Mitsubishi 3000GT

The story

Every great Japanese sports car of its era chose a specialty: lightness, balance, a mid-mounted engine. The 3000GT refused to choose. Under its long, low body lived a 3.0-liter V6 with a turbocharger for each bank, rear-biased all-wheel drive, rear wheels that steered up to 1.5 degrees at speed, and a front air dam and rear wing that moved on their own above 50 mph. Floor it and there is no wheelspin and no tail to catch, just a crouch, a turbo whistle and a horizon arriving early. Ask it to dart through a slalom, though, and all 1,695 kg (3,737 lb) make themselves known.

That mass defines it. It was built to devour interstates rather than dissect hairpins, and does so magnificently. Its Dodge Stealth twin wore a Chrysler-drawn face, and the 1995 Spyder became the first car sold in America since Ford's 1950s Skyliner with a solid roof that stowed itself at the press of a switch. As a strong yen and the SUV boom squeezed the class, Mitsubishi peeled away gadgets to hold the price, yet the 3000GT outlasted the Supra, RX-7 and 300ZX in American showrooms. The shape has only improved with age. Values have barely noticed.