Description
The ISO Grifo GL 300 was one of the defining grand tourers of the 1960s—a car that perfectly captured the marriage of Italian style, engineering precision, and American power. Introduced in 1965 as the production version of the earlier ISO Grifo A3/L prototype, the GL 300 was conceived as a road-going expression of speed and luxury, combining the artistry of Giorgetto Giugiaro’s design with the mechanical brilliance of Giotto Bizzarrini’s chassis and the effortless strength of a Chevrolet V8. It was a car of elegance and authority: fast, beautiful, and remarkably refined, offering a level of usability and reliability that few exotic GTs of its era could match.
Renzo Rivolta, the visionary behind ISO, had already proven with the IR 300 and IR 340 that his company could build sophisticated grand tourers capable of rivaling Ferrari and Maserati. But the Grifo GL 300 was a different proposition. It was smaller, lower, and more overtly sporting—conceived as the halo model for the ISO brand and the culmination of Rivolta’s philosophy of blending Italian craftsmanship with proven American muscle. The collaboration that produced it brought together three of the greatest minds in automotive history: Rivolta himself, Bizzarrini—Ferrari’s former chief engineer—and Giugiaro, then a young designer at Bertone whose work on the Grifo would become one of his early masterpieces.
Under its sculpted aluminium and steel skin, the ISO Grifo GL 300 shared its core engineering principles with the earlier Rivolta coupés but was considerably more focused. Bizzarrini’s chassis design employed a strong pressed-steel monocoque structure with a separate front subframe, providing exceptional rigidity and balance. The front suspension used unequal-length wishbones and coil springs, while the rear employed a de Dion axle with twin trailing arms, a Watts linkage, and inboard rear disc brakes—a sophisticated configuration that delivered both excellent comfort and impeccable handling. The result was a car that felt solid, composed, and astonishingly stable even at very high speeds.
Power came from the legendary Chevrolet 327 cubic inch (5.4-litre) small-block V8, the same engine that powered the Corvette Sting Ray. In the GL 300, it produced around 300 horsepower in standard tune, with options for higher-output versions producing up to 365 horsepower. The engine was paired with a four-speed Borg-Warner manual gearbox as standard, with an optional five-speed ZF transmission or GM automatic available for those who preferred effortless cruising. This combination gave the Grifo extraordinary performance for its day: 0–100 km/h (62 mph) in around 6.5 seconds and a top speed of 225 km/h (140 mph). Yet the real magic was not just its outright pace, but how it delivered it—silky, responsive, and utterly reliable. The American V8 provided immense low-end torque, making the car equally at home in city traffic or devouring miles on the autostrada.
Visually, the Grifo GL 300 was a triumph of proportion and restraint. Giugiaro’s design, executed by Bertone, remains one of the most perfectly balanced automotive shapes ever created. The car’s long bonnet, low roofline, and short, taut rear deck gave it a poised and muscular stance, while the clean flanks and crisp detailing conveyed quiet confidence rather than flamboyance. The front featured twin headlamps flanking a narrow horizontal grille, above a slim chrome bumper that accentuated the car’s width. The rear, with its distinctive quad tail lights and Kamm-style cutoff, provided aerodynamic efficiency and visual harmony. The result was a car that looked fast even at rest—an ideal expression of 1960s Italian design.
Inside, the ISO Grifo GL 300 offered a level of luxury and craftsmanship that placed it among the finest GTs of its time. The cabin was trimmed in rich Connolly leather, with deep-pile carpeting and polished wood veneers. The dashboard featured a full complement of Veglia instruments housed in a symmetrical wooden fascia, while the large, thin-rimmed steering wheel and floor-mounted shifter gave the driver an intimate connection to the car. Despite its sporting focus, the Grifo was designed for comfort on long journeys: the seats were deeply cushioned, the driving position relaxed, and the cabin remarkably quiet thanks to ISO’s attention to insulation and panel fit. It was a car that made 200 km/h cruising feel effortless and civilized.
On the road, the Grifo GL 300 was a revelation. The combination of Bizzarrini’s finely balanced chassis and the Corvette-derived powertrain produced a driving experience that blended speed with serenity. The steering was precise and communicative, allowing the driver to place the car perfectly through fast corners, while the suspension soaked up rough surfaces without losing composure. The brakes—large, servo-assisted discs on all four wheels—provided reassuring stopping power. Reviewers of the time praised the car for its uncanny stability at high speeds and its feeling of indestructible mechanical integrity. “It feels as if it were carved from a single block of metal,” wrote one contemporary journalist, capturing the Grifo’s extraordinary sense of solidity and refinement.
The Grifo GL 300 was never built in large numbers; ISO was a small, artisanal manufacturer producing cars largely by hand at its Bresso factory near Milan. Each Grifo was tailored to its owner’s specifications, with bespoke colours, trim, and mechanical options. Roughly 322 examples of the 5.4-litre Grifo were produced between 1965 and 1970, before the introduction of the larger 7.0-litre “7 Litri” model and later Series II cars with minor styling changes. But even among those later variants, it was the original GL 300 that captured the purest essence of the design—elegant, balanced, and timeless.
For Renzo Rivolta, the Grifo GL 300 represented the realization of a dream: a car that could stand shoulder to shoulder with the finest Ferraris and Lamborghinis, yet offer the practicality and reliability of an American-engined GT. It was also a commercial success, giving ISO a foothold in the elite grand touring market and cementing its reputation as one of Italy’s most sophisticated low-volume manufacturers.
Today, the ISO Grifo GL 300 is revered as one of the greatest GTs of the 1960s, admired for its beauty, performance, and engineering integrity. Collectors prize its combination of Italian style and American heart, and it remains a car that can be driven as it was intended—swiftly, smoothly, and with complete confidence. The best examples command great respect not just for their rarity, but for the purity of their conception.
The ISO Grifo GL 300 was, in every respect, a masterpiece of balance and restraint. It was the grand tourer reduced to its essential elements: power, grace, and mechanical perfection. In an age of excess and experimentation, it stood for something enduring — the belief that true performance lies not in noise or flamboyance, but in harmony between design, engineering, and purpose.