Phoenix

The first trailer shows the rear of a white Phoenix at 1:03 on a Vice City highway, as it travels past an overturned SUV. Footage from the September 2022 leaks also shows white and red examples on a highway near a Vice City Metro Mule station.

At 2:05 in the second trailer, the Phoenix appears again. An official image set in Port Gellhorn also includes it; Port Gellhorn is the region in which the car has been spotted. The later trailer and screenshot present a revised GTA VI model rather than the largely GTA V-like car seen in the leaks and first trailer.

The GTA VI Phoenix has prominent vents behind the front wheels, a revised lower front intake containing high-beam lamps, and a raised cowl-induction section on the hood as standard. Its hood also carries a large graphic comparable to the Firebird-style decal used by the Pontiac Firebird Trans Am.

It remains an Imponte muscle-class vehicle with a two-door muscle-car body. No GTA VI price, performance data, drivetrain specification, spawn conditions, or customization list is established here.

Its principal real-world reference is the 1977 Pontiac Trans Am. The front-end treatment also draws from 1978–1981 Chevrolet Camaro models, specifically the bumper and grille shape. The rear panel and trunk take their cues from 1970–1973 Camaros, while the spoiler follows the Trans Am reference.

The Phoenix name also plays on the Firebird connection: a phoenix is associated with fire, and Pontiac’s Firebird is the recurring basis for the car. Pontiac separately sold a compact model called the Phoenix between 1977 and 1984.

The Phoenix originated in the 3D Universe before returning in GTA V and GTA Online. GTA V gave it a bigger, late-1970s-style muscle-coupe body, with a pointed front, divided grille and a ducktail rear spoiler. It also used a T-top roof, like the Ruiner; its panels may have been glass rather than painted body panels.

In GTA V and Online, the standard hood lacked scoops or a bulge, though modification options could add them. The ducktail could be exchanged for ordinary wings, but removing it completely normally required glitches. Cars could appear in one body colour or with a centre stripe selected through the secondary colour; the Phoenix-name decals used that secondary colour as well.

Its GTA V-era cabin used the Dominator interior type, shared with the Ruiner and Sabre Turbo. It had a distinctive wheel design whose intersecting spokes formed pentagons and triangles around the hub.

Earlier versions were described as having strong top speed, fair acceleration and excellent torque, but weak handling. Their light rear end and uneven weight balance made high-speed oversteer, fishtailing and spin-outs common. Rollovers could also shed body parts such as fenders, bumpers and hoods. These characteristics describe the prior vehicle, not confirmed GTA VI handling.

The earlier Phoenix was described as a front-engined, rear-wheel-drive car with a stated turbocharged V8 and five-speed transmission. Its engine note resembled the high-performance sounds used by the Ruiner and Dominator. With suitable upgrades, its acceleration improved, although the Ruiner was generally considered stronger overall; the Phoenix was better suited to intermediate-speed cruising and straighter race routes.

In GTA V and Online material, Phoenixes were associated with the Aztecas, Families, Los Santos Vagos, Marabunta Grande, an unnamed Vagos leader, and Lil’ Dee’s associate.