GRAN TURISMO CAR REVIEWS

GT by Citroën
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SPECIFICATIONS


Year: Nil (was never produced in real-life)

Host: GT5

Class: Supercar/Concept
Type: Coupe

Country: France

Price: 2,000,000

Mileage as Tested: 219.9 km (136.7 miles)  

Construction:

Length: 195.3" // Width: 81.9" // Height: 42.9"
Wheelbase: 110.6"
Overhang: 7' 0.5"
Track:
Ground Clearance:

Weight: 3,195 pounds

Steering:
Layout: Mid Engine/Rear-Drive
Tires:
Suspension:
Brakes:

Engine specs below assume the 5.4 engine from the Ford GT was used.

ENGINE: 5.4 liter (probably DOHC) V8

(x4 hydrogen fuel cells were initially planned)

Construction: aluminum block & heads
Aspiration: probably supercharged
Fuel System: direct fuel injection
Valves: 4
Bore x Stroke: 3.55 x 4.17"
Compression:

Car-testing was done after 220 kilometers of engine break-in time. Citroën doesn't provide any Quoted power info to attain; but 220 km (137 miles) is typical.  


Starting Hrsepwr: 485 @ 8,000
Starting Torque: 372 @ 6,000

Break-in Hrsepwr: 497 @ 8,000
Break-in Torque: 381 @ 6,000
 

Credits per HP: 4,024 cr (!)
Pounds per HP: 6.43
HP per Liter: @ 92.0

Idle Speed: 500 // Redline: 8,000 // RPM Limit: 9,000

Transmission: 7-speed semiauto
Differential Type: ?

The Road Car was tested on its default hard sport tires, with minimal aerodynamic settings and brake balancer off.

TESTS
0-60 mph: 4.872 seconds 
0-100 mph: 8.651 seconds 
0-150 mph: 16.882 seconds

0-100 km/h: 5.014
0-200 km/h: 11.986  

400 M: 12.736 @ 130 mph  
1 Kilom: 21.635 @ 168 mph

1 Mile: 29.266 @ 187 mph

Brakes 100-zero mph: 4.367 seconds

Top Gear RPM @ 60 mph: 2,000  

Lap 2, Test Track X: 5:27.396
Lap 2, Daytona Superspeedway: 46.708 

Top Speed at Redline
1st: 45.x mph
2nd: 75.3
3rd: 99.6 
4th: 132.1 
5th: 160.0
6th: 190.0
7th: 213.9 @ 7,570 rpm


gtcitroenwithdriver.jpg

STORY / EXTERIOR / INTERIOR-----------------


One of the great anomalies of the mid-'90s into the 2000s is the country of France, a country famous for its wines and snail-eating contests, suddenly becoming an obvious maker of supercars. Not just a maker of supercars, but THE maker of THE fastest, most powerful, most expensive car in the world for a while, the thousand-horsepower Bugatti Veyron. Some folks may grumble that Bugatti is owned by Volkswagen, designed and developed in Germany, but the bottom fact is the Veyron EB 16.4 was manufactured in France for its entire 10-year duration.

France also produced several others which are lesser-known. Going in rough order from somewhat famous (mostly in Europe) to not famous at all to 'only familiar to a few serious car buffs' to huhwaitwhat??? we've got plenty variations of Clio Renault Sports. Then there's the Veyron's predecessor, the Bugatti EB110, its power rating from 553 to 610 hp depending which sub-model. We've got Venturis, the '99 Hommell Berlinette (more of an ordinary weak-engined sports car than something from the supersphere, but we'll include it), and finally there's the 1992 through 2000 Aixam Mega-Track, with its 6.0 liter V12 Mercedes engine.

There were also several concepts which never made it to production, such as the Peugeot 907 V12 and Peugeot Oxia, which claimed a top speed of 348 km/h!  Though these concepts never became realities, we can assume some of them had their spot in the skylight, capturing a portion of the motoring world's attention, at least for a short while.

Italy, Germany, and Britain had long been at the forefront, trading spots for Fastest Car, Most Powerful Engine, Highest Price tag, and other such milestones for decades. The United States and occasionally Japan leapt to the fore, as well. But nobody expected France would trump them all, and then stay at the top of the automotive world for several more years.

Perhaps this buildup from supercar obscurity to "regardez, je suis au top" had something to do with Citroën, a fellow French corporation, suddenly toying their own speculations. Could Citroën also attempt a launch into the superauto game? 

 A few times in the past, the automaker from Saint Ouen-sur-Sienne had been halfway there. Though they'd never attempted a true supercar, Citroën had plenty experience with wild, artistically-daring rides in their history. Firstly, the 1930s-era Traction Avant, which continued production well into the fifties, including (by then) its retro 1930s looks. Next, the aerodynamically-designed DS sedans. There's also the Maserati-powered SM, and even the cartoony, duck-like 2CV.

The company was not adverse to experimentation, is my point. The Traction Avant was the first production front-drive with a fully-independent suspension, for instance. A lot of those wilder Citroëns from the '60s and '70s were equipped with a patented self-leveling hydropneumatic suspension, which could vary ground clearance at the flick of a switch. So... wasn't as though Citroën never pushed any boundaries.

The GT by Citroën is (was..) the brainchild of Takumi Yamamoto, a childhood friend of Kazunori who became a designer at Jean-Pierre Ploué's Style Citroën division as an adult. Citroën's 'Advanced Design Manager' at the time, Giles Vidal, agreed to allow Takumi's wacky idea to flourish for awhile, apparently giving him the go-ahead in 2003. From that year until the 2008 Paris Motor Show, ideas for the GT were shuffled between Citroën and Polyphony Digital; probably lots of faxes, .pdf files and emails, uploaded pictorial sketches and so on, while Takumi & company apparently built the GT's physical components in Jean Pierre's studios. Over time, the GT by Citroën became a physical reality.

