Strategy Guide - Guide for Gran Turismo 3: A-Spec
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TABLE OF CONTENTS -INTRODUCTION -STARTING OFF -DRIVING 101 -RACE SERIES LIST -BEGINNER LEAGUE -AMATEUR LEAGUE -PROFFESINAL LEAGUE -RALLY EVENTS -ENDURANCE RACES -ADVANCED TUNING -COMPLETE CAR LIST -PRIZE CARS -THE TRACKS -APPENDIX INTRODUCTION The Gran Turismo series is considered by many to be the single greatest racing franchise of all time and Polyphony Digital's latest, Gran Turismo 3 A-spec could be the best game that the series has to offer. With unprecedented graphical excellence and an insane amount of depth, you'll be hard pressed to find any other racing game with the overall play value that GT3 brings to the table. This guide will show you everything that the game has to offer, including complete details on all of the game's tracks, cars, prize cars and race series. Plus, for those looking for a little help, we offer up some driving instructions, track strategies, tips, and advanced tuning instructions. To cut to the chase, this Gran Turismo 3 A-spec strategy guide will provide you with everything you need to know about GT3. NOTE: This guide should be considered a work in progress, as not all of the sections have been completely finished. The i.LINK Battle Mode section is still completely under construction and we're still planning to add more information to the Driving 101 section pertaining to the License Tests and will add more detailed strategies to the section on the Tracks. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- STARTING OFF The Gran Turismo franchise is full-fledged racing dynasty and Polyphony Digital's most recent addition to the series, Gran Turismo 3 A-spec, is arguably the best that it has to offer. Consequently, it's conceivable that GT3 is the best racing game in that's ever been released on a console. With that said, GT3 isn't your ordinary racing game. Those familiar with the series already know what we mean by this, but for those new to the world of Gran Turismo, be warned that it takes time and effort to get used to the ultra-realistic handling that this game has to offer. It's not perfect -- no car damage and there are some ways to cheat because of this -- but you can't come into this game thinking that you'll use your powersliding skills learned while playing Ridge Racer and get very far. Just because the game is a simulation, don't dare start thinking that it's going to be boring, though, because that's far from the truth. Learning to realistically drive the different vehicles in the game is completely gratifying and Polyphony Digital has once again set-up the game to constantly reward you throughout and keep you eager to play more. As in the previous titles, GT3 has two main gameplay modes: Arcade Mode and Gran Turismo Mode. The Arcade Mode is a great way to jump right into the racing with a nice and varied set of cars, which could be used as a nice way to practice up and hone your skills for the Gran Turismo Mode. Just be sure to use the "racing" setup and not "drift", as it'll better prepare you for what's ahead. In the Gran Turismo Mode, you're given 18,000 credits to start off with and several Beginner League races that you can jump into without having to earn any of the Licenses. GETTING OFF TO A FAST START Whether you're a GT veteran or a first-timer, the first thing you should do once you start the Gran Turismo Mode is to jump into the License Center and try to earn the class B license. But don't just stop there. You really ought to spend the time, which will probably take you at least two to three hours, to get all gold medals in the B license because it'll make starting the game about 100 times easier than if you don't. Not only will this make you a much more skilled driver, but for getting all gold medals you are rewarded a Mazda Miata MX-5. While this car isn't really any better than what you can buy at the start of the game, the fact that you didn't buy it means that you can use that initial 18,000 credits to buy a LOT of upgrades -- enough to make playing through a good amount of the Beginner League races without much to worry about. Also you should try to get the A, International B, International A, Super license and Rally license, because the skills you learn here will definitely help you out in the game. Conversely, we fully understand that not all of you may have the skill or patience to get all gold medals in the B License Test or might simply be more interested in getting right into the game. If you fall into this category, you'll have to use your 18,000 credits to buy yourself a car. Since GT3 no longer has used cars, the list of purchasable cars at the beginning of the game is pretty short and the selection isn't really all that exciting. Here's a full list of all the cars in the game that fall under the 18,000 price range, along with each car's price and initial horsepower rating: Daihatsu Mira TR XX Avanzato R (11,140 Cr., 63 hp, FF) Daihatsu Storia X4 (13,900 Cr., 118 hp, 4WD) Mazda Demio GL-X (14,660 Cr., 98 hp, FF) Mazda Miata MX-5 (16,900 Cr., 128 hp, FR) Mazda Miata MX-5 (17,000 Cr., 118HP, FR) Suzuki Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited (12,220 Cr., 63 hp, 4WD) Toyota Vitz Euro Edition (12,880 Cr., 86 hp, FF) Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT Apex (13,550 Cr., 128 hp, FR) Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 (14,530 Cr., 108 hp, FF) Chrysler PT Cruiser (17,980 Cr., 149 hp, FF) Volkswagen New Beetle 2.0 (15,930 Cr., 115 hp, FF) Of these, we actually have two that come highly recommended -- the Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT Apex and the Chrysler PT Cruiser. With the Trueno, you get a decent amount of power for a relatively low price. Plus, after you buy it, you'll have enough cash to purchase a Semi-Racing Muffler & Air Cleaner upgrade for 2,800 credits and a Racing Chip upgrade for 1,000 credits, which will push you over the 135 horsepower mark and make winning the first few tournaments a breeze. Likewise, the 149 hp Chrysler PT Cruiser, even without upgrades, is powerful enough to destroy the initial competition. And despite the way it looks, the FF (front engine, front wheel drive) design helps make it fairly easy to drive. Even though these are the cars we recommend picking up first, you can actually get away with buying any of the initially available cars and still have a shot at winning. The first few races can be won with any of the initially available cars, it's just going to take a little more skillful driving with these than with either the Trueno or PT Cruiser. When it comes time to buy a second car, you with something that you can get a lot of horsepower and a high to speed out of (for a reasonable price) like the Mitsubishi 3000GT or Nissan Skyline. Use it to run as many different races as possible until you can pretty much max out its various upgrades. One you have it fully tuned, widen out the gears and use it on the Professional League Like The Wind race that has you battle it out on the Test Course. What do you get out of this? Well, not only do you get a lot of cash for very little work, but you also win a Mazda 787B, which is probably the best non-F1 car in the game. You can use it to win just about every single race that it's eligible for. This is only a recommendation and the honest truth is that you should go with whatever car you feel comfortable with, as you have a lot of choices and all of them are really good ones to make. Trust your gut and go with a car that you think fits your style. TIP: For an even easier start, you can just take the stock Toyota Trueno and immediately race it on the Trial Mountain race in the Sunday Cup of Beginner League. It should be a relatively easy win, which will give you 5,500 credits and enough money to put a Turbo Kit upgrade and oil change, which will bring your horsepower to around 170 HP. This will make winning the first few cup races as easy as pie. TUNING YOUR CAR The first upgrades to your car should either be a Muffler & Air Cleaner, Racing Chip or Weight Reduction to your car. The first two give a good amount of horsepower boost for a minimal investment and reducing the weight of your car helps its handling and acceleration. Likewise, if you have a car that can get a Turbo upgrade, you should be able to get a fairly substantial horsepower upgrade with the racing intercooler without shelling out an obscene amount of dough. Since the super-soft racing slicks are so much more expensive in GT3 than they were in GT2, this isn't something you can upgrade that early, but once you get to the point where you can buy some, it'll make a huge difference in the way your car will handle. However, since some of the Amateur and all of the Professional League races have mandatory tire wear, these tires will only benefit you in the Beginner League races and the ones in the Amateur League that don't yet force you to race with tire wear. After this, it's really all about doing what you want to do and just experimenting with what works best for you. The racing flywheel is a good purchase since it helps the engine rev more freely and deliver power far better and upgrades to the suspension or anything to help get your more horsepower will definitely improve your car. Getting the full customization for your gears is also a very worthwhile investment because once you get to a race that forces you to race on the Test Course, you'll want to have the ability to adjust your gear ratios because you might not be able to win otherwise. CHEAP HORSEPOWER UPGRADE If you want a very quick and inexpensive horsepower upgrade for a new car that you've either purchased or won as a prize, look no further than the GT Auto Car Maintenance Shop and the Oil Change. For 250 Cr., you can change the oil in your new car and get an immediate HP boost. If it's something in the 900+ horsepower range, it's not too out of the ordinary to see this simple little task push the total over 1000. THE QUICKEST WAY TO EARN CREDITS Thanks to some reader submissions, the best way that we've found to make a lot of money quickly is to enter the Amateur League European Championship. It's a five race with only three laps per race, so it can be completed in less than 20 minutes. You need to finish first in the first four races, earning 7,500 credits per race, then save your game. Enter the fifth and final race and simply quit out of it to end the series. If you finished first in the first four races, you'll win the series, more prize money (30,000 Cr.) and one of four random prize cars. If you get the Gillet Vertigo Race Car, you can sell it for 300,000 credits, thus bringing your 20-minute prize total to 360,000 credits. If you don't get the Vertigo Race Car, just re-load your saved game and exit the race until you win the Vertigo. Doing this, you can net yourself nearly 1,000,000 credits per hour. The only problem here is that you're going to need a car that's at least 500 HP in order to compete. For those at an earlier stage in the game and looking for an easy way to make some bank, here's another suggestion. Get a car that you've tweaked out to where it's around the 300 HP range and pretty quick. Enter the Super Speedway race in the GT World Championship in the Beginner League. The race will take you a little less than four minutes and you're awarded 10,000 for finishing first. This'll net you an easy 150,000 in about an hour, which should be enough for you to buy something that you'll be able to tweak enough to race on the Amateur League European Championship. CHEATERS ALWAYS PROSPER For some, this has been the Achilles heel of the Gran Turismo series -- because of the game's lack of a damage model; it's easy to use overly aggressive and unrealistic cheat tactics to win games. What we mean by this is that you can use the walls or other cars to help you around turns quicker than you could if you properly slowed down and took a realistic racing line. For example, if you're heading towards a 180 degree turn and are towards the back of the pack, instead of braking the way you should, head in to the corner full steam and ram into the side of cars in front of you. You'll be able to use that car to slow you down and get you around the corner ahead of it. While it's possible to cheat like this in GT3, it's not something we recommend that you do. It's so much more rewarding to learn how to correctly drive and to win races with skillful racing techniques instead of just using the game's weaknesses to your advantage. SORT YOUR GARAGE Now that the game allows you to up to 200 cars in your garage, the sort feature is as important as ever. When in your garage, you can press start and the sort your garage based on options like Acquire Order, Name, Make, Color, Value, Mileage, Power, Drivetrain, and NA/Turbo. UPGRADE YOUR CAR FOR FREE Here's a little trick you can do to save money on upgrading your cars. First, you must have 2 memory cards. Save your game onto both MEMORY CARD #1 and MEMORY CARD #2. Buy the car that you want and upgrade it as much as you can (if you have the money, buy every single upgrade you can think of, including every tire type). Now save the game onto only MEMORY CARD #2. After you've finished saving the game, load the saved game data from the other card, MEMORY CARD #1 (this should be the original save before you purchased anything). Go to your Home and then the Trade section to Load Garage Data from MEMORY CARD #2. Now you can buy the car that you spent hundreds of thousands upgrading for its original sticker price. TIP: You can use this at the beginning of the game to get an extra one or two upgrades for your very first car. