Citroen GT The World’s Coolest Car
December 5, 2008 by Anthony Crawford
Citroen GT The World’s Coolest Car
Stunning is all I can manage. If you’re a gamer and you drive in the Grand Turismo series, then you already know about the Citroen GT.
As a virtual car designed to run in the video game series, which as of April 2008 had shipped a staggering fifty million units, it begs to be built.
It’s not often the French would ever heed the call of the “punters” or in this case, the “gamers” but that’s exactly what’s happened, Citroen have gone and built the GT. Yes, you can drive it on real tarmac to the shops.
But Citroen had some help with the GT, Kazunori Yamauchi who heads up Polyphony Digital – the outfit who created the Sony Play station game, collaborated with Citroen’s designer Takumi Yamamoto and created the virtual racer, without any intention of the car ever seeing the light of day.
Featured in ‘Grand Turismo’ the GT is powered by an electric drivetrain with a fuel cell and produces no ‘dirty’ emissions. The ‘real thing’ however, favours a ‘tuned’ 560bhp V8, said to be race bred and very quick.
Those who have driven the car say that it feels like four seconds or better, and the engine note is loud enough to wake the dead, given there is no sound insulation whatsoever.
At a massive five metres plus, with 21-inch diamond-effect alloy wheels and huge air intakes, it’s a menacing looking thing, but at the same time gorgeous.
Access to the star wars like interior is via scissor doors and reveals a copper-like substance covering the dash and a steering wheel, which would look more at home in a Formula One car of the future. Gearshifts are via buttons on the wheel, with a roof mounted display showing the selected gear ratio.
You can’t buy a Citroen GT yet, but you can drive the virtual car, that’s if you can earn one million credits on Grand Turismo 5: Prologue. Start your engines!
Citroen, the masters of avant guard car design have been climbing their way back to the style council for several years, with designs like the C4, C5 and superb looking C6. Let’s just hope and pray that some of the design cues that that have been realised in the GT, get a ‘go’ in the slightly more affordable department.
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Well I certainly agree, but I’m sure others won’t. It is such a cool car and Citroen should certainly make it. I don’t understand why they don’t as the would sell so many of them. I am saying now that if it came out and it looked like this, I would be one. Citroen have always been a cool company except for that period in the nineties when it was all so boring and average. Those wheels are beautiful, in fact I think they are the best wheels I have ever seen, they are at least on par if not better than the Bentley Speed wheels.
This looks amazing and im sure the performance will be just the same. I question aerodynamcs though as there appears to be a lot of areas that will catch the air and slow it down as opposed to allowing it to flow arounds the car…… if that makes sense
WOW.
looks like a rocket car
Citroën have made several cars which nearly sent the company broke, the most recent being the C6.
Sadly in this day and age where people have been “Camryfied” in their thinking about cars, commercial reality wins out over any passion.
As a Citroën owner and lover of their innovation, I would love nothing more than to see this GT hit the streets, but it’s been less than a year since the CEO said that they would not make the same mistake again, hence why we have the very Germanic and conservative looking C5.
Foggy, I have to say though, although the C5 is a bit conservative and a bit German, it is very handsome and is selling very well (in Europe at least). Now the C6, there is another really cool car but when it costs the same as a Jaguar XF, could you really? I think my favourite cars in the current Citroen range are the whole C4 line up including Picasso, Grand Picasso (they actually managed to make a people mover desirable), Coupe and Saloon but that could change very quickly if this came out.
WOW,
citroen can make cars that arent plain ugly.
WOW, Andrew M can make comments that are plain ignorant!
Have a look through the catalog of every mass manufacturer today, I challenge you to find any other manufacturer with offerings as stylish as what Citroën has today.
Alex, I do like the new C5, but it has a major weaknesses IMHO; interior space is way too small for a car with its external dimensions…. give me a C6 any day :-D
Your having a laugh foggy. not big enough, your handle should be Dr Who. It sounds like you want a tardis matey. Eh!
Foggy,
to bad looks are subjective hey??
generally the design of Pugs and citroens dont do it for me.
perhaps there are some in their catalogue that may look OK, but forgive me for generalising and having my opinion.
nothing ignorant about me having my opinion on an opinion based subject
IMO its very ugly. but there is something about it that makes me want to look at it?
Good Looking, but it’s only a concept car!!
How about some C5, or C6 Roadtests?
Out of all the French manufacturers; I think the current range of Peugeots are far better looking than the Citroens or Renaults. They more aerodynamic as well as ergonomic
The only decent thing Citroen has to offer is its unique hydro-pneumatic self-levelling suspension
But what is it JC says about French cars: ” I am a French; I am not merde to go around ceurners…. I sherd be at herme merking l-e-u-r-v-e”
neo it could be because its so ugly… Its like when you’re driving along and you see a serious or fatal car accident.. you know you shouldn’t look but you just can’t help yourself – you’ve got to know why?
It looks like a squashed storm-troopers helmet [from star wars]
The front of it looks alot like the new Evo
car dealer ships should start making cars with this design