Though the collaboration seemed genuine for a while, Citroën and PD honing their sights toward one of the most outlandish vehicles to travel a few of Earth's motorways, the project led to naught. A single example became the final result of their 5-year efforts, which would mostly remain displayed upon showroom floors, perhaps taking an occasional drive somewhere safe, where no other traffic could smash into it, like a test course. Top Gear evidently drove the GT concept at some point as well, which we'll discuss in a few paragraphs.

Hey. Unlike a lot of conceptual automobiles, at least the GT could move!

Indeed. According to UltimateCarPage.com this concept had a 646 horsepower mid-mounted Ford V8 engine, but I haven't been able to discern much else online about the actual build, construction, and assemblage of the GT by Citroën.

After its splashy debut, six cars were then supposed to be created for some very rich customers, each GT costing just north of 2.1 million dollars. Such a high amount was not totally out of the question at the time, considering the Veyron was priced somewhere around $2,000,000 from 2005 until the GT's Paris Show intro.

But altogether, the project fell through.

Toward the end of the decade the world's economy hit a sudden low; the Great Recession of 2008 had reared its ugliness; Bernie Madoff leading the way with his gigantic stock market schemes, Lehman Brothers filed for the biggest bankruptcy of all time, millions lost their retirement money, banks needed government bailouts. Things got worse in 2009, and would remain so for a couple more years. Now was NOT the time to spend lots of money on frivolous daydreams, okay?

Even if all six of those monsters actually sold (which I firmly believe would've happened, and rather quickly; our world is so full of zillionaires...) we're still talking of 'only' $12,600,000 being earned altogether, which believe me is not as much as it sounds. Again, the Veryron's price tag was also quite high at the time, but Bugatti (backed by Volkswagen) had a good head start with Veyron sales, before GDP numbers collapsed worldwide.

Maybe the cost of building the GT plus the cost of tooling parts for all six examples plus the cost of everything else a carmaker needs to consider for a brand-new model became too expensive, on the production side of things. Like many other massive autocar conglomerations, being conservative is sometimes best for survival, especially during hard economic times. Was this really the moment for Citroën to release something so extraordinarily eccentric?

"Peut-être le coût de production for this ... monstruosité ridicule... will be better spent to properly develop whatever issues need most attention for our usual passenger models," Citroën executives possibly muttered at the time.

Couple examples. Could've been there was a problem with excessive high-speed glass-vibrations in the C3 hatch's external mirrors, for instance. Or the heaters within the semi-luxurious Citroën C6's seats were discovered to draw too many amps during testing, which could surely lead to long-term problems with blown fuses or (at the very least) unreliable BCM computer readings, according to findings from Citroën's recherche et développement team. Doesn't sound too exciting, but most of the time this is what successful manufacturers spend the bulk of their money on.

Most companies can't afford to play "Ferrari for a Day"; bread and butter must come first for those who make their living from the common public. Such things as mirrors and seat-heaters and driving light modules can take a lot of money to develop and make cost-effective, assuming they aren't being outsourced.

The GT by Citroën wasn't Polyphony's first attempt to bridge fantasy and reality. Several others, such as the Amuse S2000 GT1, Nismo Fairlady Z S-tune, and Nismo Skyline Coupe also began as Polyphony pipe dreams. Over time these others eventually became realities though, while the GT by Citroën remained a one-off. However, the process of imagining and then constructing those others was much easier than it was for the Citroën, since the S2000, the Z-car, and the R35 Skyline were already extant; Honda and Nissan had already done all the hard work!

I decided to visit the Top Gear website. Was wondering if Jeremy or anyone on the show ever had the experience of driving the GT concept. "We drove it around London and parked it outside Harrods, because why the hell wouldn't you?" comes a quote from the site. Not sure who said this: James May? Jeremy Clarkson? -- But that's a direct quote.

A few more words from TopGear.com seem pertinent, eh? Since they're the only dudes who seem to have driven the thing, outside of Citroën.

Well it looks awesome

Doesn't it just. The GT's design takes into account how people play video games, insofar as they're given the choice of a number of different perspectives from which to drive. So the GT was designed to flatter those angles, even inside. Aero is at its core, hence the dramatic bodywork.

And we are told though the GT is not and was never intended to exist, Citroen worked out how much power its fictitious powertrain would develop, how the aero and suspension would work and behave and so on, then fed this into Polyphony's computer. So while we can't prove otherwise, in-game it handles like something of its size, weight, power and type should. In theory, anyway.


Interesting read, especially the part where it says the GT was "never intended to exist", even though many websites (and PD themselves) contradict this info. Top Gear then contradicts themselves, stating "there was talk Citroen would build a limited number, possibly 20," even though six is the amount all other sources claim.

Anyway, seems a dead-end. Time to get behind the wheel.

Gran Turismo 5 includes three GT by Citroëns: a concept, a road car, and the full racing machine. I'll be taking a seat in the 'road' car, simply because this is supposed to be the result those zillionaires would've purchased. I will attempt a win during the Dream Car Championship. And if the Road Car can't do it, I'll try the Race Car. Keep in mind, all three versions essentially are concepts.

Getting belted in, the driver really gets the sense that, yes indeed, here we are in a concept car. The immediate surrounding interior looks unlike anything... ANYTHING... ever seen in any other automobile ever manufactured on planet Earth.

Even virtually, I feel as though I've gotten strapped into something which in fact belongs on some other planet, in some other solar system, powered by an isotope of radioactive deuteronium or something, which can only be mined from the planet Z-243 (which happens to be 200 light-years away), or synthesized in a unique laboratory after some brilliant earthbound Brainiac has an E=MC squared-equivalent moment on how to get the GT by Citroën to roll under its own power.

*Ahem*. The door panels are embedded with what look to be triple... air vents? The bizarre shape of the dashboard, the racy-inspired steering wheel, it all looks quite stunning, certainly worthy of the GT's experimental nature. Takumi brings the word "contour" to whole new levels. You spend 2.1 mil, and immediate impression? Well, many folks are definitely impressed. Definitely wowed or floored. Definitely can't wait to get this spaceship-on-wheels down to South Beach or Monaco, where the real fun in turning heads shall begin!

