GTO: Gran Turismo Omologato

Gran Turismo Omologato. There’s something in the vowel-heavy phrase that gets the juices going.

Something in the way it rolls around your mouth. Only Enzo Ferrari could have coined such a phrase, when you think about it. 3 words. Nine syllables. A couple of generations of motor sport history.

Car culture is full of such phrases, but none captures the imagination, or has had such an influence, as the very idea of the GTO. Homologation may not be what it’s cracked up to be. Many race cars issued for the road to qualify them for a particular race formula are ridiculously impractical, ludicrously far away from the base brand they represent.