU tuning and exhaust mods.
And the VR4/MR has got 100 more torques than the FD type R. After 1999 they got to the same torque level than the VR4.
Still the rotary engine is impressive. But even more unreliable than a TT GTO.
Chase Perez
In my opinion, the normal 3000GT VR4 is a god tier Grand Tourer. The performance version of the 3000GT, the MR is what 'muricans would have wanted to have.
The VR4 Spyder is just amazingly joyous to drive, it gives you the power you expect from the TT but it makes you flavor the moment more.
I also have a meme karr. The Miata devours corners whereas the Spyder flavors them, the torque is great... I'm totally biased... But definitely the GTO is not a car that fell off its target, I suggest to OP to do research about the car.
Cameron Young
>tfw no vr4
Luke Nguyen
How many of these made it to 100k without issues? >Protip: none.
It's such a cool car, too bad it's a piece of junk
Jacob Morgan
>how many GTRs make 100K without an issue. How many 300ZX, RX7...
Your logic has got to be the shittiest one on the planet.
>BECAUSE IT REQUIRES MAINTENANCE ITS BAD KARRR DURR
Impresive automotive knowledge and logic.
Hmm I wonder why do you think it's a "piece of junk " am I detecting some butthurt?
Ryder Walker
Fuck you user. You have a VR4 Spyder. Fuck you. I want one.
Austin Adams
At least the GTO has an aftermarket.
This was the underdog of the 90s.
>autotragic only
Logan Foster
I was going to say exactly the same thing.
The GTO actually fulfilled it's purpose and even surpassed it.
The SVX is just a beautiful thing, but really forgotten. But I thought they had a manual version outside of the US.
The rear of the car reminds me of the alfa romeos of the time.