But let's include a few other prospective buyers, who may find themselves disappointed in some ways once they've attained ownership.

Even after viewing the concept in person at the 2008 show in Paris, as well as gazing upon whatever promotional materials Citroën printed on glossy paper or uploaded online, for whatever reason these zillionaire customers are unhappy. Perhaps their sudden opinion upon ownership is the car is grossly grotesque. Or they fear its beyond-exotic bodywork will attract too much attention from... just about everyone, everywhere the car goes, attention they'd rather avoid. Or perhaps they discover its interior is incommodious. Does Citroën expect anyone to actually drive this thing? It's way too distracting! Is there even a sound system?  What sort of creature comforts would a zillionaire, somebody who's used to riding in Bentleys or even Lamborghinis, expect from the GT's extraordinary (but sparse) interior?

Perhaps these unhappy buyers thought they wanted to own a GT, but now that they've got one, they wish they'd opted for a Veyron or a Gallardo instead. Hey, a good number of zillionaires tend to be fickle people, hard to satisfy.

Overall, we can make this guess concerning a GT buyer's first impressions. Assuming the GT had made production status and then found its way into someone's garage (or hangar... or xenopod...) everyone who would've folded themselves into the GT's butterfly-wing doors, whether they're wowed or upset, would've at least had some sort of reaction. We can safely presume that nobody is going to enter this extravagant vehicle, and then sit there going "Hmm, whatever, I'm good."

The dashboard scheme Citroën chose is shiny and appears geologic; created with materials aliens from planets outside of Alpha Centauri are well-familiar with. But the dash also looks unsafe. Are there lots of airbags installed within that dash (as there should be)? If so, when they explode, will the sharp edges and curves I'm seeing suddenly crack and burst apart, like the pupae casings of an anthropomorphic being from beyond our galaxy?

I'm impressed by the design, yet somewhat worried about potential safety!

On top of this we've got quite a pet peeve of mine: useless mirrors!  Thin little slabs of reflective material have been encased into thin little wedges, which are much more decorative than useful, and they're not even that decorative. What's the point of including external mirrors if we can't catch a glimpse of who's just behind, or which car is possibly about to destroy us down the straight?   It's like getting a sandwich from a renowned deli, expecting to bite into one hell of a multi-layer Kaiser, only to discover it contains just one thin slice of meat, a slice of cheese, and one limp leaf of lettuce.

In addition to bad mirrors (and therefore bad peripheral vision), straight-ahead visibility downright sucks.

The GT's windshield looks as though it'd be welcome in an armored military tank, allowing us a thin slot to peer through. The car's lack of glass limits one's ability to make split-second cornering decisions while soaring at speed. Hmm. Okay, maybe not a tank, but still, visibility is restricted more than it should be, especially considering this machine was meant for the road, and can go very fast. Some will disagree, but it wouldn't hurt to have an extra inch or two of head space, just to lighten the claustrophobia a bit.

Again and again as I drove and raced this mutated freak, I found it difficult to judge reliable braking distances and turn-in points. Often unable to see the curb which juts slightly onto the track during that tricky chicane before I nudge over it, causing the car to twitch an extra four centimeters, losing the precious cornering orbit I was going for. Again and again I'd slow into a turn, attempting to judge how much steering input is needed, only to aim just a smidge too aggressively...

...and now some overcorrections are needed, because I'm pointed toward the inner wall instead of proper tarmac. Temper the wheel just a tad, the car's front gets pointed toward the other inner wall. Or perhaps the entire orbit in and out of the turn becomes unstable. All because I can't get a good proper glimpse through the windshield.   

And like I said, it's often the traffic we cannot see which can really be dangerous. Because of this lack of common visibility I found myself using the little in-game map during the Dream Car Championship to see what was going on around the car!  Is that bozo in the Zonda LM sidling closer, plotting to trade track positions? Often I'd have no idea if I hadn't checked the map. Like being in a submarine perhaps, relying on radar instead of actual, viewable inputs. I'm studying little dots on the GPS while zooming along at high speed, because otherwise I have no idea where the competition is.

Many, many times if I'd forget to check the stupid map, or couldn't check it because I'm too busy actually driving. Times like these, wouldn't even know an opponent was near, until *BONK*, there he is. Again and again and again, dude. *BONK* *DUNT* *BONK*. Sometimes all it takes is one *BONK*-- the rest of the corner is ruined. Because who wants to take their eyes off the action, even for a smidge of a second, to gaze upon a squiggly line we'd normally ignore?

More complaints? Sure. :-/ Let's discuss instrumentation, or lack of it.

As far as this instrumentation goes, check this out: other than a single viewable monitor over the steering wheel there is no instrument cluster! Sure, there's a speedometer right in front of the driver, an always-viewable heads-up display of digital numbers. Such computer-like HUDs became quite the rage during the 2000s, and don't seem at all out of place in the GT by Citroën. But no tachometer? No temperature or pressure gauges?

The speedometer (as a racing tool) isn't really all that useful. Like it's so important to know I'm going 273 kilometers an hour, duh. I'd much rather not have that stupid readout. Because it becomes a physical blind spot, since it's blocking the track right in front of the car, right in front of my eyes!  I'm coming up fast on that Camaro LM, yet if my attention has wandered there's a chance I might not even see the Chevy until I'm about to ram its bumper!   Even something as minimal as the divider lines at Sarthe; it sucks not being able to see these lines because the speedo's blocking them, therefore I'm unable to reliably position the car slightly off-center as it roars down the Mulsanne, getting tossed by all those bumps.

