Gran Turismo 3 British Car Guide - Guide for Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec

Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec (Sony PS2) British Cars Guide

1. INTRODUCTION

This guide was made as an accompaniment to the German Car Guide already 
published on gamesfaqs. It provides data on all British cars featured in 
the game, as well as a suggestion of a playing path. 

Since the British cars depicted in the game are now much more realistic 
compared to earlier GT games (eg. Lotus being easier to drive, Aston 
Martin being Faster), it is now much more feasible to play (and win) the 
simulation game using them.

Since the supercars in the game are heavily influenced by the James Bond 
007 movies, I have also included a partial list of what GT3 cars have 
been used in the series.

This guide is based on the Euro/PAL version of the game.
Some raw data has been provided by DConnoy and CHalfpenny.

mmmm   |   <-   Use a monospace font such as Courier, so that 
iiii   |   <-   the two lines match up with each other


2. LEGAL STUFF

Version 1.8, Dec 2002 - Jan 2005, Richard Walledge.
Contact me via the email address on:
http://www.geocities.com/kesmaster.geo

To be hosted intact on ign.com
This guide is for personal use only, and cannot be reproduced
This may not be used for any profitable or promotional purposes


3. CAR LISTING
"S" in the Aspiration column means that the car switches from NA to Turbo 
when it is fully upgraded.
"®" denotes that a car can compete in the Professional Formula GT event.
Horsepower and weight have been included both as new (0 km, and before 
an oil change), and also after maximum tuning.

The Formula One cars have been included on the assumption that they 
represent a 1994 Williams/Tyrrell hybrid and the 1988 McLaren.

I suppose technically the Tickford Falcon (Mondeo) could also be included 
here, but I have left it out since it is specified as Australian.
Also the Shellby AC Cobra, but again it's specified as American instead.

For the record, the following cars appear in the previous game "GT2" on 
PlayStation, but not in GT3:
Aston Mtn DB6
Jaguar XJR, XJ Sport 3.2, XJR15 GT Race Car,
Lotus Elan S2, Europa,
MGF 1.8i VVC,
Mini MK1,
TVR Cerbera 4.5, Chimaera 5.0,
Vauxhall Tigra Ice, Corsa Sport,

For the record, the following appear in the expansion game "GT Concept 2001 
Tokyo", but not in GT3: the New Mini-S and the Jaguar S-Type R

MAKE      MODEL              DRV AS St.HP St.Wt Tn.HP Tn.Wt PRICE   AWARD    |
Aston Mtn DB7 Vantage Coupe  FR  S  407   1775    636  1508  154700 
Aston Mtn Vanquish           FR  N  449   1820    745  1547       - P/British
Aston Mtn V8 Vantage         FR  S  542   1990    945  1691  455000 
Jaguar    XKR Coupe          FR  S  368   1640    651  1394  104890 
Jaguar    XJ220 Road Car     MR  T  501   1375    838  1375  780000 E/Mistral
Jaguar    ®XJ220 Race Car 41 MR  T  542   1320    907  1320       - P/World
Lister    ®Storm V12 Race    FR  N  576   1438    883  1438 1198000 E/Mountan 
Lotus     Elise 190          MR  S  181    670    267   596   58530 A/European
Lotus     Motor Sport Elise  MR  S  195    700    336   623  100000 
Lotus     Esprit V8 SE       MR  T  342   1380   1006  1173  106000 
Lotus     Esprit Sport 350   MR  T  342   1300   1006  1105  113540 
Mini      Mini Cooper 1.3i   FF  S   61    720    169   640       - B/Light
Vauxhall  VX220/Speedster    MR  N  140    850    346   756   38390 
Vauxhall  ®Calibra Tour Cr 6 4WD N  449   1060    722  1060       - P/World
Vauxhall  ®Astra Tour Car 7  FR  N  454   1000    790  1000       - A/German
TVR       Griffith 500       FR  N  330   1060    591   943   80780 P/Tuscan
TVR       Speed 6            FR  N  350   1100    624   979   62410 
TVR       Speed 12           FR  N  798   1020   1019   907       - P/Tuscan
F1        ®Polyphony001      MR  N  790    540    790   540       - E
F1        ®Polyphony002      MR  T  789    540    789   540       - E


4. GAME PROGRESSION

My philosophy is that it's not worth buying a car that can be won, since it's 
just a waste of money if you will win one sooner or later anyway (especially
if it's a guaranteed prize). The only disadvantage to this is that you cannot 
choose the color of your acquisitions.

Incidently, the Arcade mode only features 4 British cars initially (Vauxhall,
Mini and Lotus), but two TVRs can be unlocked by winning areas on hard.

