Otosan Anadol STC-16 History

The STC-16 grew out of a proposal by Otosan general manager Erdoğan Gönül to build a Turkish sports car capable of international rally competition and prestige sales. Designer Eralp Noyan created a long-hood Kammback coupe on a shortened Anadol chassis; its fiberglass body gave it a silhouette that contemporary reviews compared to the Datsun 240Z. The first car rolled off the Istanbul factory floor in April 1973.

The road car used the 1,598 cc Ford crossflow engine originally developed for the Ford Escort Mexico, producing approximately 82 horsepower and pushing the lightweight (920 kg) car to around 100 mph. A rally-specification version raised output to 140 bhp through engine modifications and used a lighter FRP chassis; this variant won multiple rally events in Turkey and Europe, delivering the sporting image Gönül had promised.

The 1973 oil crisis proved fatal to the STC-16's commercial prospects. Fiberglass is a petrochemical product, and its cost surged alongside fuel prices; the car's 70,000-lira price tag — well above the 50,000–55,000 liras of ordinary Anadols — put it out of reach for most buyers. Only 176 cars were built in total, the majority finished in the car's signature 'Alanya Yellow'. The STC-16 remains the only sports car ever designed and produced domestically in Turkey.