The Artega GT is a beauty. Too bad it was over so quickly. This is a very special specimen.
It is not difficult to have to compete against the established order as a new manufacturer. You often see brands going for extremely powerful engines, low production numbers and extremely high price tags. You sell the car because it is extremely fast and exclusive, two USPs that appeal to men. And the prospective customer takes it for granted that it has a price tag.
In that respect, the idea behind the Artega GT was very noble. Instead of a supercar competitor, the Artega GT was an alternative to the Porsche Cayman. Normally you expect lower quality, but the Artega almost comes across as more solid than the Cayman from that period. Yes really.
Big names
There have been some big names involved in this project. Karl-Heinz Kalbfell (the man behind the Alfa 159) was in charge, Hardy Essid (Porsche) did the development and Henrik Fisker was allowed to draw it.
The original press car will be on display at the 2023 Essen Motor Show. Germans often have a special form of crazy taste and that turned out to be the case this time. The color was vanilla yellow. Now that is a very original color and a very recognizable one. Magazine photographers complained that the Artega GT was very difficult to photograph.
In real life it is also noticeable that the color is, er, special. It’s not ugly, but the light plays a big role. In any case, it’s a shame that it’s always about that color, because they are beautiful cars. The Artega GT has great proportions. The car is relatively short, but quite wide. In terms of vibe it has something of a 60s supercar about it.
Technology Artega GT
In terms of technology, the Artega GT is equipped with a 3.6 liter VR6 engine of Volkswagen origin. It was the engine that matched the specifications of the Passat R36, although the engine was also used by other models from Audi and Porsche and Volkswagen. The engine produces 300 hp and 370 Nm and is linked to a seven-speed DSG dual-clutch automatic transmission. The Artega GT weighs only 1,100 kilograms, so you can still sprint from 0-100 km/h in just 4.5 seconds.
Then why did the project fail? Well, we’re going to explain that to you in detail: it didn’t go well. The Artega came onto the market just after the credit crisis. Partly because of this, the price of the Artega was increased several times to be profitable. The intention was to tout the Artega GT as a Cayman rival, but in the end it was a 911 competitor.
That is always a difficult proposition. After 153 copies, Artega went bankrupt. We saw the basis of the car come back as the Spyker B6 Venator from professional air cyclist V. Muller. There was also a restart in the form of the Artega Scalo (a electric version of the GT). Oh, and not to forget the Saleen S1, but none of those projects got off the ground.
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This article Even more beautiful than a 911 in real life: Artega GT first appeared on Autoblog.nl.
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