Citroen GQ concept revealed

Citroën’s design team, headed by Mark Lloyd who was responsible for the new Citroën DS3, took a new look at the GT theme and integrated it with a typical Citroën design to bring the Citroën GQ Concept to concept reality.

Citroën GQ Concept features contemporary styling with a sculpted front end, rounded rear, and Citroën’s signature concave rear windscreen. The car’s cabin is accessed by rear coach doors, revealing a spacious and futuristic cabin.

Dynamic performance and environmental responsibility were key requirements for the project. The Citroën GQ Concept is powered by a plug-in Hybrid with a 1598cc, 4-cylinder direct injection petrol engine offering 0-60mph time of 4.5 seconds, an electronically limited top speed of 155mph and CO² emissions of 80g/km.

GQ editor Dylan Jones said: “I wanted something practical, something cool, and something idiosyncratic – i.e. something surprising that didn’t just look like a concept car. The GQ car needed to have the ‘want’ factor, but it also needed to look, feel and ‘drive’ like the sort of car no sane man could choose to ignore. We think it looks very very special.”

Lloyd added: “Where this car works so well with GQ is that it fits with the current attitudes of conspicuous consumption. It is understated rather than in-your-face and sleek rather than too macho. With the skills of a Savile Row tailor on the car’s interior we have also achieved that bespoke, fitted feel, both inside and out.

“For me, the car that has always represented the pinnacle of automotive excellence and refinement is the GT – the Grand Tourer. It is not the all-out sports car, rather it is something gentlemanly, it has performance and it is for travelling, not racing. We wanted to create something that, like GQ, was aspirational, but also retained the classic automotive ideals. We didn’t want a car for the mass market. We wanted a car for GQ.'”