The 1,500 Horsepower Phone Car Is Real, And Soon You'll Be Able to Drive It… In Gran Turismo 7
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
Alright, confession time. My relationship with video games is complicated. I spend my days wrestling with real-world steering wheels attached to things with entirely too much power, so the appeal of a digital version is sometimes lost on me. It feels a bit like a chef coming home and making instant noodles for dinner. There is, however, one glorious exception: Gran Turismo. It's the only digital garage I've ever bothered to fill. And now, in a turn of events that has me genuinely intrigued, the digital doors to that hallowed garage are sliding open for… a phone company.
Xiaomi, the people who likely made the device you're reading this on, or at least the smart lightbulb you yell at every morning, has built a car. And now, to prove they're serious, they've managed to get it into Gran Turismo 7. This isn't just a small win; it's the automotive equivalent of getting your high school band's demo tape into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
I still can't believe what I'm about to write - a car from a Chinese tech giant has gotten the nod. This is a big deal. It's a statement that the global car party has a new guest, and they didn't just show up with a bottle of cheap wine - they brought the fireworks. The car landing in the game is the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra, and it represents a fascinating moment where my world of tangible, tire-shredding EVs collides with the pixel-perfect realm of virtual racing. And the only way I'm getting my hands on one anytime soon is with a PlayStation controller.
Just in case you were wondering, the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra is, against all odds and the laws of what I considered sane automotive production, a real, road-going, purchasable car. They actually built the 1,548-horsepower monster. It's not a concept. It's not a video game fantasy. It is a thing you can buy as long as you are in China.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
Let's just pause and absorb that number. One thousand, five hundred, and forty-eight horsepower. In a four-door sedan. From a tech company on its first go. Naturally, my first instinct upon hearing these specs was to have a good laugh. "Ah, very clever," I thought. "That'll be their 'Vision Gran Turismo' fantasy car." But no. The Xiaomi SU7 Ultra is a real-world machine that makes most supercars look a bit asthmatic. It's powered by three "HyperEngine V8s" motors that spin to an eye-watering 27,200 rpm. The result is a 0 to 62 mph sprint in a staggering 1.98 seconds and a top speed that brushes past 217 mph.
I feel like I need to write that down again just to believe it. A family-sized sedan that can out-accelerate basically everything on the road. This is the kind of lunacy I can get behind. For a price of around $73,000 in China, Xiaomi is offering performance that would cost you millions from any other brand. It's a number that doesn't compute. You get Rimac Nevera, Bugatti, or Pininfarina Battista-level power for the price of a nicely optioned German SUV. What a time to be alive.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
Of course, getting a car with this much power into the hands of the public is a bit like handing out rocket launchers at a birthday party. It's fantastic, but you hope everyone is responsible. The car itself is a marvel of engineering, featuring a track-grade cooling system, massive carbon-ceramic brakes, and enough active aerodynamic elements to make a fighter jet jealous. It's not a big battery with wheels; it's actually a comprehensively engineered track weapon.
And now, we can finally get to the part that started this whole journey for me: Gran Turismo 7. In what is a massive cultural moment, the SU7 Ultra has become the first Chinese-produced car to be immortalized in the legendary racing simulator. For years, getting a car into Gran Turismo has been a digital coronation, a sign that you've truly "made it" in the automotive world. It's a seal of approval from the high priests of digital driving.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
This means that while most of us outside of China may never see an SU7 Ultra on our streets, we can all get behind the virtual wheel. We can experience the absurdity of trying to control 1,548 horsepower with our thumbs (or if you're "well into it," a proper racing wheel). We can launch it down the main straight at Fuji Speedway and feel a digital approximation of that sub-two-second acceleration.
The partnership between Xiaomi and Gran Turismo also includes a future "Vision Gran Turismo" car. This is where it gets even crazier. If the production car already has these specs, what on earth are they going to dream up for the no-rules concept version? A car that runs on pure lightning and breaks the sound barrier? At this point, I wouldn't put it past them.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
This entire saga is a seismic shift in the automotive landscape. A tech company has not only entered the arena but has done so by building one of the most powerful sedans in history. They didn't just meet the benchmark; they strapped it to a rocket and fired it into the sun.
This is the strange, wonderful world we live in now. A phone maker is now a car maker. The lines are blurring, the rulebook has been thrown out, and the results are proving to be far more entertaining than any of us could have imagined. I can't wait to see what's next. Perhaps my smart fridge will announce a Formula 1 team.
Image Credit: Xiaomi.
I started this journey as a gentle skeptic, convinced I was looking at a classic case of marketing hype. I have never been happier to be proven wrong. Xiaomi has thrown down a gauntlet that the rest of the industry cannot ignore. They've proven that the future of performance is not only electric but can come from the most unexpected of places.
