GT4 2004 Proto Motors SPIRRA 4.6 V8

On the occasion of a Friday (26.08.2016), I hereby give you, the readers of this blog, some pictures of a Spirra - the GT4 2004 Proto Motors SPIRRA 4.6 V8 to be exact.

It is parked in these pictures at Grand Canyon which is a photo travel location in Gran Turismo 4 but is also "one of the seven (more than seven, I am sure) wonders of the world that stretches across the State of Arizona in America, with majestic views of the arid landscape".

Wearing a coat of Spirra Yellow, the Spirra is a real car. However, its initial manufacturer - Proto Motors (or Protomotors) of South Korea went bankrupt soon after GT4 came out in 2004 but the Spirra apparently lives on as the Oulim Motors Spirra and has gone already through several generations.

Introduced at the Seoul Motor Show in 2002, the Spirra Prototype was an attractive, midship sports car developed by Proto Motors, a Korean research and development company established in 1997 that is best known for creating stretched limousines and electric vehicle prototypes, for major Korean auto manufacturers including Daewoo and Hyundai.

Korean auto manufacturers are known for their practical sedans and efficient compact cars, but this could soon change as a result of the Proto Motors Spirra Prototype.

With an overall length, width, and height, of 170.0 inches, 75.9 inches, and 46.2 inches, respectively, the Spirra's sharply-pressed bodylines rests atop an aluminum spaceframe/carbon fiber chassis.

Its looks immediately brings to mind high-performance, and includes unique design elements in their use of curves around the headlights. The doors are gull winged and open towards the front.

The engine compartment behind the front seats is spacious enough to accommodate just about any engine, and allowed the choice of a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4, a 3.0-liter V-6 and a 4.6-liter V-8. The most powerful V-8 produced 320 HP, giving it the ability to go head to head with leading Japanese and European sports models and it came equipped with a 6-speed manual transmission.

This is a very rare car in the extremely competitive sportscar market that proudly claims "Made in Korea".

Proto Motors has since then changed their company name to Oullim Motors.

It looks OK. In fact, I think it was ahead of the times in the looks department. 

Present-day (2016) cars have the same styling cues.