Like – Totally Awesome – A Drive in the GT by Citroën
The GT by Citroën debuted as a concept car in October 2008 at the Paris Motor Show. It is a collaboration between Citroën and the Japanese racing simulation developer Polyphony Digital.
The car’s exterior design was made by Takumi Yamamoto, a Japanese designer from Jean-Pierre Ploué’s Style Citroën design team. Takumi Yamamoto was a childhood friend of Kazunori Yamauchi, director of Polyphony Digital and creator of the popular Gran Turismo franchise, also known as “Gegge”. According to a Yamauchi interview at the Paris Motor Show 2008, he and Yamamoto started collaborating on this project back in 2003.
Ever since Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, there have been three gaming versions of the GT by Citroën:
• Road version – 500 hp (373 kW; 507 PS), 384 lb⋅ft (521 N⋅m)
• Gr. 4 version – 394 hp (294 kW; 399 PS), 283 lb⋅ft (384 N⋅m)
• Race/Gr. 3 version – 599 hp (447 kW; 607 PS), 431 lb⋅ft (584 N⋅m)
⁃ The game concept version was four electric motors delivering 778 hp (580 kW; 789 PS), 1,840 lb⋅ft (2,495 N⋅m).
The GT by Citroën has been continually shown by the brand since its debut. It was on display at the 16th ICCCR in Middachten, The Netherlands.
At the launch of the Ami – 100% electric in Paris on Feb 24, 2020, the car was once again shown, this time to an Australian automotive blogger, Alexandra Mary Hirschi, who goes by the social media name Supercar Blondie. She was actually given the opportunity to drive it. Few people have. Seems that the folks in charge of the GT by Citroën have a penchant for cute blondes.
The accompanying video with Alexandra shows the car on the road, its operation and features:
The real car uses a modified version of the Ford Modular V8 gas engine, producing 646 hp (482 kW; 655 PS). The car’s weight is 1,400 kg (3,086 lb).
In June 2009, Citroën confirmed plans to produce at least 6 GTs for sale to the public, each costing $2.1 million. In July 2010, rumours that production was suspended began to surface and to date only this car and we think one (perhaps 2) other GT by Citroën real gas-powered cars exist.