Let's quickly discuss the GT by Citroën Race Car. THIS version of the GT's got the right idea, folks, or so it seems. TWO bright green LED-style displays in the Race Car: one is displayed onto an invisible placard just behind the windshield, the other adorns the center of the steering wheel. Kind of ugly, these alien-inspired, garish green info centers, but also actually useful. Though the windshield display is rather small and illegible, the wheel's display works for me. There's my speedometer right up top, and just below there it is: the tach. It's not a dial like I'd prefer, but this is okay. As the engine nears its best RPMs a series of lights on both spokes of the wheel react and illuminate. If revs go beyond redline, the lights turn from green to red. Similar to the progressive series of diodes which flash as we near redline in the 2010 AMG Benz SLS. Really helpful to know where those revs are at when the pressure's on, and we haven't got the luxury of fully listening to those RPMs.

Citroën also provided a G-force meter, informing how much lateral force is being generated during turns. Heck yes, that's more like it!  Why we haven't got features like this in the Road Car boggles me. If anything, the road version should have more pizzazz.  

Complain...grumble...bitch. Guess I'd be one of those customers who is somewhat upset, if I actually had that kind of cash and chose to purchase one of those six. Sure I'm amazed, but I'm also aghast. Such a futuristic design, which is so damn impractical.

While some folks might object: "But it's a concept! It's supposed to be daring and over-the-top, not so much for driving on actual roads," my answer would be "Buddy, I disagree, at least about the driving part."

Polyphony Digital's intent is right there in the car's name! Let's remember: this is the Road Car I'm piloting around, not the concept version.

Even if we're supposed to imagine that the GT by Citroën Road Car is an unfinished representation of what really would've traveled the streets once it was all put together, it just seems the job of structuring a proper interior was abandoned. Abandoned by PD that is, not Citroën or Takumi. Were there not any Interior Representation sketches available to portray some final results?

Alright, enough complaints. There are a couple of cool features about the GT, as well. As I got to know this Frenchmobile better, I began to appreciate these features.

Firstly, have a look at those aerodynamic settings in the Parts menu. Yeah. Notice they're set pretty damn high by default, and can be tweaked MUCH higher; sometimes higher than other actual racing cars. This includes modifiable frontal numbers, a choice which is often missing from a lot of race-worthy machines: concepts and tuners especially. It seems every opening, inlet, and cavity in the Citroën's fenders are functional.

Check out the gigantic scoops which begin underneath each door, sweep possibly past the rear brakes and engine banks (cooling them), then exit from the rear, just underneath each taillight. Those are apparently REAL. The car hasn't got a rear wing, nor a movable rear flap on its roof; so it must be those scoops which are generating lots of downforce.

The second appreciated feature is something I discovered by accident, out of frustrated desperation, as I struggled around Autodromo Nazionale Monza. Since visibility is so horrid, this one's important.

The area just in front of the driver and beyond the steering wheel has a couple of lines pointed sort of like this:

/ \

I'll call it an arrowhead, since I have no idea what it's really called. At first I assumed this was Takumi, showing off yet another unusual set of angles. But once I got to know the car better at Monza, I realized: while rolling on a straight section of track I could often line up the left side of the arrowhead just alongside the left side of the track, centering the track's edge just inside the car's inner fender. If I got it right, the car was now safely moving just inside the track's edge. Never again did I catch any grass, or wander off-track, after this discovery. And this is despite being barely able to SEE the grass or the track.

This also works with the passenger side of the arrowhead, except instead of lining up the right side of the arrowhead with the right edge of the track while rolling straight, I discovered I could line it up with the inside of a curve! Especially longer, higher-speed curves and sweepers. Do it right, and the dilemma of bopping over soft shoulders after steering inward too strongly (or ramming an inner guardrail) diminished greatly. Is this an intentional feature?

All of this works in the Race Car too, since the racing version hasn't got that stupid, solid speedometer placard blocking our vision. In fact, the Race Car's alien-green 'placard' includes what I'll call a pair of "wings", which extend maybe five inches to the right and the left of the upper speedometer. The edge of each wing can also be lined up with the edges of the track, which is even easier than lining up the arrowhead. I found I could zoom into difficult areas with better confidence in the Race Car, using these wings. An example is the high-speed S-turn at Tokyo. I could aim each side of those transparent wings straight over the rumble strips on the right, and then the left side of the S.     

These 'arrowhead/wing methods' are reliable at technical tracks with lots of straight lines, and lots of elegant turns, assuming these straights and turns are being traveled upon for more than four seconds. The straights have to be razor-straight, though. And right turns must contain near-constant arcs. If the track's bending at about fifteen degrees to the right for instance, it must remain at this angle, which makes the driver's ability to aim the wing or the arrowhead above the inner track's edge more precise.  
As mentioned, all of this works best during those long, grand areas of track space. What's not so easy are those slower, tighter areas, such as the dual chicanes of Monza. Trying to rely on the arrowhead also doesn't work while dashing into illogical areas, such as Circuit de Sarthe's high-speed to medium-speed to low-speed Indianapolis turns, or Flugplatz at Nürburgring. Lining up an edge of the 'arrowhead' with an edge of a track usually takes a few moments of configuring. Yet we haven't got a few moments while twisting into Variante della Roggia, or trying not to float onto the top of Laguna Seca's Corkscrew.

Truthfully, even the Race Car's upper display becomes problematic. Not so much at Indy or Monza, but at Sarthe and Nürburgring, where constant blind areas must be navigated by blind faith. Here's a thought: how about we put nothing in the area just above the steering wheel?  No speedometer, no alien-green information display?  I've had better success racing all these years without any those inputs.  

So, overall design of the car's exterior, in my opinion? 10 out of 10. This thing was made to blow some minds, no doubt, yet its aero-parts perform. Excellent job at being extreme, while also maintaining function along with form.

How about the design of its interior? Another 10 out of 10, if I'm solely rating Style Citroën's creative imagination.

Um... how about overall practicality and ergonomics of the same interior category? Pretty damn low. Some may think that all a car needs is to be fast, and also be incredible in some way. But as we'll see, being fast and being incredible are nothing, if we can't properly drive the damn thing.


