A two-seater in the service of His Graceful Majesty
It is one of the cars inevitably associated with the particular universe of the most charismatic film spy in history: the illustrious "Bond, James Bond". The Toyota 2000GT who appeared in the fifth installment of the saga of the British agent, We only live Twice (1967), became immediately after its premiere on the big screen in a cult vehicle.
**The plot took place in Japan**, where Bond was traveling with the aim of dismantling the perverse criminal organization Spectra that was planning to unleash a nuclear war between Russia and the United States, the usual theme of the Cold War...
good part of the movie was shot on the Matsu Islands, an archipelago of 19 islands in the Taiwan Strait, where chase scenes can be seen in which the Toyota 2000 GT is the absolute protagonist.
The roads of these islands saw James Bond's Toyota 2000 GT roll
These islands host rugged hills and attractive mountain and seascapes. Its constructions in the Tulou style stand out, large square or round buildings built with materials from the environment. The exterior structure is made of granite, with wooden windows that are the best viewpoints to contemplate the impressive mountainous and marine environment.
Crossing the sky you can see seabirds of the species Thalasseus bernsteini, endangered, with its characteristic crests of feathers.
Due to all these factors Matsu has become international anthropological pilgrimage point and ecological conservation sanctuary.
Among its most important tourist spots we find the Iron Fortress, North Sea Tunnel, Tung Chung Lighthouse, Tinhau Temple, Nangan Horn Town and Qui-Pi Town. These last two are particularly well preserved and resemble a small mountain village and a Greek-style village, respectively.
So much wine like fishing are two important additional claims to visit Matsu. Dongyin's sorghum liquor and aged sorghum are highly valued by demanding palates, while the local seafood, such as crabs, yellow corvinas, oysters, clams and mussels, are delicious. As for its typical gastronomy, they highlight fish noodles and sweet potato balls.
There are only 86 left-hand drive Toyota 2000 GT's
Already strategically located, let us focus on the 007 racing car in question: the Toyota 2000 GT.
Considered the first Japanese collectible supercar, it was presented at the Tokyo Motor Show in 1965 and two years later it was already available in production. The embryo of its development comes from the competition and in its design he had a decisive participation Jirou Kawano , head of the competition division of the Japanese brand in the 1960s.
This imprint can be seen in its curved and aggressive lines, that convey the sensation of finding ourselves before a car with a lot of muscle and extreme reactions. His appearance of low car (1.16 meters tall) attached to his length (more than four meters) contributed to giving it that look of powerful, agile and exciting racing car. It is not surprising that, five decades later, it continues to have faithful followers.
Toyota 2000GT interior
He was a pioneer who changed the way of looking at Japanese car production from the West, until then considered an imitation of the great western sports cars. The Toyota 2000 GT turned that vision on its head by being considered genuine sports car that was able to rival its contemporaries most quoted.
Until that moment, Toyota models were visually conventional, there were no groundbreaking designs and rather they were adapted to the demands of the sober Japanese market.
With the unexpected arrival of the 2000 GT the trend changed. They hit the key an aesthetically revolutionary model and that it also had some very interesting characteristics that put it squarely in the sports category. It was not be for lowerly: its 150CV and the scarce 1120 kilos of weight gave a very competitive power-to-weight ratio.
After its appearance in the film, it became a cult vehicle
Because of its features and design, but also because of its exclusivity character **(only 356 units were built)** the 2000 GT has become a contemporary myth. Nowadays, only 86 cars with the British left-hand drive configuration are counted, a circumstance that for the European second-hand market makes it an even greater object of desire.
It is a sports car with little space in the passenger compartment and a bare trunk that stands out for its design, its groundbreaking character, its hearth and, of course, for having been driven by Bond…, James Bond.