Triumph wanted to broaden the appeal of the Triumph Spitfire sports car and asked Giovanni Michelotti to design a little coupe version which would be marketed in 1963 as the Triumph Spitfire GT. The Coupe body, however, was too heavy for the 1147cc Spitfire engine and the project shelved; although the coupe body was used for some works Spitfire competition cars. The imminent launch of the 6-cylinder Triumph Vitesse 2-litre gave the idea of a 2-litre Spitfire coupe and in 1966 production began of the the Triumph GT6. The GT6 needed a bonnet bulge to fit the larger 6-cylinder engine, but the Spitfire origins were plain to see, and to feel as drivers found out with the tuck-under rear suspension. The GT6 Mk2 from 1968 cured the rear suspension, increased engine power from 95bhp to 104bhp, and restyled the body with raised front bumper and vent in the c-pillar. The Spitfire went into MkIV version in autumn 1970, and the restyling was inherited by the GT6 Mk3 in November 1970, but engine power was reduced to 79bhp in North America, and the rear suspension was simplified to make the car cheaper on a dwindling market. Production ended in November 1973.