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ENGINE / DRIVETRAIN------------------

So what exactly is a supercar?


A supercar, also known as an exotic car, is a type of automobile generally described as a street-legal, luxury superlative performance sports car, both in terms of power, speed, and handling. The term 'supercar' is therefore frequently used for low-bodied sportscars with powerful, rear mid-mounted engines.[1]

Supercars commonly serve as the flagship model within a vehicle manufacturer's line-up of sports cars and typically feature various performance-related technology derived from motorsports. Some examples include the Ferrari 458 Italia, Lamborghini Aventador, and McLaren 720S.

That's Wikipedia's opening description. In America, there are very specific terms for muscle car, so the question is, is there also a standard definition for supercar?  Really what I was after: how much power does a car need to have before it's considered 'super?'   

Seems power is not really a factor actually. Overall performance (braking and handling, alla dat) and a certain sort of style are what's important. There is no actual amount of power which delineates one car as super, another one is not.  

One interpretation up until the 1990s was to use it for mid-engine two-seat cars with at least eight cylinders (but typically a V12 engine), a power output of at least 400 bhp (298 kW) and a top speed of at least 180 mph (290 km/h).[8] Other interpretations state that "it must be very fast, with sporting handling to match.


This definition doesn't fit the 276 horsepower Honda NSX, often considered Japan's first supercar. A few supercars also have drivetrain layouts that don't include mid or rear engines, such as the Nissan GT-R, Dodge Viper, Mercedes AMG SLS series, Ferrari 599, Corvette editions from the C6 & 7 generations, several of the most powerful Aston Martins, and so on. As usual, definitions are all over the place, just as they are for muscle car. Some say the Viper and Corvette are merely 'sports cars', for instance.   


Anyway, so continues the saga of the GT by Citroën, the show car which looked as though it was not going to compromise its show car roots. What the zillionaires saw in Paris/2008 was what they'd eventually get, and more.


Since concept cars planned with such low production numbers don't have to cater to the general public, there is no chance of a massive fail, no chance of thousands (or even dozens) of unsold examples sitting around ordinary dealerships, while the automotive press has a field day discussing the world's latest automotive flop.

I don't think Citroën and Takumi were worried about sales, though; in fact I think they were pretty psyched. Because they had other, more daring plans for this project. Stuff which would've definitely changed the world had their ideas come to total fruition.

Concepts like the GT aren't just wild-looking ideas come to life which viewers then gawk at, they are sometimes also used to experiment with new technologies, and apparently, Takumi and friends were planning to push a few boundaries. Best of all, the characteristics we're about to discuss were slated to be passed on to all six of those zillionaire customers.

Here in the engine department, doing tests and dry runs around an empty Test Track X, things are looking initially good. I was able to destroy the previous record for Max Speed, attaining second place overall at just under 214 miles per hour. Only a 2009 Chevy Corvette C6 has top spot at the moment in my GT5 gameworld. Très bien!

The car's questionable story continues in this chapter though, as the GT by Citroën was promised to be one of those machines which was supposed to be heavily advanced (even unique) in several ways. It's similar to the story of the Jaguar XJ220. Both cars were supposed to have an all-wheel-drive layout, for instance. And both were touted as containing very specific powerplants, which dazzled potential buyers at the time. The Jag was supposed to possess a V12 engine for instance, while the Citroën would be powered by a technology which had never been utilized in a public road-going car: fuel cells.

Fuel cells, yes. The GT was originally supposed to be powered by these complicated 'cells' instead of a conventional gasoline engine or electric motor(s). Fuel cell technology converts electrochemical energy into hydrogen, which is what the Hindenburg carried in the gigantic gas bags that exploded over Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Hydrogen is a highly combustible material, but it's also an element floating within ordinary air. It's also one of two atoms comprising every molecule of ordinary water; so therefore, a very common element. Hydrogen also burns way more cleanly than petrol. Final emissions from hydrogen combustion are water, and hotter-than-usual air.

So the idea here was a noble one. Rather than continuing to drill/pollute our planet for oil, a finite resource, let's take an element which we're never going to run out of. Hydrogen is all around us, at all times, we're breathing it now! Yet it also burns readily when distilled to a pure gas. So yeah, makes sense to try applying such technology in automobiles, especially since hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells have been used in other applications since 1932. Citroën must've been thrilled with the possibilities.

During the 20th Century fuel cells have been successfully used in space technology, and within plenty of mobile, but slower forms of transport (construction equipment, submarines, buses), as well as non-mobile forms, such as generators. But they hadn't been proven at all in passenger cars during the 2000s. Unfortunately, Citroën was not to be the pioneer in this regard. The first commercial application for a fuel cell vehicle didn't happen until Toyota's Mirai, which began production in 2015!

...And this is why the GT by Citroën appears in the game (not to mention as a concept in real-life) with a 5.4 liter 'Modular' Ford V8 engine instead of something truly groundbreaking. Yep, the 5.4. Same powerplant that's in the Mustang and plenty of Triton-equipped Ford trucks. Interesting that Citroën didn't choose a French (or even a European) engine to power the GT.

But hey, at least the GT by Citroën concept actually had an engine, and could also move itself around. Lots of concepts are simply models which aren't self-powered.

There are lots of Ford 5.4 variations: some have 2-valve, SOHC engines, some have 3 valves, some have 4. I believe the powerplant in the GT is the supercharged dual overhead-cam 4-valve unit which also powers the Ford GT. To prove this, I got into a 2006 Ford GT, and then equipped a semi-racing exhaust. The soundbyte is the same. The GT by Citroën comes equipped with a semi-racing muffler/tailpipe by default, which sounds exactly the same as what's in the Ford GT.

