In the early 1990’s, Japan was experiencing a massive economic boom. Japanese car manufacturers were engaged in an intense head-to-head competition to see who could make the best affordable sports car. Top engineers were busy pushing the limits of what a production car could be, and this feud provided the world with some of the most iconic vehicles ever produced. With this economic boom came a subsequent boom in the aftermarket for these so called “import tuners” with new aero, flashy wheels, audio equipment, and performance modifications hitting the shelves every day for eager owners to turn their affordable sports car into a one-of-a-kind piece of art. Mitsubishi was one manufacturer at the forefront of it all, and the vehicle you see above is none other than their iconic GTO. The GTO, or 3000GT as it was known in the USA, was Mitsubishi’s halo car, and this 1994 model year example was optioned in top of the line “VR4” trim. The VR4 was equipped from the factory with Mitsubishi’s 3.0l 6G72 V6, with a couple turbochargers added on for extra “oomph.” This bumped factory horsepower up to 320, with a top speed of around 155 mph. Paired to a 6-speed manual transmission, and AWD drivetrain, this thing is dangerously quick in its factory form. Cue the Need for Speed Underground theme music, this exterior is in excellent shape, with a multitude of period-correct modifications harkening back to a time when wheels were big and nitrous bottles were bigger. This car received a grade 4 at the Japanese auctions for a reason. Finished in a lovely OEM pearl white, the paintwork on this car is near immaculate and turns plenty of heads, especially once you open the aftermarket scissor doors! The front fascia has been upgraded to the facelift model GTO, with fixed headlights and an aftermarket front bumper adding an aggressive touch to the front of this menacing sport coupe. The OEM three spoke alloys have been replaced with a much more fitting set of 20” black chrome wheels, which actually complement the rest of the body work quite well. Tinted taillights and a large GT style spoiler round off the list of exterior modifications. Swing open the lambo doors and you’re greeted with an interior chock full of more features than most cars available on the market today! The amount of technology in this thing is seriously impressive, and the previous owner clearly took great care in making sure this 26 year old interior looked brand new! The power seats are finished in a clean grey cloth, with no rips, tears or burns to be found. The driver’s seat even has power bolster adjustment! The dash and other interior plastic has no cracks or sun fading, and all buttons and switches work as expected, down to the fully digital climate control display. A few aftermarket modifications have been fitted to enhance the driving experience. The clunky OEM steering wheel has been replaced with a 3 spoke momo unit, and an Apexi boost gauge sits atop the dash and is fully functional, and an electronic Blitz boost controller allows the driver to fine tune boost levels on the factory twin turbo system. The OEM instrument cluster is fully functional and displays just 135,000 original km’s (83,927 miles!) Turn the key and the aforementioned twin turbo V6 powerplant roars to life. The engine is mostly stock, with only an aftermarket exhaust and blitz blowoff valve installed to really make the 6G72 sing. Put the pedal to the floor and you can certainly feel all 320 horsepower kick in as you get thrown back into your seat. Shifts are smooth through the 6 speed AWD transmission and short gear ratios make this sport coupe a blast to drive around town or on backroads. The GTO is larger than one might expect, with a wide stance and average curb weight of about 3,700 lbs, but handling is quite nimble, and a set of fully adjustable Tein coilovers are more than capable of handling even the tightest of hairpin turns. If there was ever a car that perfectly described the Japanese bubble market, the Mitsubishi GTO would be the one, and this example is a twin turbocharged time-capsule perfect for transporting the owner to that iconic period in automotive tuning history.