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- DRIVING 101 While it is possible to cheat in Gran Turismo 3 A-spec and win, you'll only be cheating yourself if you take this route. To get the most out of GT3, we highly suggest that you teach yourself how to drive. In this section, we'll give you all the details you need to know to become a driving expert in the game. ALWAYS REMEMBER THIS: Big beginner tip: when cornering, remember the racing adage, "slow in, fast out". It's the key to success. Learn to brake early and get on the power as early as possible so you accelerate out of a bend. Don't brake late -- you'll still be out of control and decelerating deep into the corner, and you'll end up coming out of the corner slowly and quite possibly still not under full control of the car. So just think: if you're exiting a corner too slowly, it's because you didn't brake soon enough. If you're accelerating out of a corner, you're getting it right. Practice, practice, practice! WHEELSPIN While it's great fun sliding cars through corners with their wheels spinning, it's actually totally inefficient for racing. Think about it - every revolution of the car's wheel while spinning is a wasted one - if that wheel was gripping the car would be moving forward at a much quicker rate. To drive a car efficiently, you have to brake early so you can get on the power through the corner and accelerate out of the corner at the limit of the car's grip. BRAKING Braking for corners correctly is extremely important. Do it too early and you lose an awful lot of time; too late and you come off the track and lose even more time (particularly if there's a sandy runoff area). So how do you get it right? BRAKING MARKERS The trick is to remember to look for braking markers - trackside objects that help you identify exactly when to slam on the brakes for a corner. You don't have to do it for every corner - sweeping ones can easily be gotten right don't need this. But for severe corners - particularly those at the end of long straights when you're going absolutely flat out - it's absolutely crucial that you look for a point where you know you can slam on the brakes and enter the corner at the perfect speed. Several practice laps will quickly enable you to hunt these out. Look for signposts, trees, overhead gantries, fence posts, curbs - anything that is clearly recognizable that you can easily remember. Basically, as you're approaching the corner, quickly look around and as you start to brake and observe what recognizable objects are nearby and choose one of those as your braking point. If you've braked too late or too early, change your braking accordingly on the next lap, using your originally selected braking point as reference and either braking later or earlier depending on what happened before. You might even need to look for another marker because you need to brake that much earlier or later. Keep repeating this process until you have the perfect braking point. Once you have a braking point identified, you can then use it every time you race, modifying it depending on the car you're using by using the strategy outlined above. It sounds quite complex, but if you're prepared to put a little time into this, you'll find your lap times will improve immensely. FRONT WHEEL DRIVE CARS A front wheel drive car displays heavy understeering behavior while cornering - that means it wants to go straight ahead instead of going around the corner. Cars of this type have to be driven hard in order to obtain fast cornering. You have to brake late, very late, to successfully negotiate the corner. Basically, at the very last moment into the corner, turn in and blip the brake to change the car's attitude through the corner, tucking in the front tires and making the back want to slide around. The faster the approach to a corner, the more you have to brake, but don't forget - the later you brake, the faster you navigate the bend. If it looks like the car is about to go off the road, you can "gas it" - punching the accelerator while steering into the corner actually helps it grip and get around the bend. However, doing this is inefficient since it spins the tires, and it's best to use this tactic only in an emergency. REAR WHEEL DRIVE CARS Rear wheel drive cars are the most fun to drive since you can slide them around the corners. Cars of this type have a natural tendency to oversteer - that means that the back of the car wants to break loose and slide around into the corner, essentially spinning the car out. Whenever a car slides in this way, you should steer into the slide until the car begins to straighten out. The best way to drive a rear wheel powered car is with respect. Brake in a straight line, get off the brakes and turn into the corner, get the car balanced and then when the car is settled, get on the gas and power out of the corner under acceleration, using the full width of the road. Getting the power on too early over-exaggerates the oversteer and the car simply spins out of control. Doing it too late results in a loss of acceleration out of the corner. FOUR WHEEL DRIVE CARS The roadholding characteristics of these cars is a bit more complex. They are a combination of both of the above. A four wheel drive car has a tendency to understeer when entering the corner and oversteer when exiting. Like with front wheel drive cars, the driver has to brake late when entering the corner, turning in at the last moment of braking. The car leans into the corner, and then as it bounces back on its suspension, get back on the gas to slide the car through the corner. It takes some practice to learn the timing of the "bounce". Do it too early and the car simply understeers in a straight line and won't make the corner. Do it too late and you lose considerable speed. Also, the heavier the car, the more prone to understeering it is - with a car that carries a lot of weight, you really have to heave it into the corner, virtually sending it sideways before you get back on the gas to wrestle it through the bend. CORNERING IN PRACTICE FRONT WHEEL DRIVE Approach the corner at speed. Turn into the corner and blip the brakes to avoid understeer - don't forget to keep those front wheels turned into the corner at all times. Keep turning in and as soon as car has stopped understeering and is turning into the bend, get on the gas. Try to keep the wheels straight at this point, which allows maximum acceleration. Keep the power on and blast out of the corner at top speed - use the full width of the road if necessary to ensure maximum exit speed. REAR WHEEL DRIVE Approach the corner at speed. Brake in a straight line - don't brake while turning or the car will spin. When you've finished braking, turn the car into the corner. Don't power on at this point or the car will spin. When the car is settled and sliding neutrally (or simply driving around the bend with all wheels gripping), power on and steer into the slide if the back end starts to break away. Use the full width of the road to ensure maximum acceleration and exit speed. FOUR WHEEL DRIVE Approach the corner at speed. Brake in a straight line, turn in and blip the brakes - watch for understeer at this point. If the car is doing this, turn in and blip the brakes again. Power on when the car has bounced on its suspension and has settled into a neutral slide. Keep the power on and the car will four wheel drift through the bend, cornering flat. Use the full width of the road to maximize exit speed. ENGINE MAINTENANCE One of the new additions to the Gran Turismo series is the ability to change your engine oil in the GT Auto Car Maintenance Shop, where you can also buy new rims and have your car wash. However, unlike the other two options, changing your engine oil plays a very important role in the game. As you put miles on your car, the oil meter will slowly turn from green to a really dark and dingy brown, which signifies that the oil in the car's engine is old and should be changed. It's important to keep track of this and change your oil often, because if you don't, you'll suffer a dip in your horsepower and you don't want that to happen. We also suggest that you change your oil before the start of any long championship series race that has 10 races in it as you won't be able to change your oil during a series and you'll want to keep your engine fresh as long as possible. TIP: If you win a new prize car or buy a new car, change the oil before you use it. You'll an instant horsepower upgrade that can be anywhere from five to 100 HPs. PIT STRATEGY GT3 has more races with mandatory tire wear than were in either GT2 or the first Gran Turismo, so pit strategy, or better yet, tire strategy is a very important facet of the game. In races of five laps or less with tire wear, you'll want to use the T5 Racing Tires because they're highest grip tires that'll last you all five laps so you don't have to pit. For races with tire wear that are 10 laps or more, we suggest using the T2 Racing Tires because in most instances you'll be able to get through an entire race without having to pit. Whereas the computer will have to pit at least once in the 10 lap races and two or even three times in the 20 lap races. This gives you about 10-15 seconds to work with in the 10 lap races and 20-45 seconds to work with in the 20 lap races. Just be extra careful on the first two laps as these tires will stay cold (blue) a lot longer than the normal T5 Racing Tires, which means that you won't have as much traction as you might be used to. If you look at this as cheating and not something that you want to do, then you'll have to look into intelligent pit strategy. For the best pitting strategy, you'll need to know exactly how many times you MUST pit in each race and try to split the pit stops evenly. For example, if you find that you must pit at least two times during a 20-lap race, you should pit after laps 7 and 14, so that you race as much as possible on warm tires and not too much on overly worn or cold tires. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- RACE SERIES LIST Here we have a complete guide to all of the races that you'll find in the Gran Turismo Mode of GT3. We cover every single event, the tracks that you'll have to race on, the limitations, the kinds of cars you're up against and our recommendations on what cars to use. CONTENTS Beginner League Amateur League Professional League Rally Events Endurance Races BEGINNER LEAGUE Sunday Cup Single Race Tracks: Super Speedway (3 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (2 laps) Trial Mountain (2 laps) Requirements: None Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Nothing really. Your opponents here will be made up of cars like the Civic SiR-II, Vitz, New Beetle 2.0, CR-X Del-Sol SiR, Mini Cooper and Demio GL-X. Any car that you start the game off with should be enough to come out on top here. Prize Money: 1st -- 1,000 2nd -- 900 3rd -- 800 4th -- 700 5th -- 600 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex (AE-86 Type I) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clubman Cup Single Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (2 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Requirements: None Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The biggest challenge here will likely come from something like the Mazda MX-5 Miata, Miata 1.8 RS, PT Cruiser or MR-S S Edition. The car you started with and a few upgrades should be more than enough to take this cup. Prize Money: 1st -- 1,000 2nd -- 900 3rd -- 800 4th -- 700 5th -- 600 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mazda MX-5 Miata -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FF Challenge Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (2 laps) Rome Circuit (2 laps) Requirements: Front Engine, Front Wheel Drive cars only Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The cars you'll face here include the Lupo Cup Car, 206 S16, Vitz RS 1.5, Demio GL- X, New Beetle 2.0 and a few other FF cars. We suggest you use something like a Civic Type-R because it can take on these cars stock and when upgraded will also work well in the Amateur and Professional FF Challenges. Prize Money: 1st -- 1,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 800 4th -- 700 5th -- 600 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Grand Valley Raceway (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (2 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (2 laps) Requirements: Front Engine, Rear Wheel Drive cars only Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You'll be pitted against cars like the Mazda MX-5 Miata, Sprinter Trueno, BMW 328ci, 240SX Fastback Type X, SLK 230 Kompressor, and Silvia K's. If you started with the Trueno, it should be enough to win this with a few upgrades. If not, the Miata you won from the Clubman Cup can win these races. Prize Money: 1st -- 1,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 800 4th -- 700 5th -- 600 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Nissan Silvia K's 1800cc -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (2 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (2 laps) Requirements: Mid Engine, Rear Wheel Drive cars only. Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Low-powered and stock MR cars like the Speedster, MR2, and MR-S will be your opponents here. We don't suggest going out of your way to buy a MR car to race here, just wait till you win one of the many high-powered MR prize cars and make easy time of this competition. Prize Money: 1st -- 2,000 2nd -- 1,500 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 500 5th -- 400 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Toyota MR-S S Edition -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4WD Challenge Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (2 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (2 laps) Requirements: Four Wheel Drive cars only. Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Stock powered 4WD cars like the Storia X4, Legacy B4 RSK, S4, New Beetle Rsi, and Audi TT 1.8T Quattro. Even though you can win these with less, go ahead and get a good 4WD car that's highly upgradeable for future use, such as any of the Nissan Skylines, Lancer Evolutions, 3000GTs or Subaru Imprezas. You'll be able to get a lot of use out of them down the road. Prize Money: 1st -- 2,000 2nd -- 1,500 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 500 5th -- 400 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Suzuki Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Light Weight K Cup Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (2 laps) Super Speedway (4 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Requirements: None. Cars Permitted: Mira TR-XX Avanzato R Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited Mini Cooper 1.3i What You're Up Against: Guess what? You're up against the same kinds of cars that you can use. Don't bother buying anything for this, as the Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited you win in the 4WD Challenge can win this cup. Prize Money: 1st -- 2,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mini Cooper 1.3i -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stars & Stripes Gran Championship Single Race Tracks: Seattle Circuit (2 laps) Super Speedway (4 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Seattle Circuit II (2 laps) Requirements: None. Cars Permitted: Acura CL 3.2 Type S Acura NSX Acura Integra Type R Corvette Grand Sport Camaro Z28 Corvette Z06 Camaro SS Camaro Race Car Corvette C5R PT Cruiser Viper GTSR Concept Viper GTS-R Team Oreca Viper GTS Focus Rally Car Mustang SVT Cobra R GT40 Race Car GT40 Esperante GTR-1 Cobra What You're Up Against: American cars like Cobras, Corvettes, Mustangs and Vipers will be your enemies here. Any of these cars with upgrades will do just fine, or better yet use a prize car like a Camaro Race Car, Corvette C5R or Viper GTS-R Team Oreca. Prize Money: 1st -- 3,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Chevrolet Camaro SS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Spider & Roadster Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Test Course (2 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (2 laps) Requirements: None Cars Permitted: S2000 Type V S2000 CR-X Del-Sol SiR Elise 190 Mazda MX-5 Miata Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS Mazda MX-5 Miata LS SLK 230 Kompressor Mugen S2000 Silvia Varietta Speedster RUF 3400S Cobra Spoon S2000 MR-S S Edition Griffith 500 What You're Up Against: Nothing too difficult, just some Miatas, Silvia Variettas, MR-S S Editions, CR-X Del- Sol SiRs, and Speedsters. The Miata you won earlier can handle this fine with some upgrades, but if you want something that can be used later, try something like the RUF 3400S or any of the S2000s. Prize Money: 1st -- 2,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 80's Sports Car Cup Single Race Tracks: Special Stage Route 5 (2 laps) Tokyo R246 (2 laps) Seattle Circuit (2 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: Mazda RX-7 Infini III Mazda MX-5 Miata Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune (R32) Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Silvia K's S13 2000cc Silvia K's S13 1800cc 300ZX Twin Turbo 2seater 300ZX Twin Turbo 2 by 2 Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex S.S. Version What You're Up Against: Look forward to racing against cars like the Trueno, Skyline GTS-t Type M, RX-7 Infini III, Silvia K's S13 1800 cc, and Mazda MX-5 Miata. We suggest that you don't buy a car for this and just use something that you've won. The Silvia K's S13 2000 cc and Skyline GT-R Vspec II are both very good choices here. Prize Money: 1st -- 2,500 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mazda Savanna RX7 Infini III -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of NA Sports Single Race Tracks: Apricot Hill Raceway (2 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (2 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (2 laps) Requirements: B License NA vehicles only Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Naturally aspirated cars like the Sprinter Trueno, Vitz, MR-S, 206 S16, PT Cruiser, BMW 328ci, and Mazda MX-5 Miata. Your Miata prize car or Trueno could easily work here if souped-up a bit. If you bought a Civic Type-R for the FF Challenge, that with a NA Stage 2 upgrade will also work just fine. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 1,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Honda CRX Del Sol SiR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of Turbo Sports Single Race Tracks: Mid-Field Raceway II (2 laps) Test Course (2 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (2 laps) Requirements: B License Turbo vehicles only Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Your competition here will be made up of cars like the 3000GT VR-4, Silvia K's S13 2000 cc, 240SX Fastback Type X, Audi TT 1.8T Quattro, Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) and Coupe Turbo Plus. If you have any of the 4WD cars we recommended earlier, like the 3000GT, Skyline, Lancer Evolution or Impreza, those could be used here with some turbo upgrades. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 1,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Daihatsu Mira TR XX Avanzato R -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tourist Trophy Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (2 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Trial Mountain (2 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (2 laps) Cote d'Azur (3 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: Audi TT 1.8T Quattro What You're Up Against: Lots of Audi TT 1.8T Quattros. The Audis here don't seem to be upgraded at all, so you can compete here without any upgrades or with some minor ones, like a racing muffler and computer chip, if you want to make things a little easier on you. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 10,000 Prize Car: Audi TT 1.8T Quattro (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Legend of Silver Arrow Single Race Tracks: Test Course (2 laps) Trial Mountain II (2 laps) Rome Circuit II (2 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: CLK Touring Car CLK55 CL600 SLK 230 Kompressor What You're Up Against: You'll face everything from the list above except for the CLK Touring Car. If you've won one of these, use it to wipe out the competition. Otherwise any of the Mercedes will work with a few horsepower upgrades. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 500 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mercedes SLK 230 Kompressor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Toyota Altezza Race Championship Race Tracks: Mid-Field Raceway (2 laps) Tokyo R246 (2 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (2 laps) Seattle Circuit (2 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: Altezza RS200 Lexus IS Altezza LM Race Car What You're Up Against: The field is stacked with Altezza RS200s and that's the car you should go with. Do the standard upgrades to it and you should be able to win without much of a hassle. If you don't want to waste money here, you can win an Altezza LM Race Car in a latter race that'll win here with ease. Prize Money: 1st -- 1,000 2nd -- 500 3rd -- 200 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 10,000 Prize Car: Toyota Celica SS-II (New Model) Toyota Celica SS-II (1 of 3) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vitz Race Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (2 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Tokyo R246 (2 laps) Trial Mountain (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 II (2 laps) Requirements: None. Cars Permitted: Vitz Euro Edition Vitz RS 1.5 What You're Up Against: You'll go up against a mixture of Euro and RS 1.5 Vitzs. Go with the Vitz RS 1.5 that you won early and upgrade it a little if you don't want stiff competition. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 1,500 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 10,000 Prize Car: Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Type R Meeting Championship Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (2 laps) Grand Valley Speedway Trial Mountain II (2 laps) Super Speedway (4 laps) Tokyo R246 II (2 laps) Requirements: None Cars Permitted: Accord Euro R NSX Type R Civic Type R Acura Integra Type R Spoon Civic Type-R What You're Up Against: You'll find yourself facing a bunch of Accord, Civic, and Integra Type R's here. Any of these cars with some minor upgrades will suffice. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 10,000 Prize Car: Acura RSX Type-S (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Evolution Meeting Single Race Tracks: Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Trial Mountain (2 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (2 laps) Requirements: None Cars Permitted: Lancer Evolution IV GSR Lancer Evolution V GSR Lancer Evolution VI GSR Lancer Evolution VI GSR T.M.E. Lancer Evolution VI GSR T.M.E. (stripe) Lancer Evolution VI RS Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car Lancer Evolution VII GSR Lancer Evolution VII RS Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype What You're Up Against: Here you'll face a mixture of all the non-rally Evolutions. If you haven't won a version, buy one like the VI GSR T.M.E. and give it a few upgrades. It shouldn't be too difficult to win these races. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 1,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 800 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Car: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Beetle Cup Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (2 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (2 laps) Seattle Circuit II (2 laps) Test Course (2 laps) Cote d'Azur (3 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: New Beetle 2.0 New Beetle RSi New Beetle Cup Car What You're Up Against: You'll go against a field full of New Beetle Cup Cars. Buy a Beetle RSi and give it all the major upgrades and you should be able to take on the Cup Cars without having to use any driving skills whatsoever. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 2,500 3rd -- 1,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 800 6th -- 500 Bonus: 10,000 Prize Car: Volkswagen New Beetle RSi (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gran Turismo World Championship Championship Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (2 laps) Super Speedway (4 laps) Trial Mountain (2 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (2 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (2 laps) Seattle Circuit (2 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (2 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (2 laps) Trial Mountain II (2 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: This is obviously the toughest of the Beginner League events. Here you'll face cars like the C-West Razo Silvia, Focus Rally Car, Impreza Rally Car Prototype, Escort Rally Car, Xsara Rally Car, and SuperAutoBacs Apex MR-S. Shouldn't be a problem, though, as if you have anything that's got 400 horses or more, you should be able to take this series quite easily. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 2,000 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 300 5th -- 200 6th -- 100 Bonus: 50,000 Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI GSR Nissan Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Toyota Celica GT-Four Mazda MX-5 Miata AMATEUR LEAGUE Japanese Championship Championship Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (3 laps) Super Speedway (6 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (3 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (3 laps) Tokyo R246 II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You're going to be matched up against cars like the NSX Type S Zero, Lancer Evolution VI GSR, 300ZX, Supra RZ, 3000GT VR-4, Impreza WRX STi, Legacy B4 Blitzen, Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34). The NSX is probably the biggest worry, so get something you know will take on a modified NSX Type S Zero and go with it. Prize Money: 1st -- 7,500 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 200 Bonus: 20,000 Prize Cars: Mitsubishi FTO GP Version R Mazda RX-7 Type RZ Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR Subaru Impreza Wagon WRX STi Version VI -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- American Championship Championship Race Tracks: Seattle Circuit (3 laps) Trial Mountain (3 laps) Super Speedway (6 laps) Seattle Circuit II (3 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Here you're going to see cars like the Shelby Cobra, Corvette Z06, Camaro SS, Corvette Grand Sport, Mustang SVT Cobra R, and Corvette C5R. If it's one of the cars that makes an appearance, the Corvette C5R will be your biggest worry, otherwise, probably the Cobra. You'll need something pretty fast to take on either one. Prize Money: 1st -- 7,500 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 200 Bonus: 20,000 Prize Cars: Chevy Camaro Race Car Mazda RX-7 Type RS Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi Version VI Audi TT 1.8T Quattro -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- European Championship Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (3 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (3 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (3 laps) Rome Circuit II (3 laps) Cote d'Azur (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The cars you'll see in this championship include the Speedster, Elise 190, 206 S16, CLK55, Clio Sport V6 24V, S4, 328ci, and TT 1.8T Quattro. This one isn't too hard. Any car that you have tuned up pretty high can probably take on this pack of cars without much of a problem. Prize Money: 1st -- 7,500 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 200 Bonus: 20,000 Prize Cars: Lotus Elise 190 Gillet Vertigo Race Car Mini Cooper 1.3i Nissan Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gran Turismo World Championship Championship Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (5 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (5 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (5 laps) Trial Mountain (5 laps) Seattle Circuit (5 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (5 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: This championship has you up against the likes of cars such as the Loctite Zexel GT- R, Pennzoil Nismo GT-R, Arta NSX, Calsonic Skyline, Denso Sard Supra GT, Storm V12 Race Car, Dodge Viper GTS-R Team Oreca, Corvette C5R and the Castrol Tom's Supra. We suggest using a race car here and not just one of your powered-up regular cars. It'll make things much more bearable. Don't worry if you find yourself way behind either the Viper or C5R because they'll pit after laps 3 or 4 on all the races expect for Laguna Seca and Seattle Circuit, giving you easy chances to pass them. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 2,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 0 Bonus: 100,000 Prize Cars: Nissan C-West Razo Silvia Nissan Z Concept Car Toyota GT-One Road Car Mazda RX-8 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- German Touring Car Challenge Championship Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (3 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (3 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (3 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (3 laps) Tokyo R246 (3 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: German touring cars like the Calibra, CLK, and Astra. These cars provide a very stiff challenge and shouldn't be taken on with something that's not got a lot of horsepower. If you don't have one of these German touring cars, then go with a high- powered rally car or some kind of heavily tuned race car. Prize Money: 1st --10,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 3,000 4th -- 1,500 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 30,000 Prize Cars: Volkswagen New Beetle Cup Car Volkswagen Lupo Cup Car Opel Astra Touring Car RUF 3400S -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FF Challenge Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (5 laps) Rome Circuit II (5 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (5 laps) Requirements: A License Front Engine, Front Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Front-engine, front wheel drive cars like the FTO GP Version R, Civic SiR-II, Civic Type R, Celica SS-II, and CR-X Del-Sol SiR. A souped-up Civic Type R should be more than enough to handle this. And if you're not a fan of Civics, the Celica and FTO are also great FF cars to use. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Celica TRD Sports M -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (5 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (5 laps) Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Requirements: A License Front-engine, Rear-Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: In these races you're going to face cars like the Mazda RX-7 Type RZ, Silvia Spec R Aero, S2000 Type V, 300ZX, and Supra RZ. There are a lot of great FR prize cars, so you should use one of those here. Any of the race modified Skylines will work great. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex Shigeno Version -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 II (5 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (5 laps) Requirements: A License Mid-Engine, Rear Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You'll see some moderately powerful cars like the ZZS, Motor Sport Elise, Clio Sport V6 24V, NSX Type S Zero, and MR2 GT-S. A lot of GT3's best cars are this class; so if you want an easy time, go with the 787B, GT-One, R390 or any of the F1 cars. If you want more of a challenge, just pick something from the pack and upgrade it a bunch. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Honda NSX Type S Zero -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4WD Challenge Single Race Tracks: Super Speedway (5 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (5 laps) Requirements: A License 4WD car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: In these races, you're going to see cars like the Lancer Evolution IV GSR, Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32), Impreza Sports Wagon STi, S4, TT 1.8T Quattro, Celica GT-Four, and 3000GT VR-4. You can use any of these with a lot of horsepower upgrades and get by without much of a hassle. Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII GSR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Stars & Stripes Grand Championship Single Race Tracks: Seattle Circuit (3 laps) Super Speedway (6 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (3 laps) Seattle Circuit II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: Acura CL 3.2 Type S Acura NSX Acura Integra Type R Corvette Grand Sport Camaro Z28 Corvette Z06 Camaro SS Camaro Race Car Corvette C5R PT Cruiser Viper GTSR Concept Viper GTS-R Team Oreca Viper GTS Focus Rally Car Escort Rally Car Mustang SVT Cobra R GT40 Race Car GT40 Esperante GTR-1 Cobra What You're Up Against: These races will feature the likes of the Cobra, Viper GTS, Camaro SS, Corvette Grand Sport, Mustang SVT Cobra R, and Camaro Z28. If you have the Camaro Race Car, Corvette C5R, Viper Team Oreca or Concept, use one and make this pack your bitch. Prize Money: 1st -- 7,500 2nd -- 2,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Spoon Sports S2000 Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Boxer Spirit Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (3 laps) Seattle Circuit (3 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: RUF 3400S RUF RGT RUF CTR2 Impreza WRX STi Impreza Sports Wagon STi Impreza Rally Car Impreza 228 STi Version Impreza Sedan WRX STi Version VI Impreza Wagon WRX STi Version VI Impreza Rally Car Prototype Legacy B4 RSK Legacy B4 Blitzen Legacy Touring Wagon GT-B Impreza LM Race Car What You're Up Against: Other boxers like the Impreza Sedan WRX STi, Impreza 22B-STi Version, Impreza WRX STi, Legacy B4 Blitzen, and Legacy B4 RSK. Any of these cars with slight upgrades can win, but if you want to have an easy time here try to use an upgrade RUF or the Impreza LM Race Car. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Subaru Legacy B4 Blitzen -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 80's Sports Car Cup Single Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (3 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (3 laps) Trial Mountain II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: Mazda RX-7 Infini III Mazda MX-5 Miata Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune (R32) Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Silvia K's S13 2000cc Silvia K's S13 1800cc 300ZX Twin Turbo 2seater 300ZX Twin Turbo 2 by 2 Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex S.S. Version What You're Up Against: The cars you'll face here include the Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex, Silvia K's S13 1800 cc, Skyline GTS-t Type M, Mazda MX-5 Miata, and Mazda RX-7 Infini III. Any of the eligible Skylines souped-up or the 300ZX's souped-up can be used very effectively here. Prize Money: 1st -- 8,000 2nd -- 4,000 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 500 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of NA Sports Single Race Tracks: Apricot Hill Raceway II (3 laps) Super Speedway (6 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (3 laps) Requirements: A License NA car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mazda RX-8 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of Turbo Sports Single Race Tracks: Apricot Hill Raceway II (3 laps) Test Course (3 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (3 laps) Requirements: A License Turbocharged car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Medium powered turbocharged cars are used here, such as the New Beetle RSi, MR2 GT- S, Legacy B4 Blitzen, Silvia Spec R Aero, S4, and Impreza Sedan WRX STi. You should have a turbocharged car that can easily smoke these by now. Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 3,000 3rd -- 2,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mine's Lancer Evolution VI GSR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gran Turismo All Stars Championship Race Tracks: Laguna Seca Raceway (5 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (5 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (5 laps) Test Course (5 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (5 laps) Rome Circuit II (5 laps) Seattle Circuit (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (5 laps) Tokyo R246 II (5 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The All Star cars featured here include the Calsonic Skyline, Denso Sard Supra GT, Raybrig NSX, Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car, and Impreza Rally Car Prototype. You'll want one of the race-modified cars here, such as the ones that you're facing or the Le Mans or F1 cars for an even easier time. Prize Money: 1st -- 25,000 2nd -- 8,000 3rd -- 4,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 200,000 Prize Cars: Mine's GT-R N1 V-spec Raybrig NSX Ford GT40 Nismo GT-R R-tune -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All Japan GT Championship Championship Race Tracks: Grand Valley Speedway (5 laps) Rome Circuit (5 laps) Mid-Field Raceway (5 laps) Special Stage Route 5 II (5 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (5 laps) Super Speedway (10 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (5 laps) Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: In this championship, you'll be pitted against the likes of the Arta NSX, Castrol Mugen NSX, Loctite Zexel GT-R, Calsonic Skyline, Denso Sard Supra, Castrol Tom's Supra and Pennzoil Nismo GT-R. Your biggest worry will be the Arta NSX, so use something that'll beat that. Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 2,500 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 150,000 Prize Cars: Arta NSX Denso Supra Race Car Calsonic Skyline Loctite Zexel GT-R -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tourist Trophy Championship Race Tracks: Requirements: Seattle Circuit (3 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (3 laps) Trial Mountain (3 laps) Rome Circuit (3 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: Audi TT 1.8T Quattro What You're Up Against: You're going to be racing against all Audi TT 1.8T Quattros here. Just use one, max out its upgrades and make waste of the competition. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 6,000 3rd -- 4,500 4th -- 3,500 5th -- 1,500 6th -- 500 Bonus: 40,000 Prize Cars: Audi S4 (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of Red Emblem Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (3 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (3 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (3 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: Nismo 40R Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune Nismo Skyline GT-R R-tune Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Skyline GT-R Vspec (R33) Skyline GT-R V-spec (R34) Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34) Pennzoil Nismo GT-R JGTC Loctite Zexel GT-R JGTC Calsonic Skyline GT-R JGTC Nismo GT-R LM Road Car (R33) Mine's Skyline GT-R N1 V-spec (R34) Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) What You're Up Against: You're going to be pitted against a lot of different Skylines here. Take a regular one and max it out or go with one of the race modified versions like the Loctite Zexel or Calsonic. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 1,000 3rd -- 500 4th -- 400 5th -- 300 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Nismo 400 R -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Legend of Silver Arrow Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (3 laps) Super Speedway (6 laps) Rome Circuit II (3 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: CLK Touring Car CLK55 CL600 SLK 230 Kompressor What You're Up Against: You'll face the CLK55, CL600, and SLK 230 Kompressor, but not the CLK Touring Car. If you have the Touring Car, feel free to use it. Otherwise, max out one of the other Mercedes. Prize Money: 1st -- 20,000 2nd -- 7,500 3rd -- 3,000 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 200 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mercedes Benz CLK Touring Car (D2 AMG Mercedes) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Toyota Altezza Race Championship Race Tracks: Requirements: Deep Forest Raceway (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (4 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (4 laps) Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Cote d'Azur (7 laps) Requirements: A License Cars Permitted: Altezza RS200 Lexus IS Altezza LM Race Car What You're Up Against: You'll face a full pack of Altezza RS200s. The stylish LM Race Car will make mince meat of these guys, so use it if you have it. Otherwise, power up a RS200 to its fullest and go with that. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 1,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 30,000 Prize Cars: Tom's X540 Chaser Toyota Altezza LM Race Car Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 (1 of 2) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Type R Meeting Championship Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (5 laps) Super Speedway (10 laps) Tokyo R246 II (5 laps) Cote d'Azur (7 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: Accord Euro R NSX Type R Civic Type R Acura Integra Type R Spoon Civic Type-R What You're Up Against: You're going to face the Civic Type R, NSX Type R, Integra Type R 98 spec, and Accord Euro R. You should probably go with the NSX Type R with all the normal upgrades. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 4,000 4th -- 2,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: 150,000 Prize Cars: Honda NSX Type R Spoon Sports S2000 Mugen S2000 Honda S2000 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Evolution Meeting Single Race Tracks: Mid-Field Raceway II (6 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (4 laps) Tokyo R246 (5 laps) Requirements: B License Cars Permitted: Lancer Evolution IV GSR Lancer Evolution V GSR Lancer Evolution VI GSR Lancer Evolution VI GSR T.M.E. Lancer Evolution VI GSR T.M.E. (stripe) Lancer Evolution VI RS Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car Lancer Evolution VII GSR Lancer Evolution VII RS Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype What You're Up Against: You'll face a mixture of different Evolutions and you're going to need one that's fairly powered up to win here. How powered up depends on your driving skills, but if it's stock, it won't win regardless. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 4,000 4th -- 2,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dream Car Championship Championship Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway (5 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (5 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (5 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (5 laps) Test Course (5 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (5 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (7 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The final Amateur League race has you go against a bunch of LM race cars like the S2000, Altezza, RX-7, FTO and Impreza, plus a ZZ. You'll need a quality race car here, so if you don't have one of these use one of the JGTC, Le Mans or F1 cars from your garage. Prize Money: 1st -- 25,000 2nd -- 15,000 3rd -- 7,500 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 150,000 Prize Cars: Mitsubishi FTO LM Race Car Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car Honda S2000 LM Race Car Subaru Impreza LM Race Car PROFFESIONAL LEAGUE British GT Car Cup Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (10 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (10 laps) Rome Circuit II (10 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You're going to face some cars from the UK like the Motor Sport Elise, Tuscan Speed Six, V8 Vantage, Vanquish and XKR Coupe. You, however, are not limited to cars from the UK, so choose whatever you want to -- just aim for something with at least 500 horses. Prize Money: 1st -- 20,000 2nd -- 7,500 3rd -- 6,000 4th -- 5,000 5th -- 2,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Aston Martin Vanquish -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gran Turismo World Championship Championship Race Tracks: Grand Valley Speedway (10 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (10 laps) Trial Mountain (10 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (10 laps) Test Course (10 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (10 laps) Tokyo R246 (10 laps) Cote d'Azur (15 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (10 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You're going to face some really tough cars including the R390 GT1 LM Race Car, 787B and GT-One (plus other cars you don't really have to worry about). If you have one of these three cars and it's been maxed-out, then you can win with solid racing. Otherwise, try an F1 car if you're not up to the "solid" racing part of this. Prize Money: 1st -- 35,000 2nd -- 10,000 3rd -- 7,500 4th -- 6,000 5th -- 3,000 6th -- 0 Bonus: 250,000 Prize Cars: Ford GT40 Race Car Opel Calibra Touring Car Nissan R390 GT1 Road Car Jaguar XJ220 Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FF Challenge Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway II (10 laps) Rome Circuit (10 laps) Cote d'Azur (10 laps) Requirements: IA License Front-Engine, Front Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Your competition in these races include the Spoon Civic Type-R, FTO GP Version R, Celica TRD Sports M, Integra Type R 98 spec, Accord Euro-R, and Coupe Turbo Plus. If you have a fully powered-up Civic Type R, FTO or Celica, it should be enough to win. But, this is a difficult race, so you might want to get an advantage by using super slick racing tires, because the it'll allow you to make it through the whole race without having to pit. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 6,000 3rd -- 4,000 4th -- 3,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Spoon Sports Civic Type R -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- FR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Apricot Hill Raceway (10 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (15 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (10 laps) Requirements: IA License Front-Engine, Rear Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The cars that'll try and keep you down in this challenge includes the Camaro SS, Corvette Z06, Griffith 500, CLK 55, XKR Coupe, Mustang SVT Cobra R, and CL600. The best FR cars in the game are the race modified Skylines (like the Loctite Zexel and Calsonic), the Tickford Falcon XR8, and the Dodge Vipers, so we suggest using them. Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 7,500 3rd -- 5,000 4th -- 3,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Nismo GT-R LM Road Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- MR Challenge Single Race Tracks: Trial Mountain (10 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (10 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (15 laps) Requirements: IA License Mid-Engine, Rear Wheel Drive car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You're going to see some high-powered MR vehicles like the GT40, Zonda C12S, RUF 3400S, and Esprit Sport 350 in these races. But you don't need to worry because you should have some beasts in this category by now including the R390, GT-One, Mazda 787B or any of the F1 cars. Prize Money: 1st -- 20,000 2nd -- 7,500 3rd -- 5,000 4th -- 3,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Tommy Kaira ZZII -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4WD Challenge Single Race Tracks: Special Stage Route 5 (10 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (10 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (15 laps) Requirements: IA License 4WD car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: You're going to face 4WD cars like the Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34), Skyline GT-R Vspec (R33), Lancer Evolution VI GSR, Lancer Evolution VII GSR, Legacy B4 Blitzen, S4, 3000GT VR-4, and Celica GT-Four. If you've already beefed-up something like a 3000GT or Skyline to around 1000 horsepower, it'll do just fine against these car. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 10,000 3rd -- 5,000 4th -- 3,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Spider & Roadster Single Race Tracks: Grand Valley Speedway (10 laps) Trial Mountain (10 laps) Cote d'Azur (15 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: S2000 Type V S2000 CR-X Del-Sol SiR Elise 190 Mazda MX-5 Miata Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS Mazda MX-5 Miata LS SLK 230 Kompressor Mugen S2000 Silvia Varietta Speedster RUF 3400S Cobra Spoon S2000 MR-S S Edition Griffith 500 What You're Up Against: In these races you're going to be up against a line-up of cars that includes the Griffith 500, Elise 190, Motor Sport Elise, S2000 Type V, ZZS, and RUF 3400S. The toughest of these are probably the Motor Sport Elise and S2000 Type V. Any of these cars completely powered-up will do the trick with some driving skill. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 6,000 3rd -- 4,500 4th -- 3,500 5th -- 1,500 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Shelby Cobra -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Boxer Spirit Single Race Tracks: Deep Forest Raceway II (10 laps) Rome Circuit (10 laps) Super Speedway (20 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: RUF 3400S RUF RGT RUF CTR2 Impreza WRX STi Impreza Sports Wagon STi Impreza Rally Car Impreza 228 STi Version Impreza Sedan WRX STi Version VI Impreza Wagon WRX STi Version VI Impreza Rally Car Prototype Legacy B4 RSK Legacy B4 Blitzen Legacy Touring Wagon GT-B Impreza LM Race Car What You're Up Against: This time around you'll have to face some RUF's along with the Imprezas. You'll need an Impreza that's been souped-up to 400 horses or more or a powered-up RUF to win here. The Impreza LM Race Car will also do the trick Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 7,000 3rd -- 4,000 4th -- 3,000 5th --1,000 6th -- 500 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: RUF RGT -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of NA Sports Single Race Tracks: Apricot Hill Raceway (10 laps) Seattle Circuit (10 laps) Tokyo R246 (10 laps) Requirements: IB License NA car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The Viper GTS, ZZS, Griffith 500 Zonda C12, NSX Type S Zero, and Clio Sport V6 24V are the kinds of cars you'll face here. Just go with whatever your favorite and most powerful NA car is, you should have plenty of them if you're thinking this far into the game. Prize Money: 1st -- 20,000 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 2,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Pagani Zonda C12 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of Turbo Sports Single Race Tracks: Mid-Field Raceway (10 laps) Test Course (10 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (15 laps) Requirements: IB License Turbocharged car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The cars that you're put up against here include the Mine's Skyline, Impreza WRX STi, Mine's Lancer Evolution, Esprit Sport 350, Lancer Evolution VII GSR, Skyline GT- R V-spec II (R34), Supra RZ and Mazda RX-7 Type RS. Look in your garage for your most powerful turbocharged car and just use that. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 7,500 3rd -- 5,000 4th -- 2,500 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: RUF CTR 2 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gran Turismo All Stars Championship Race Tracks: Laguna Seca Raceway (15 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (15 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (15 laps) Test Course (15 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (15 laps) Rome Circuit (15 laps) Seattle Circuit II (15 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (15 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (15 laps) Tokyo R246 (15 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Your main competition in this Championship Race Tracks: are the Nissan R390 GT1 LM Race Car and Toyota GT-One Race Car, with the Nissan being the one to worry about the most. With these two top-of-the-line vehicles, you better have one heck of a car if you expect to win. As with just about every other race, any of the F1 cars will make things pretty cake, but that's kind of boring. We suggest either using something like the Mazda 787B or the R390 GT-One. Prize Money: 1st -- 50,000 2nd -- 20,000 3rd -- 7,500 4th -- 5,000 5th -- 3,000 6th -- 0 Bonus: 400,000 Prize Cars: Dodge Viper GTSR Concept Nissan R390 GT1 LM Race Car Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi Toyota GT-One Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All Japan GT Championship Championship Race Tracks: Grand Valley Speedway (15 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (20 laps) Test Course (15 laps) Special Stage Route 11 (15 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (20 laps) Trial Mountain (15 laps) Rome Circuit II (15 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (15 laps) Tokyo R246 (15 laps) Cote d'Azur (20 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: This field is generally packed with a bunch of Skyline's and NSX's with the Arta NSX or Raybrig NSX being the most dangerous of the bunch. Any of these types of cars can be used for a good competitive race and if you want to have an easy go at it, just use something like the 787B, R390 GT1 or any of the F1 cars. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 10,000 3rd -- 7,000 4th -- 5,000 5th -- 1,000 6th -- 0 Bonus: 250,000 Prize Cars: Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune Castrol Mugen NSX Toyota MR-S Autobacs Apex JGTC Pagani Zonda Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Italian Avant Garde Single Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (10 laps) Rome Circuit II (10 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: Zonda C12 Zonda C12S Zonda Race Car What You're Up Against: Nothing but Pagani Zonda Race CarsÂ…. So, you'll want to use the same and power it up as much as possible. Going with super slick racing tires will help out a lot because you won't have to pit and they will. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 8,500 3rd -- 7,000 4th -- 5,500 5th -- 2,500 6th -- 1,000 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Pagani Zonda Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Race of Red Emblem Single Race Tracks: Tokyo R246 (10 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (10 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (10 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: Nismo 40R Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune Nismo Skyline GT-R R-tune Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Skyline GT-R Vspec (R33) Skyline GT-R V-spec (R34) Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34) Pennzoil Nismo GT-R JGTC Loctite Zexel GT-R JGTC Calsonic Skyline GT-R JGTC Nismo GT-R LM Road Car (R33) Mine's Skyline GT-R N1 V-spec (R34) Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) What You're Up Against: Powered-up versions of all the non-race modified Skylines. So, you should take a race modified Skyline (Loctite Zexel and Calsonic both work well) and use it with some upgrades. Prize Money: 1st -- 25,000 2nd -- 8,000 3rd -- 7,000 4th -- 5,500 5th -- 2,500 6th -- 1,000 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Calsonic Skyline -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vitz Race Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit II (10 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (10 laps) Test Course (10 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (10 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (10 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: Toyota Vitz Euro Edition Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 What You're Up Against: A field made up entirely of Toyota Vitz RS 1.5's. The Euro Edition won't get you anywhere in this race, so get a RS 1.5 and go at it. Since these cars are all at the same level of power, you can expect a tough race here. In fact, this might be one of the most challenging of all the racing championships in GT3. Prize Money: 1st -- 7,500 2nd -- 5,000 3rd -- 2,500 4th -- 1,000 5th -- 500 6th -- 300 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 Toyota Altezza LM Race Car Tom's Castrol Supra Toyota Supra RZ -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Elise Trophy Championship Race Tracks: Cote d'Azur (10 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (10 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (10 laps) Rome Circuit II (10 laps) Trial Mountain (10 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: Lotus Elise 190 Lotus Motor Sport Elise What You're Up Against: You'll face a group that features both the Lotus Elise 190 and Motor Sport Elise. Obviously, you'll get the most competition from the Motor Sport versions, so that's the car you should take into this one. Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 7,000 3rd -- 3,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 60,000 Prize Cars: Lotus Elise 190 (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Clio Trophy Championship Race Tracks: Rome Circuit (10 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (10 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (10 laps) Deep Forest Raceway (10 laps) Cote d'Azur (15 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: Renault Clio Sport V6 24V Renault Clio Sport Race Car What You're Up Against: You'll find a bunch of similarly tuned Clio Sport V6 24V's here. If you soup-up a Sport V6, you can expect a rather easy time here, but for a great challenge, don't pump it up all the way. However, if you don't want to worry too much and have the cash go ahead and buy the Race Car version for a very easy time. FYI, these cars are actually a lot of fun to drive. Prize Money: 1st -- 15,000 2nd -- 7,000 3rd -- 3,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 60,000 Prize Cars: Volkswagen New Beetle Cup Car (1 of 4) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- TVR Tuscan Challenge Championship Race Tracks: Trial Mountain II (10 laps) Special Stage Route 5 (10 laps) Rome Circuit II (10 laps) Seattle Circuit (10 laps) Test Course (10 laps) Requirements: IB License Cars Permitted: TVR Tuscan Speed Six What You're Up Against: Yep, you guessed it -- other TVR Tuscan Speed Six's. You don't have a choice here, so just get a Speed Six and soup it up to the max. Pick the Chameleon Blue color if you want the car from the movie Swordfish. Prize Money: 1st -- 50,000 2nd -- 10,000 3rd -- 5,000 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 45,000 Prize Cars: TVR Speed 12 TVR Griffith (1 of 3) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dream Car Championship Championship Race Tracks: Test Course (15 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (15 laps) Trial Mountain II (15 laps) Tokyo R246 (15 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (15 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (15 laps) Cote d'Azur (20 laps) Requirements: S License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: This championship puts you against a bunch of LM Race Cars including the Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car and Honda S2000 Race Car. You'll need a similarly powerful car, so either use one of these, any of the Le Mans cars or something souped-up to the 900 horsepower range. Prize Money: 1st -- 40,000 2nd -- 9,500 3rd -- 8,000 4th -- 6,500 5th -- 3,500 6th -- 1,000 Bonus: 250,000 Prize Cars: F090/s Toyota GT-One Race Car Panoz Esperante GTR Mitsubishi FTO LM Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Polyphony Digital Cup Championship Race Tracks: Trial Mountain II (20 laps) Mid-Field Raceway II (20 laps) Rome Circuit II (20 laps) Special Stage Route 5 II (20 laps) Seattle Circuit II (20 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway II (20 laps) Deep Forest Raceway II (20 laps) Special Stage Route 11 II (20 laps) Grand Valley Speedway II (20 laps) Tokyo R246 II (20 laps) Requirements: S License Normal Cars Only - Car Cannot Be Tuned Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: The competition here