Quick comparison to the Race Car here, which is obviously endowed with a different engine. Here we've got a soundbyte which (my opinion) blares annoyingly, not as easy on my ears as the Road Car's engine. Also, the Race Car's unit sounds more like a V6 once it's at speed, rather than a V8, though it engine does have a nice burbling rumble at idle.    

Only when starting the GT up in Gran Turismo 5's Home Garage do we hear what could be fuel cells. Instead of a mighty V8 rumble on startup the car goes sweeeeeee... An unfamiliar noise, similar to the sound of water being pressurized through pipes, perhaps. Certainly not the burble of a V8 combustion powerplant.

Yes it'd be nice to have actual fuel cells, or an engine which is actually European, but I also happen to love the 5.4, with its mighty four-inch+ piston stroke. Torque when it's needed, with lots of horsepower up near redline. The two turbo upgrades we can purchase don't ruin the powerband. Because of this, I could often mix 'n' match gears out of turns. 2nd gear might provide more instant acceleration, but 3rd can also be used, to better avoid any rear-end slippage. Speed is guaranteed either way, as long as traction is maintained. This behavior continues at higher speeds, as well. Oftentimes I could use 3rd gear to shriek out of medium-speed curves, like the massive 180-degree Turn 4 of Tokyo Route 246, but I could substitute 4th if I wanted a safer exit with less drama, less chance of squirreling.

But in 2008 there was yet another potential problem we shall discuss. Not so much in the game, but real-life: drivetrain layout.

Mentioned the Jaguar XJ220 a while back, which three decades ago was supposed to include a mid engine/all-wheel-drive setup, possibly making the XJ become THE supercar to trump all other supercars of the early '90s. In 2008, Citroën was promising the exact same thing! Yet in the game we've got a mid engine/rear-drive layout, which is also what Jag wound up using in 1992 instead of AWD. Difference for Jaguar was they made actual sales to actual buyers, disappointing those who weren't aware there'd be a final discrepancy.

The transmission is a sequential 7-speed manual, again, much approved by this reviewer. Because personally, I never saw a need for customizable gears.

First gear is useless, okay? It'll cause nothing but shredded tire meat off the line. So avoid using first. Much easier to utilize acceleration runs while punching the throttle from second; in fact I attained drastically lower acceleration numbers during testing while lurching off in 2nd (which I wish I'd documented...)

If the car is initially notched into 2nd instead of 1st, the gigantic, super-low profile Escalade-size tires a gangbanger would approve have no problem with traction. Speed gathers up quickly, my friend. Best thing is, Citroën (or whomever makes the gearbox in this thing) included a taller-than-expected 7th gear, guaranteeing momentum continues to gather until the car's at its absolute limit with speed versus wind-forces.

Oddly, the stickshift is manipulated from the center console by our in-game avatar, not from shifter paddles on the steering wheel. I hate paddle shifters, so I greatly approve of this. But it does seem odd, and rather old-fashioned in this age of button-press semi-manual gearboxes.

When viewing the GT's interior through Google or Bing images, viewing the actual interior which was shown to the public, a stickshift cannot be seen. All I'm able to glimpse are a series of buttons on the driver's console, with what looks to be a couple of red switches. Possibly these switches are what our avatar is manipulating when he moves his right hand away from the wheel? But this can't be! The box shifts with an obvious pause between each gear, as though a clutch is being manipulated. Hmm.

Good news is, there's plenty of ceiling. Though peak power is located at or near redline, the transmission unit, paired with lots of RPMs, allows plenty of safe revving area. The GT, as it roars around Test Track X, never gets anywhere near redline in gear 7, even as it rolls down the massive hill, clocking just under 349 km/h at the fastest. Later, while hot-lapping and racing, often I could allow the V8 to get deep into that redline area before shifting.

Upgrades are also available for the Road Car: a racing exhaust, two engine stages, and two extra turbos. Top power rates at just under 750 horses (yikes).

For those who aren't satisfied, too bad. Oddly, the in-game parts shop does NOT provide extra engine stages for the GT by Citroën Race Car. Power rates around 650 horsepower with a Stage 3 turbo in this monstrosity, and that's it. However the good news is, the Race Car includes other abilities than extra power; it's an easier car to drive and race, or so it seems. Turns out the Race Car is also quite ridiculous and problematic, it's just not as horrible as the Road Car.  


twogtbycitroens.jpg

CHASSIS / HANDLING--------------

"Such a shame," says the website I visited earlier, in regards to the GT by Citroën's production being shelved. But here's another shame. Top Gear apparently drove the concept version, but neglected to describe what it was like! According to the blurb on Top Gear's website: "We drove it around London and parked it outside Harrods, because why the hell wouldn't you?"

So they drove it around London, stopped at Harrods, a highbrow department store in England... AND??? 

They didn't bother to share their impressions. Such a shame, indeed.     

Well I'm going to record my experience, no matter how bad!  Just warning y'all, things did get pretty bad in the Road Car!  Embarrassingly so, at times.

To get driving impressions for this review, I did some hot laps around two empty tracks: Indianapolis and Monza. Both were initially cruised on hard and soft sport tires, no brake balancer, minimal aerodynamics, and default suspension settings. My plan was to then enter the Dream Car Championship. Before the races at Indy, Monza, Tokyo, Circuit de Sarthe, and Nürburgring, I would save the championship and exit the game. Then I would reenter the series, do some practice laps on hard sport tires again, exit and reenter a second time. The car would then be fully tuned on hard racing tires, and the race would commence.

Problem is, by default, I discovered the GT would need at least 670 horsepower to succeed at Indy. Power would rise or fall somewhere around 670 for the rest of the championship, totaling a high point of 721 hp at Tokyo. And this means an engine stage had to be installed. With 608 hp now the new base power the GT by Citroën became completely stupid test-drive on sport tires; it now required racing slicks!

Here's what can be said right up front, and keep in mind this is while using the in-car view. Driving or racing, it's all about intuition. While this is also true of numerous other cars with hundreds of horses on tap (we gotta know when things are slipping ever so sideways out of that sweeper for instance, even before those tires start to squeal with grip-loss) relying upon intuition in the GT by Citroën is even more necessary, since it's so damn hard to see through its windows!