Unfortunately, you cannot start the game with a British car, so the quickest 
way to get one is to buy either a Suzuki or Daihatsu and tune it just enough 
to win the Beginner League Lightweight Challenge. With a souped-up Mini you 
can make a start on the rest of the Beginner League Events, and win most of 
them (fit a turbo stage 2 and supersoft tyres). Racing in this car is great 
fun, and has that "Italian Job" (film) feel - you might even try the odd 
handbrake turn on some hairpins... Being front-wheel drive, it's impossible 
to spin, and so you won't regret spending money on this car.

From there, you can get a Vauxhall Speedster, which should serve you well 
enough to finish a few more races. This is also a good car to get the hang 
of early on, since it is mid-engined, and so it will get you used to the 
behavior of them for later in the game.

From there, your next goal should be to win a Lotus Elise in order to get 
a bit more money (and for entry to some later dedicated Trophies, and 
because it's so light, tyre wear is very slow).

Incidently, did anybody notice the blooper? On the Pro screen, it says 
it's "10 rounds", but in fact it's only 5!

A great car to win next is the fast Vauxhall (Opel) Astra Touring Car Team 
Phoenix, which can also be used to win most of the Rally Events (remember 
to raise up the suspension height and adjust spring rates etc)

Obviously the only car able to compete in the 4WD races is the Calibra, so 
you don't really have any choice but to win that (if needed, use the Save 
and keep Aborting and Reloading until you get it). Another typo mistake is
that this car is called "Caribra" in the garage!

As for Endurance races, you might first try a dummy run of 10 laps or so,
until everybody else has pitted in. This will give you an idea of what
you should use for your strategy. If your car doesn't handle well, then
try a medium tyre, but if it already has the grip, then go for a harder
(longer-lasting) compound. You might even try a mix at the front/back.

Tinkering with the settings helps on all circuits, but with endurance 
it's especially important. At the very least you should find a final 
gear so that you reach your top speed before the end of the longest 
straight. Hope to win either a Jaguar XJ220 (the fastest production car 
of its time) or a Lister Storm, or an F1, which can then be used to 
clear the rest of the game.

For a bit more fun, buy the TVR Speed 6, and use it to win a Griffith 500
(which can be used to win the Roadster events)

For one of the best all-round cars, try the high-powered but snaky TVR 
Speed 12, which is the most powerful production car in the world... Such 
a good P:W ratio makes it a sure-fire win in the Professional League
Normal (untuned) Digital Cup. Beware though, that these races are very 
long, and so by about half way though the championship, your oil will be
dirty, and you risk permanent damage to your engine. Since this car is 
quite difficult to come by, you will ideally want to have enough points 
so that you can exit shortly after your dash light comes on.

Including license tests and Arcade mode, you should be able to get well 
over 70% game completion just by using vehicles manufactured in the UK...

You might also want to select only music by artists from Britain (Ash,
Death In Vegas, Feeder and Muse)


5. JAMES BOND

Die Another Day (2002): Aston Martin V12 Vanquish silver (and Jaguar XKR green)
The Living Daylights (1987): Aston Martin V8 Volante blackish (convertible)
Tomorrow Never Dies (1997): Aston Martin DB5
Golden Eye (1995): Aston Martin DB5
License To Kill (1989): Rolls Royce Silver Shadow II
A View To A Kill (1985): Rolls Royce Silver Cloud II
For Your Eyes Only (1981): Lotus Esprit Turbo red
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977): Lotus Esprit S1 white
Diamands Are Forever (1971): Ford Mustang
On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969): Aston Martin DBS black
Thunderball (1965): Aston Martin DB5 silver
Goldfinger (1964): Aston Martin DB5 silver and Rolls Royce Phantom III
From Russia With Love (1963): Bentley 4 1/2


6. REQUESTS

Since it appears customary to have a requests section, mine is as follows:
i   Include more real circuits, such as the world-famous Silverstone, in
    Northamptonshire, one of the historical homes of motorsport, or also
    a Swedish snow Rally course, or an African desert one.
ii  Include more non-Japanese cars, such as the multiple LeMans winning 
    Bentley EXP Speed 8, the MG ZS touring car, and more Audis and Renaults
iii More dynamics, such as Weather and changable Time of Day (on every course)
iv  More cars ON TRACK! Considering other games have up to 22 competitors,
    surely an increase to at least 10 (or 6 in 2P mode) isn't unreasonable?
    I'd be happy to accept a drop in graphical standard for this.
v   What about Rewind/FF controls for the replays? And DEFINATELY have an 
    option so that you don't have to watch (or manually skip) an event that 
    is Aborted or very short (such as 400m test). Annoying intrusions from 
    the replays and menus are probably the only thing wrong with GT...

°²³ª#ø