Photo: Graeme Hunt
The automotive world has been gifted with plenty of Anglo-American collaborations, including the Shelby Cobra. But have you ever heard of the Gordon-Keeble GT? If not, I’ll be much obliged to give you the lowdown.
Founded in 1964 and shuttered in 1967, Gordon-Keeble was a boutique automaker with the quirkiest automotive logo you’ve probably seen. The story goes that a tortoise walked into the frame of a shoot, and that’s how the lovable reptile was chosen as the emblem of the little British company.
Big kahunas John Gordon and Jim Keeble employed none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro to design the four-seat grand tourer with sporting ambitions. Based on a square-tube spaceframe that rocks independent front suspension, the GT premiered in March 1960 at the Geneva Motor Show featuring a 283-cubic-inch Chevrolet small-block V8. The 4.6-liter engine was eventually swapped for a 327 unit (5.4 liters) for the production variant, an eight-cylinder lump introduced by GM in the 1962 Chevrolet Corvette.
Bodied in fiberglass just like the ‘Vette, the Gordon-Keeble GT is fitted with two fuel tanks. A grand total of 100 examples were produced through 1967, and more than 90 units are said to survive. Originally priced at £2,798 or £60,415 adjusted for inflation, chassis number C22/F1004RD is up for grabs with only three owners from new for “just” £117,500 ($160,190).
Fully restored in the 1990s, the car in the photo gallery is listed by Graeme Hunt with 54,124 miles (87,104 kilometers) on the clock. The current owner has reportedly serviced his pride and joy last March, which means that it’s high time that small-block V8 receives fresh oil and a replacement filter.
Much rarer than Astons from that era and far more ironic due to the Corvette-sourced V8 engine and tortoise badge up front, this amazing GK “fires up instantly and simply purrs” according to the classic car broker.
Big kahunas John Gordon and Jim Keeble employed none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro to design the four-seat grand tourer with sporting ambitions. Based on a square-tube spaceframe that rocks independent front suspension, the GT premiered in March 1960 at the Geneva Motor Show featuring a 283-cubic-inch Chevrolet small-block V8. The 4.6-liter engine was eventually swapped for a 327 unit (5.4 liters) for the production variant, an eight-cylinder lump introduced by GM in the 1962 Chevrolet Corvette.
Bodied in fiberglass just like the ‘Vette, the Gordon-Keeble GT is fitted with two fuel tanks. A grand total of 100 examples were produced through 1967, and more than 90 units are said to survive. Originally priced at £2,798 or £60,415 adjusted for inflation, chassis number C22/F1004RD is up for grabs with only three owners from new for “just” £117,500 ($160,190).
Fully restored in the 1990s, the car in the photo gallery is listed by Graeme Hunt with 54,124 miles (87,104 kilometers) on the clock. The current owner has reportedly serviced his pride and joy last March, which means that it’s high time that small-block V8 receives fresh oil and a replacement filter.
Much rarer than Astons from that era and far more ironic due to the Corvette-sourced V8 engine and tortoise badge up front, this amazing GK “fires up instantly and simply purrs” according to the classic car broker.
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