Again, I'm using the game's in-car view, not bumper cam, roof cam, or behind-car cam. Those who use these other viewpoints probably won't have as many issues!

Overall first impressions at Monza: I can't help but wonder what it'd be like to drive the GT's chassis in a car which isn't so outlandish, isn't akin to a two-million dollar amusement park ride. Better visibility through the windshield most of all, not the narrow mail slot of glass we've been given. If we could trade the GT's interior for, let's say, that of a Ferrari 599, what would the difference in driveability be?

Because underneath the insectoid persona the GT preternaturally portrays, it seems to handle like many other mid-engine automobiles possessing near 500 horsepower. Tricky, but rewarding if the driver learns its quirks. Keep off that gas while turning heavily to avoid a habit of rear-end lashing as too much power gets dumped too quickly, and so on.  

Really, the question begs: what would this machine have been like if it were actually released for sale? 

Driving the GT around looks exactly as though we're behind the wheel of a small spaceship, landed here on Earth. Like a fiction of science, the spaceship switches from a series of rocket thrusters to those giant tires, and off it rolls. It's exactly a rather thrilling ride in this way, very unconventional, even preposterous!   All of this is true if the car's moving in a straight line, or tilting with G-forces high up on some banked curve like Test Track X, where speed can gather safely.

It's those flatter turns where peril awaits.

First of all, driving on this car's given hard sport tires is certainly possible around one of the Dream Car tracks, such as Monza or Tokyo. Lots of patience, lots of time behind the wheel while simply learning how to drive all over again, such a thing can be done. But only if those aerodynamics are cranked, and brake balance is aggressively set.

It really is quite a difference, trying to motor around with minimal aero parts rating 20 in front / brake balancer set to 0/0. Under such conditions, handling becomes a joke. Brake zones... as long as the runways required for a jet airliner to properly slow. So then we tweak those spoilers and inlets to full strength, and dial up those brake balancer settings. There we go. NOW the GT can be slowed into zones from distances which are much more appropriate. Like 180 meters into Variante del Rettifilo, instead of gnashing teeth if 210+ meters are missed by a hair.

The front-end suffers some latent understeer at times, pushing lightly during longer, lower-to-medium-speed turns where those aerodynamics fully aren't kicking in yet. But this is expected since the car's rolling on hard tires.

 Arguably, the GT by Citroën has no business on the Sport tires it came equipped with, or not even softs. Not if the driver wants to fool around with greater speeds, which of course, the GT by Citroën Road Car should supposedly be comfortable with, given its enormous power.

Thing is, there's a list of many performance cars in GT5 which can be safely driven on hard sport tires: Camaro SS, BMW M3, Nissan Skyline GT-R, but none of these are endowed with 500 horses. I have yet to drive a Saleen S7 or a Jaguar XJ220 on top of this same rating of tires. Perhaps that'll be a good comparison some day, just to see if those others actually require racing slicks like the GT does.

So arguably, GT by Citroën "Road Car" is much more of a racing effort than something which should travel on ordinary roads. It just hasn't got the predictability and confidence many others from the performance level possess. So the rest of this review shall reflect racing efforts, not so much ordinary cruising, or even stock-equipped hot-laps.

Indianapolis Speedway
It took multiple practice laps and a couple mock attempts before I felt ready for the actual race. Again, this has nothing to do with how the GT handles those slightly-banked turns, nothing to do with braking zones, etc., the problem was literally visibility.

Turns 1 and 2 were horrid! Near impossible to see where Indy's initial slowing-down zone morphs into the turn-in points of these two curves. Disaster always loomed as I attempted to aim the GT towards the inner part of both turns. Half the time I'd miss an appropriate entry, and then awkwardly be in the middle of the turn, dealing with a front-end which wasn't steering as forcefully... Or I'd perform the opposite, steering too aggressively. Now I'm rolling over the thin strip of grass which resides on the inner part of Turn 1, scrambling sideways as the GT returns to pavement.

Ugh.

Turns 3 and 4 though, most of the time I could nail them. And it's mostly because the angle of the sun on these latter turns. For some reason I had no problem seeing where I was headed into these turns, and could then plot a decent line in and out of them. If I got it right the car handled gracefully, gliding into turn 3 at over 270 kilometers an hour, and maintaining enough speed to pwn the competition.

But always, there'd be the threat of slight understeer at this track if a very slight error was made, during any of those four turns. All it'd take is to fudge an angle of entry carrying a little too much speed. Next thing ya know, I'm plowing a bit. Really dangerous situation, when those LMs are closing in.  

On the other hand, the GT by Citroën Race Car never understeers. Never gets a little too hot. In comparison, all I'd need to do was aim the damn thing. Let off the brakes. IMMEDIATELY the front-end would respond, actually grabbing inwards, aiming to please!  If anything, later on at other tracks I'd need to tune some of this behavior out of the Race Car. Otherwise it'd often be too eager to steer itself inwards, even if a guardrail or a wall threatened some crunchage.

That's not to say the Race Car is perfect; it damn-well isn't at those bumpier, trickier courses!  But it does a better job at 'easy' tracks than the Road Car.         

Monza Circuit
660 horsepower at this track. Braking and steering held decent command as long as I could see where the car was pointed, and was not being rubbed sideways by some dimwit. Main prob at this track was the GT often displayed the same lazy habit of understeer seen at Indy. Especially during some of those longer Monza curves, such as Curva Parabolica, the final 180-degree U which begins the main straight. Another toughie was Curve di Lesmo, the sharp set of dual-righties on the far side of the track. There'd be this push going on as I tried to aim, argh!  Nothing to do but WAIT 'til the ploughing backed off, which (of course) felt like ages each time.