seems to be more varied than most, but the best cars that you seem to get put up against are the Nissan Skylines, Chevrolet Corvette Z06's, Chevrolet Camaros, Z Concept Cars, or Lancer Evolutions. Just try and use a car that's pretty powered up without any engine upgrades. Some cars that you might want to consider using are the Dodge Viper, Pagani Zonda S, RUF CTR2, Aston Martin Vanquish, TVR Speed 12, or anything else with a lot of horsepower stock. Prize Money: 1st -- 50,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: 450,000 Prize Cars: F094/S Toyota GT-One Race Car Suzuki Escudo Pike's Peak Edition TVR Speed 12 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Like The Wind Single Race Tracks: Test Course (20 laps) Requirements: S License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: You'll see a few different car line-ups here, with something like the Speed 12, GT- One or Mazda 787B being the potential car or cars to beat. The important thing here is top speed, so get whatever car you have that has the highest top speed -- acceleration and handling is not an issue on the Test Course. Prize Money: 1st -- 10,000 2nd -- 6,000 3rd -- 4,500 4th -- 3,500 5th -- 1,500 6th -- 800 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mazda 787B -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Formula GT Championship Championship Race Tracks: Mid-Field Raceway (30 laps) Seattle Circuit (40 laps) Grand Valley Speedway (27 laps) Super Speedway (50 laps) Rome Circuit (28 laps) Test Course (25 laps) Laguna Seca Raceway (33 laps) Apricot Hill Raceway (27 laps) Tokyo R246 (25 laps) Cote d'Azur (78 laps) Requirements: S License Racing car Cars Permitted: No Limitations What You're Up Against: Lost work time, marital problems and sickness due to the lack of sleep. This series will take you longer to beat than Onimusha, Starfighter and The Bouncer combined and is so much more challenging. The F094/S is a good F1 car to use here, but any should work. Make sure you change your oil before you start this to give you a quick HP boost and a fresh start. Prize Money: 1st -- 30,000 2nd -- 8,500 3rd -- 7,000 4th -- 5,500 5th -- 2,500 6th -- 1,000 Bonus: 250,000 Prize Cars: F686/M F687/S F688/S F090/S RALLY EVENTS Rally Challenge Single Race Tracks: Tahiti Circuit (2 laps) Tahiti Circuit (3 laps) Tahiti Circuit (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: 206 Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Toyota Celica Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tahiti Maze Single Race Tracks: Tahiti Maze (2 laps) Tahiti Maze (3 laps) Tahiti Maze (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Ford Escort Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Smokey Mountain Rally Single Race Tracks: Smokey Mountain (3 laps) Smokey Mountain (5 laps) Smokey Mountain (7 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Impreza Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Ford Focus Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rally of Alps Single Race Tracks: Swiss Alps (3 laps) Swiss Alps (5 laps) Swiss Alps (7 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Impreza Rally Car Prototype Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Peugeot 206 Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rally Challenge II Single Race Tracks: Tahiti Circuit II (2 laps) Tahiti Circuit II (3 laps) Tahiti Circuit II (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Escort Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Toyota Corolla Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tahiti Maze II Single Race Tracks: Tahiti Maze II (2 laps) Tahiti Maze II (3 laps) Tahiti Maze II (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Subaru Impreza Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Smokey Mountain Rally II Single Race Tracks: Smokey Mountain II (3 laps) Smokey Mountain II (5 laps) Smokey Mountain II (7 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Corolla Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rally of Alps II Single Race Tracks: Swiss Alps II (3 laps) Swiss Alps II (5 laps) Swiss Alps II (7 laps) Requirements: Rally license Rally tires Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Celica Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Super Special Route 5 (Wet) Single Race Tracks: Special Stage Route 5 Wet (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 Wet (3 laps) Special Stage Route 5 Wet (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Citroen Xsara Rally Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Super Special Route 5 (Wet) II Single Race Tracks: Special Stage Route 5 Wet II (2 laps) Special Stage Route 5 Wet II (3 laps) Special Stage Route 5 Wet II (5 laps) Requirements: Rally license Cars Permitted No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Impreza Rally Car Prototype Prize Money: 1st -- 5,000 2nd -- 0 3rd -- 0 4th -- 0 5th -- 0 6th -- 0 Bonus: N/A Prize Cars: Subaru Impreza Rally Car Prototype ENDURANCE RACES Grand Valley 300 Track: Grand Valley Speedway (60 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: You'll be up against cars like the Raybrig NSX, Arta NSX, Loctite Zexel GT-R, Pennzoil Nismo GT-R, Calsonic Skyline, Denso Sard Supra GT, Castrol Tom's Supra, and Castrol Mugen NSX. Go ahead and cheat by using any of the F1 cars or super slick racing tires on a similarly tuned car. Prize Money: 1st -- 400,000 2nd -- 100,000 3rd -- 85,000 4th -- 65,000 5th -- 40,000 6th -- 11,000 Prize Cars: F090/S Subaru Impreza LM Edition Nissan R390 GT1 Road Car Spoon Sports S2000 Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seattle 100 Miles Track: Seattle Circuit (40 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Here you'll face a line-up filled with cars like the Corvette Z06, Viper GTS, Mustang SVT Cobra R, Camaro Z28, Camaro SS, Corvette Grand Sport and Cobra. Once again, we suggest cheating. Go with a car as powerful or more than these and use super slick racing tires or just use an F1 car. Prize Money: 1st -- 150,000 2nd -- 70,000 3rd -- 55,000 4th -- 45,000 5th -- 20,000 6th -- 9,000 Prize Cars: F687/S Nismo GT-R LM Road Car Panoz Esperante GTR-1 Tommy Kaira ZZ II -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Laguna Seca 200 Endurance Track: Laguna Seca Raceway (90 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: You'll come up against some exotic race cars here like the Vertigo Race Car, Esperante GTR-1, GT40 Race Car, Storm V12 Race Car, Viper GTS-R Team Oreca and CLK Touring Car. You should know the trick by now. Prize Money: 1st -- 300,000 2nd -- 85,000 3rd -- 70,000 4th -- 55,000 5th -- 30,000 6th -- 10,000 Prize Cars: Calsonic Skyline F686/M F687/S Toyota Altezza LM Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Passage to Colosseo Track: Rome Circuit (2 Hours) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Look for a line-up of cars like the Griffith 500, 156 2.5 V6 24V, S4, Coupe Turbo Plus, Clio Sport V6 24V, and 206 S16. Not too difficult of a challenge, but we still say go with something powerful, use the super slick racing tires or use an F1 car. Prize Money: 1st -- 300,000 2nd -- 85,000 3rd -- 70,000 4th -- 55,000 5th -- 30,000 6th -- 10,000 Prize Cars: Gillet Vertigo Race Car Lancia Delta HF Integrale Rally Car F688/S Pagani Zonda Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trial Mountain Endurance Track: Trial Mountain (2 Hours) Requirements: IA License Normal Cars Only - Car Cannot Be Tuned Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: In this race you're going to face unmodified cars like the NSX Type S Zero, Skyline GT-R Vspec II, Skyline GT-R V-spec II, Mazda RX-7 Type RZ, Supra RZ, Impreza WRX STi, and Lancer Evolution VII RS. Use a car that's got a lot of power stock like any of the Dodge Vipers and go with the super slick racing tires. Prize Money: 1st -- 150,000 2nd -- 70,000 3rd -- 55,000 4th -- 45,000 5th -- 20,000 6th -- 9,000 Prize Cars: F094/H Lister Storm V12 Race Car Mine's Skyline GT-R N1 V-spec Honda S2000 LM Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Stage Route 11 Track: Special Stage Route 11 (50 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: You'll face some finely tuned automobiles here like the Zonda Race Car, 787B, GT-One Race Car, GT40 Race Car, Viper GTS-R Team Oreca, Esperante GTR-1 and XJ220 Race Car. Use one of your best cars and throw on the super slick tires. Prize Money: 1st -- 500,000 2nd -- 120,000 3rd -- 100,000 4th -- 80,000 5th -- 50,000 6th -- 12,000 Prize Cars: Toyota MR-S Autobacs Apex Arta NSX F687/S Nissan C-West Razo Silva -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Roadster Endurance Track: Apricot Hill Raceway (40 laps) Requirements: IA License Normal Cars Only - Car Cannot Be Tuned Cars Permitted: Mazda MX-5 Miata Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS Mazda MX-5 Miata LS What You're Up Against: The Miata, Miata 1.8 RS, and Miata LS will be your competition. Go with the LS version and equip it with some super slick racing tires. Prize Money: 1st -- 100,000 2nd -- 60,000 3rd -- 45,000 4th -- 35,000 5th -- 15,000 6th -- 8,000 Prize Cars: F688/S Mazda MX-5 Miata Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS Mazda MX-5 Miata VR Limited A -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tokyo Route 246 Track: Tokyo R245 (100 laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Here you'll be pitted against Japanese cars like the Loctite Zexel GT-R, Arta NSX, Raybrig NSX, Denso Sard Supra GT, Castrol Tom's Supra, Castrol Mugen NSX, and Pennzoil Nismo GT-R. You know the way. Prize Money: 1st -- 400,000 2nd -- 100,000 3rd -- 85,000 4th -- 65,000 5th -- 40,000 6th -- 11,000 Prize Cars: F094/H Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car Nissan C-West Razo Silvia Toyota GT-One Road Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mistral 78 Laps Track: Cote d'Azur (78 Laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: Here you'll face cars like the S2000 LM Race Car, FTO LM Race Car, GT-One Race Car, RX-7 LM Race Car, R390 GT1 LM Race Car, FTO LM Race Car, and 787B. Hell, this is Monaco, just use and F1 car and don't feel dirty about lapping the competition several times. Prize Money: 1st -- 500,000 2nd -- 120,000 3rd -- 100,000 4th -- 80,000 5th -- 50,000 6th -- 12,000 Prize Cars: F686/M Mitsubishi FTO LM Race Car Jaguar XJ220 Road Car Pagani Zonda Race Car -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Super Speedway 150 Miles Track: Super Speedway (100 Laps) Requirements: IA License Cars Permitted: No Limitations. What You're Up Against: The line-up has cars like the Mine's Skyline, RUF 3400S, Spoon S2000, Mugen S2000, Celica TRD Sports M, Motor Sport Elise, and Mine's Lancer Evolution. Don't even worry about racing this -- just use the Escudo Pikes Peak car and wall ride all 100 laps without even worrying about your glowing red tires. Prize Money: 1st -- 200,000 2nd -- 80,000 3rd -- 65,000 4th -- 50,000 5th -- 25,000 6th -- 9,500 Prize Cars: Chevrolet Corvette C5R F090/S Tickford Falcon XR8 Race Car Clio Sports Race Car ADVANCED TUNING The following is a complete listing and description of the various tuning parts you can buy to upgrade the functioning of your car. Tuning is vital to success in GT3 -- you may be able to win the Sunday Cup with a stock car, but victory in the races that matter will go to those who spend the money to make their cars go. Not all of the parts in the game may be available or even helpful to certain cars, though, so use this information to determine what parts you need for what you want a particular car to do. ENGINE & INTAKE SYSTEM Muffler: Sports "Combines a less-restrictive replacement sports-model air cleaner with a low back- pressure sports muffler to improve intake and exhaust flow. Ideal as a first-time turbo upgrade. Improves high-rpm torque in non supercharged engines." Semi-Racing "A competition-grade air cleaner with urethane sponge filter is combined with a low- back pressure muffler designed to enhance engine performance at high rpm. Ideal for large-displacement turbo engines. When using with a non-supercharged engine, proper tuning beforehand is a must." Racing "Delivering even better intake efficiency than the semi-racing model, this racing air cleaner with a velocity stack is combined with a high- efficiency straight muffler designed for racing cars that normally operate in the high-rpm range. Suitable for tunings that maximize peak power. Reduces low-rpm torque and so