Whether it's a lie or not, I don't know and can't say one way or the other with certainty, but it's possible that this could be a symptom of plans changing over time. During the pre-launch period they stated the game won't have MTXs, and it didn't, but after a year of free content updates, they may have felt that in order to achieve sustainability with their service update model they would need to implement optional MTXs. Who knows.
This is most likely what happened. They originally had no intention of adding these optional microtransactions, but over the course of the past 9 months since release, business plans have changed.
Is this considered a lie? In this case I'm leaning towards yes, based on Polyphony's comments on the matter at the time. It does seem that the way these microtransactions have been implemented is in a non-intrusive way, and apparently does nothing to change the core of the game, or the regular free content which is released, which is nice.
A comment from Polyphony on the matter would clear up a lot of the issue people in this thread are having.
This sounds like a GamerGate Jr. discussion.
"It's about holding them accountable! They lied! We need integrity and accuracy!" Thank god Yamauchi isn't a woman.
I mean, what the hell is this thread even supposed to accomplish? Will Polyphony go to video game jail? The outrage is absolutely ridiculous. I mean genuinely sit back and look at it from the outside: People are literally mad because other people have the ability to buy something in a game, even if they personally don't want to. They're mad because "they said they wouldn't!"...but so what? Everything indicates that nothing else has changed, all content is still available for free (and presumably will continue to be free)...so why the outrage? Because they said "no" instead of "maybe"?
It just sounds so childish, it's genuinely hard to take any point of discussion here seriously when it's so irrational. They haven't locked off any past free content behind pay walls, they haven't introduced pay to win mechanics, and they haven't said that this is the end of free content. So literally all of the outrage is because "they lied" and gamers want "justice".
When you get angry when people say gamers are entitled children, you can look to behavior like this, when a small inconsequential development happens, and it balloons to hundreds of posts where gamers express their outrage at a "lie" over something that will literally never impact them.
The topic of this thread is that Polyphony originally said GT Sport would not have microtransactions, and now the game has been updated to add them in. This is new information, and also information which is contrary to earlier communications from Polyphony regarding the matter. That is why the thread was created.
If a company makes a statement or claim with regard to an aspect or feature of their game, I fail to see how gamers are entitled in expecting that the statement was true.
Viewing this thread most of the intense comments seem to be coming from people who are arguing in favor of GT Sport and are arguing with the OP or others who are claiming that Polyphony has lied. Then of course, the people on the other side responding.