As far as on a Fiero, GT stands for ... GT. Where the GT came from originally is sometimes debated. It's been reported to mean Grand Touring, or Grand Tourismo (in Italian).
SE - Special Edition LE - Luxury Edition STE - Special Touring Edition (this on was actually spelled out on the info for the 6000STE
Then you get lots of them with extra letters just for the heck of it. Take a GT and add a letter to get: GTP GTA GTX Or for an SE, you get SSE and SSEi.
They really don't mean much more than GTA, GTP and GTX. Most of the letter had a basis in something originally, but have been changed over and over so much that they have no real meaning anymore. Otherwise, why would a base model Grand Am be called an SE?
GTO was originally used by Ferrari and it meant "Grand Tourismo Olmogato" which means Homologated for the Grand Tourismo racing series. They were cars Ferrari built and sold so it would be eligible to race in that series. When Pontiac used the name GTO, it had nothing to do with racing... they liked the sound of it and if it was tied to Ferrari, that was just a bonus.
Here are some similar initials commonly used by Ferrari - other marques may have held these in consideration to some degree when choosing their own designations.
GP: Short for "Grand Prix," literal French for "Great Prize." Each stop on the Formula 1 circuit is a "Grand Prix," and are commonly refered to as the "GP of Monaco," "GP of Italy," etc.
GT: Short for "Gran Turismo," literal Italian for "Grand Touring," it refers to a class of cars originally built for racing and sporty touring. In the purest sense of the term, the grand touring classification meant that a car was an enclosed coupe.
GTA: See "GT," above. The "A" stands for "automatic," most recently used in reference to the Ferrari 456 GTA, which has an automatic transmission.
GTB: See "GT," above. The "B" stands for "berlinetta," which means a hardtop.
GTC: See "GT," above. The "C" stands for "coupe" or "coupé," the french word for "cut." A coupe is a two-door car, usually with four seats inside.
GTO: See "GT," above. The "O" stands for "omologato," which is Italian for "homologated." This means that the model is a regular production model, not just a limited-production option designed only for racing or rallys.
GTS: See "GT," above. The "S" stands for "spider." GTS Ferraris are usually not true "spiders" in the sense that they weren't fully convertible (or cabriolet) but rather "targa top," meaning that the roof panel is removable.
GTSi: See "GTS," above. The "i" stands for "injected." Usually refers to the Ferrari 308 GTSi, which was the fuel injected decendant of the carburated 308.
SS: Short for "Serie Speciale," which is literal Italian for "Special Edition." The term is usually associated with the Ferrari 348SS, which was a 348 with racing-inspired (but street legal) modifications such as suspension, seats, etc.
SS was used by Chevy for Super Sport back in the 60's (at least befor the 348 was produced).RS is Ralley Sport.A lot of the initials are used for racing classes, now. GT as mentioned,aAlso, GTP: Grand Touring Prototype. And of course, T/A: Trans Am.
When Pontiac used the name GTO, it had nothing to do with racing... they liked the sound of it and if it was tied to Ferrari, that was just a bonus.
No, this is incorrect. Pontiac named some of their cars after racing related places and series'. GTO (for the Grand Tourismo racing series.) LeMans (Race Track) Grand Prix (Racing series) Bonneville (Bonneville salt flats) Trans Am (Racing series) Grand Am (Racing series) Can Am (Racing series)
The vehicles may have never raced in what they were named for (except the Trans Am), But the names themselves have everything to do with racing.
------------------ Happiness isn't around the corner... Happiness IS the corner. ZZ4 Powered !!
[This message has been edited by Oreif (edited 03-22-2005).]
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10:58 AM
PFF
System Bot
Poncho Jim Member
Posts: 869 From: Woodlands, MB, Canada Registered: Mar 2000
No, this is incorrect. Pontiac named some of their cars after racing related places and series'.
Trans Am (Racing series)
I know that Pontiac paid a royalty to the Trans Am series for each car that they sold with the Trans Am name. I think I remember hearing that it was over a million dollars by the time production ended on the Trans Am.
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03:04 PM
Blacktree Member
Posts: 20770 From: Central Florida Registered: Dec 2001
Also, there used to be GTO and GTU classes in IMSA racing. The "O" in GTO meant that the engine displaced over 3.0 liters. And the "U" in GTU meant the engine displaced under 3.0 liters. But I don't think those designations are used anymore. Now, they use numbers instead of letters for the different GT classes (GT1, GT2, etc).
I know that Pontiac paid a royalty to the Trans Am series for each car that they sold with the Trans Am name. I think I remember hearing that it was over a million dollars by the time production ended on the Trans Am.
Yes, The same with the IROC series. Of course Chevy lapsed on the license to use the "IROC" designation and Chrysler scooped it up for a few years.
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05:58 PM
Erik Member
Posts: 5625 From: Des Moines, Iowa Registered: Jul 2002
The vehicles may have never raced in what they were named for (except the Trans Am), But the names themselves have everything to do with racing.
Speaking of Getting Tail in a previous response reminds me of the old Plymouths with the big back seats that were all named after hotels: Concord, Cranbrook, Cambridge, Savoy, Belvedere, Plaza, Suburban. Belmont.
------------------ Notchbacks RULE
"Let a man drive a Fiero and he'll own one. Teach a man to fix a Fiero and he'll own six."
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01:07 AM
Convertable Indy Member
Posts: 1644 From: Hanover, IN. Registered: Jun 2003
Hmmm and all this time I thought GT meant "Give Ticket".................
LOL too true! I've never gotten so many tickets as I have since I put my new engine in. Gotta slow down.... Gotta slow down.... Gotta slow down.... Hmmm it's not working.
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85 WS6 GT partly modified 87 GT Loaded resto project
Member Edmonton Fiero Owners Group
[This message has been edited by GT-maniac (edited 03-24-2005).]
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08:18 PM
GT-maniac Member
Posts: 597 From: Leduc, Alberta Registered: May 2000