Because of this, I was too afraid to install a limited-slip at this track, despite the car's gargantuan traction-destroying power!  However, one thing nice about the Road Car is it has a predictable ability to trail-brake inwards, even from high speeds. Didn't want to ruin this. Which is the other reason I avoided LSD.  

As mentioned, once I finally figured out the arrowhead mystery described in the first section of this review, the car finally rewarded me, the driver, with a sense of mastery. Or so it seems.

This GT car review is running a bit long, so I'm about to cut it short. The races at Tokyo and Circuit de Sarthe turned out bad. Really, embarrassingly bad. Guessing into turn after turn, often getting it wrong by a fraction, then smashing into a wall at Tokyo. Or catching a mere snippet of sand at Sarthe while trying to exit the Mulsanne. Each time, the race got cancelled. Then I'd exit, reload, and try again. 

Nürburgring 24 hour track? Didn't bother. I was beyond pissed by that point. Fuck the GT by Citroën Road Car! and fuck the Race Car too. Both of them are going back in my garage, where they'll stay for the rest of Jacques Strapp (my imaginary French driver's) career. 

Well, what I like about the racing version is I could make occasional mistakes, or simply push the car a little harder than the road version. Braking a bit late, for instance; even trail-braking a bit late. The Road Car? Such things would be intolerable, leading mostly to understeer. But the Gt by Citroën Race Car sometimes allows greater leeway, because understeer in this thing is as rare as a $2.00 bill.     

But the Race Car could be just as problematic, as mentioned several times by now... It also can't be given a proper review like the Road Car can. Everything about the racing version can be modified. There really is no 'base' version to describe because of this.   




Summary: Well I don't know many French words but here's one which seems pertinent: merde!

It's a wacky machine which dazzles at first, and surely plenty of drivers couldn't wait to get behind the wheel. But the GT by Citroën misses many marks, incites many grievances, and will generally piss any racer off once they're really going for it. Here's a vehicle which will drive the driver literally mad if one takes it too seriously. Unlike several other high-powered automobiles which've been accused of suckdom: the Ford GT90 topping that list, the GT by Citroën really does remain a stupidly awful vehicle to race, or even drive.

At least I could win a few long ago in that GT90, including GT2's much-vaunted Gran Turismo All Stars. The GT by Citroën?  I'm about to forget I ever tried.


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PROS-----------------------

1). Extraterrestrial Design, inside and out. Almost looks like one of those Transformer toys, like the car's about to turn into a giant robot. Besides that, the GT's got a unique, balanced look to it.  

2). Aerodynamic aids can be adjusted, and to some quite higher numbers. This includes the Road Car.

3). That Modular V8 engine just shreds. Lots of power on the aftermarket, too.

4). "One size fits all" 7-speed transmission. I have yet to opt for customizable gears.

5). Lots of colors to choose from, even though there were only supposed to be six GT by Citroën Road Cars built.

6). Confident mid-engine handling for those who persist to dial it in. This car understeers at times, true, and its ability to lash from the rear can happen easily if the driver gets too fuel-happy. But once you get to know the GT, some fancy tricks can be at your disposal. Such as...

7). Lots of traction, outside of first gear. Even heavily powered up near 750 horses, 2nd is still a useful selection out of slow areas.  

8). Excellent braking, too. With an option for predictably trailing inwards, assuming racing tires are equipped underneath, brake settings are dialed up, and those aerodynamics are as high as they can go.   

9). Here's an automobile only the best, most dedicated, most patient race drivers should touch. But when they get it right, the GT can reward. It'll pwn the competition, but only if the driver's willing to learn the GT's puzzling requirements.    

10). Fun to watch during replays.





CONS--------------------------------

1). Lack of visibility! Useless mirrors. Blind spots which could've been avoided if that design department took more time to visualize how demanding it'd be to drive the GT, less time trying to be abstract artistes. It almost seems Takumi went out of his way to ensure this car would be crappy to navigate. Not a good idea, considering the 500 horses roaring just behind us.

...This cannot be emphasized enough to those who haven't driven the GT yet. Lots of mistakes, lots of corner-recalculations, lots of annoyance, all because it's so dang hard to SEE where we're going. Con #1 is definitely this car's worst trait by far. It is 90% of why the GT by Citroën sucks.   

2). Priced not to move. And to those who spend the money yet didn't know better, the question quickly, awkwardly comes up: is the GT by Citroën really worth those 2 million credits?  

For anyone who wants the free GT by Citroën Race Car, this prize is not available until the B-spec version of Dream Car Championship. Almost the end of the game.  

3). All the technology promised which did not make the cut. No fuel cells providing pollution-free emissions, no all-wheel-drive. It's possible to argue the car would be worth 2,000,000 if both these were included in the price, even virtually.

4). Enormous power possible from the parts shop, but no weight reductions at all.

5). The car's wide girth does enable lots of stability (especially at speeds when aerodynamics kick in) but passing other cars during narrow bits can often be a nightmare.

6). Tricky high-horsepower handling. Even with the best tires and extensive tuning, this is not a car for anyone who isn't planning on mastering its difficulties.

7). Fugly design, some might say. 

8). No engine stage additions for the Race Car, even though they're available for the Road Car. Maybe PD goofed. Maybe the Race Car was supposed to get that extra power, which it could handle better than the more-difficult road version.   

9). Excessive amounts of overhang, especially toward the rear. Because of this, the back-end has a habit of swaying during exit, if traction is not maintained within 1% of capacity.

10). "Lazy" understeer. At times it seems I could almost get rid of it through tuning, or if the car had just that little bit extra front downforce. Again and again I'd need to temper the car's speed during corners.

11). Another Top Gear quote: The GT's design takes into account how people play video games, insofar as they're given the choice of a number of different perspectives from which to drive. So the GT was designed to flatter those angles, even inside.                                     

Translation: It's all about looks. Takumi & PD worked hard to make the GT as outlandish as possible, "even inside". The priority for making a drivable car happens way down the list.



Published: June 18, 2024