KTM X-BOW GT-XR: the most brutal street-legal race car ever?

September 7, 2022

Lightweights

Some car enthusiasts don’t care for them, others you can get out of bed in the middle of the night for them: lightweight street-legal sports cars. Think of the two-seaters from the likes of Lotus, Caterham, Donkervoort, Ariel Motor Company, Dallara and so on. KTM also belongs in this list, although you may know the Austrian brand mostly for their motorcycles.

KTM X-Bow

However, the brand has also been producing cars since 2008, namely the X-Bow. With the car, the brand celebrated its 50th anniversary at the time. Now, over 14 years later, the manufacturer is introducing the most extreme street car they have ever made: the X-Bow GT-XR. The extreme street car closely resembles the GTX and GT2 race cars that the Austrian company also builds.

X-Bow GT-XR

The base of the X-Bow GT-XR consists of a carbon fiber monocoque and a tubular steel frame, making the car weigh only 1,130 kilograms. So for impressive performance, not much power is needed, yet KTM throws Audi’s familiar blown 2.5-liter five-cylinder into the street-legal racing monster. On top of that, they also tickled the block quite a bit. The result is 500 hp and 581 Newton meters, all of which goes to the rear wheels via a seven-speed DSG automatic and a limited slip differential. The Austrian needs just 3.5 seconds for the 0-100 sprint and has a top speed of 280 km/h.

Daily driver

On paper, the new X-Bow looks like the ultimate track toy, but according to the manufacturer, it is also a perfect daily driver, thanks to its large 96-liter (!) fuel tank, electric progressive power steering and a hydraulic elevator system, which means that speed bumps are no longer annoying obstacles. Boarding is also easier than with many superlight cars. In fact, the entire roof can open forward, making it easy to sink into a seat.

Circuit monster with luxury stuff

The GT-XR is less hardcore in many ways than the original 2008 X-Bow. That one didn’t even have a roof, while KTM’s latest creation even has air conditioning and a bluetooth audio system. But make no mistake, the GT-XR is still track worthy. You can see that right away, if you look at the huge rear wing, rear diffuser and front splitter. The car’s floor is designed to maximize the ground effect, much like current Formula One cars. Customers who really want to get miles on the track can also tick off carbon-ceramic brakes on the option list. The car’s suspension comes from Sachs and center-locking wheels (wheels with a central wheel nut) are also an option.

KTM expects to build only 100 units per year and the starting price is 285,000 euros in Austria. Whether he will come to the Netherlands is not yet clear.