Grand Touring Automobiles

Grand Touring Automobile (Toronto, ON) original location on Front St. 

Toronto's Front Street was a bleak inhospitable world. For blocks on end the grimy warehouse faces stand side by side with nothing to break the monotony of brick. Those who flocked to the city at night for its restaurants and theaters rarely ventured into this part of town, though it's only blocks from bustling Yonge St. Yet, this is the location George Minden picked for Grand Touring Automobiles. Actually the reason is quite simple. It is central for customers and at the same time provided a perfect foil for the clean contemporary appearance of Grand Touring. 

Its smoked glass face sits back from the somber brick walls of its neighbors leaving a small courtyard, as it were, precisely defined with simple black posts and marching chain. From its then contemporary logo, to the distinctive black and white decor, the entire facility projected an air of restrained elegance.

For opening night, the showroom alone housed more than $130,000(1971 dollars) worth of fine machinery, the names of which included marques such as Rolls-Royce, BMW, Aston Martin, Citroen, and Lamborghini. Beyond the polished brick floor of the showroom is an elevated waiting area where a contant supply of coffee was given. For those who preferred to wait for their car while it's being worked on, there was a lounge adjacent to a large oval window overlooking the 10,000 square feet of service area.  There were 22 bays that could handle 22 cars at once with equipment from Maquette.

Manager(and future owner), John Cox, was a man who's been active in virtually all aspects of the automotive world. In 1961, he was the Canadian Class B Champion but in later years he moved on to become the manager of a large import dealership.

Most importantly  is the philosophy behind Grand Touring Automobiles. It was the firm belief of George Minden and all his staff that those who own and drive the finest automobiles in the world are entitled to demand and receive the best in service. As mentioned previously, opening night was a breathtaking affair, with both showroom and service area alive with some of the most desirable cars anywhere. All told, there were 16 cars on display with the limelight falling upon a singular. A 1954 Bentley Continental R, 1 of 207 made. Three Astons were also on display, one being a DBS V-8, another being a DB-6 and the third a Volante convertible. Two V-12 Ferraris were exhibited as were two from Lamborghini, one being a Muira and the other an Islero. Likewise a brace of Silver Shadow Rolls-Royce were visible along with a Mercedes-Benz 300SL.

Grand Touring Automobiles in the early 80s