requires proper consideration of engine characteristics, gear ratio, and other factors." The long and the short of it is that the muffler upgrades kick up your horsepower. They're no substitute for actual displacement, but they can give you a very useful boost, especially early in the game -- this is a good cheap upgrade to consider when you're starting out. NA Tune-up: Stage 1 "Boosts the power of non-supercharged engines by adjusting the ignition and valve timing and by installing thinner head gaskets for a higher compression ratio. The exhaust manifold is also replaced. Peak power is enhanced without affecting low-rpm torque." Stage 2 "Picks up where Stage 1 leaves off. Not only raises the compression ratio even further with high-compression pistons and head polishing, but also boots high- rpm output by replacing the cams, mounting reinforced valve springs, and Port and Polish. Although low-speed torque is diminished somewhat, the emphasis here is on boosting high-rpm power. The Engine Management Computer is also reset according to your vehicle specs." Stage 3 "Following up on Stage 2 enhancements, this upgrade completely overhauls the engine to enhance high-rpm performance. Higher-compression pistons, special high-lift racing cams with a large amount of valve overlap, heavy-duty competition valve springs and connection rods, and engine block strengthening are all part of the package. The power band is shifted to the medium to high range to boost maximum horsepower." "NA" stands for Normally Aspirated. It refers to an engine that doesn't have assistance in forcing more air into its cylinders -- i.e., it doesn't have a turbocharger or a supercharger. In GT3, NA Tuning works somewhat like turbocharging, giving you a remarkable increase in power, but the effect is somewhat different in practice. You don't have the striking effect of turbo lag that pops up in highly- tuned turbo engines. GT3 differs from its predecessors by very frequently offering the option to upgrade a car with either NA Tuning or a turbocharger. In GT and GT2, it was generally impossible to add a turbo to an NA car, but now you can, and so you should choose according to which option gives you the best power for the circumstances and suits your tastes in driving. It's also worth noting that, for finesse drivers, the most power is not necessarily the best thing. A massive power upgrade looks like fun on paper, and it may win you races, but you'll also have a more pronounced tendency to whim-wham off the walls on your way to the finish line if you sack your low-rev power -- it hurts your cornering ability, especially if you don't have the tires and suspension modifications to keep that power under control. Choose wisely, then. Port Polish "Polishes the interior of the intake ports, reducing air-flow resistance boosts engine power by what may seem a low degree, but is essential for normally aspirated and supercharged engines alike." Not a lot of horsepower here, but like they say, an important accompaniment for a highly-tuned car. Full-Engine Balancing "An extensive upgrade that includes piston and connecting rod weight balancing, and a precision-balanced crankshaft. Reduces vibration and bearing loads, and allows higher engine speeds. The rev limiter is reset to take advantage of this." This is another one of the minor horsepower upgrades, but a useful one for more ridiculously powerful cars. Displacement Up "There's no replacement for displacement. This upgrade raises cylinder displacement by increasing engine bore and stroke. Greater displacement generally boosts the engine's torque in all rpm ranges." This modification kicks up your engine's power at the most fundamental level, increasing the bore and stroke with bigger cylinders and other parts. Many cars don't have access to this upgrade, it mainly being reserved for pushrod engines like the one in the Viper, but take it if you can. Racing Chip "The most basic upgrade. Altering the Engine Management Program settings allows you to boost power by adjusting engine ignition timing, the air/fuel ratio, and other variables. For turbocharged vehicles, the air filter and muffler are also replaced, for a beginner's-level upgrade." What he said. A cheap and cheerful horsepower upgrade, very good for adding a little extra kick to your first car. SUSPENSION & BRAKES Suspension: Sports "An all-purpose, beginner-friendly suspension kit that covers all types of driving, from street to circuit. Both front and rear shock absorbers are adjustable to one of 10 damping force levels. Camber angle is also adjustable. Clearance is lowered approximately 1 inch in the front and back. Two-way low-pressure gas shock absorbers (adjustable to 10 levels)." Semi-Racing "A ride height-altering suspension kit for intermediate drivers. Spring rate and the shock absorber damping force are harder than with normal sports suspension. Front and rear ride height is adjustable in 1-millimeter increments. Damping force is adjustable to one of 10 levels, and camber angle is also adjustable. Single high- pressure gas shock absorbers." Full Customization "Enables tuning of all suspension parts. Adjusts shock absorbers, replaces springs with ones with different spring rates, and replaces the stabilizer (anti-roll bar), which controls the vehicle's lateral roll stiffness. Wheel camber can be changed, and toe-in is also adjustable. Shock absorber compression (bound) and extension (rebound) are independently adjustable to one of 10 levels." Suspension modification kits do a little on their own to alter and improve your car's handling (for example, the Sports kit lowers your ride height for a lower center of gravity and better handling), but their real purpose is to enable you to make changes -- hopefully for the better -- on your own. The Sports package unlocks a few tuning options to a limited degree. Semi-Racing increases the amount of latitude in those areas and adds the ability to tweak your car's ride height at will. Full Custom unlocks the broadest spectrum of suspension setting options, allowing you to tune a racer for peak performance. For advice on what to change and what to leave alone, see the Settings Guide later in this section. Racing Brakes "Contains carbon metallic brake pads for dependable stopping power, even during long- distance driving. With far more initial stopping power and fade resistance than ordinary brakes, these brakes are also suitable for endurance races. Brake fluid (DOT 5) is also changed." What you see is what you get. Racing brakes give you better stopping power, and if the game simulated brake pad wear like it does tire wear, they'd probably last longer, too. They're a vital complement to serious power upgrades. Brake Balance Controller "Controls the anti-lock braking system to maintain the desired balance in braking power between the front and rear brakes. Strengthen the front to increase understeer for extra stability, or strengthen the rear to increase oversteer for better maneuverability. Remember that a too-strong rear brake balance increases the likelihood of spinout." In practical terms, what this does is unlock the brake balance options in the Settings menu. If you want to fiddle with your front and rear brakes, you'll have to fork out the coin for this upgrade. DRIVETRAIN Clutch: Big Single Plate "Changes the clutch feeling during upshifting, so that upshifting feels more direct than with a normal clutch." Double Plate "This racing clutch kit features dual clutch places, ideal for high-torque, high- power vehicles. Reduces clutch slippage during upshifting, improving acceleration." Triple Plate "Featuring three clutch places, this clutch kit boosts torque transmission and enhances the directness of the power. Ideal for highly-tuned cars." The clutch is the weak link when it comes to fast shifting -- gear selection means nothing if the cogs don't engage and disengage smartly. The three clutch upgrades respectively kick up your shift speed a little bit more, with the triple-plate clutch being the one you want for a high-powered car that needs to get out of the corners and into its high-rev powerband quickly. Flywheel: Sports "A lightweight flywheel made with chrome molybdenum steel. Lets the engine rev more quickly. Improves acceleration slightly, but with narrow-powerband engines, revs may drop below the powerband unless a close-ratio transmission is also used." Semi-Racing "Even lighter than the sports type, this flywheel is especially designed for racing. Makes for a quick-revving engine. Improves acceleration slightly, but with narrow- powerband engines, revs may drop below the powerband even more easily unless a close- ratio transmission is also used." Racing "A super-lightweight flywheel exclusively for racing. Makes for a quick-revving engine that also drops revs quickly. Improves acceleration and deceleration, but with narrow-powerband engines, revs may drop below the powerband unless a close- ratio transmission is also used and the driver can master the proper shifting technique." The flywheel modifications play a role mainly when you're using the standard transmission, since the game's version of an automatic transmission will naturally take care of that proper shifting technique for you. If you shift for yourself, you'll have to work with this particular modification to get the most out of it, and possibly do a little gear ratio tuning to keep your acceleration smooth. Carbon Propellor Shaft "A lightweight driveshaft made with a carbon composite. Situated between the engine and the differential gear in front-engined, rear wheel drive or all wheel drive cars, the driveshaft is just as important as the flywheel for acceleration performance." This simple modification isn't available for some cars, but when you can buy it, it's a good choice to reduce your weight and kick up acceleration. Transmission: Sports "Replaces a normal transmission assembly with a transmission with closer gear ratios in all five gears. Prevents revs from dropping below the powerband when upshifting, and allows smoother downshifts. Ensures useful power in a variety of turns. Recommended for non-supercharged engines." Semi-Racing "These gear ratios are even closer than those of the Sports Close- Ratio Transmission. This gearbox is ideal for highly-tuned cars with a narrow powerband. Note that upshifting and downshifting will become more frequent. Because of time loss during shifting, this transmission may be counterproductive in cars with high- torque, wide-powerband engines." Full Customization "For races that permit the replacement of all gears, including the final drive gear. This upgrade also makes it possible to fine-tune the gear ratios according to vehicle specs and circuit features." Respectively, then: Sports is good for a lower-power street-type car, Semi-Racing is what you want in something comparatively serious, and Full Custom is the choice for the serious racer. Full Custom's advantage is that it unlocks the complete selection of gear ratio options in the Settings menu, so if you want to fool around with your ratios (and you will, if you get deep into the game), you need the most expensive transmission package. See the settings guide for advice. Limited-Slip Differential 1-way "This limited-slip activates the limited-slip effect only during acceleration, and so is suitable for front wheel drive vehicles, which are difficult to turn under any conditions. The absence of the limited-slip effect during braking makes it possible to maximize turning power. However, the tendency of the vehicle to lose stability during braking should be noted. The shortcoming of this type of limited-slip is that vehicle characteristics during acceleration change greatly when the accelerator is released to decelerate." 1.5-way "Reduces the limited-slip effect during deceleration while maintaining the full limited-slip effect during acceleration. This ensures powerful traction, and during braking, prevents excessive reduction in the force of the car attempting to turn. Free of quirkiness, this is a good all-around limited-slip unit." 2-way "A limited-slip differential that delivers the limited slip effect during both acceleration and deceleration. Stabilizes the vehicle attitude during braking, thereby permitting even harder braking. Delivers powerful traction during acceleration, but clearly makes turning more difficult and so is suited to drivers who are skilled at turning." Full Customization "This special racing modification allows independent adjustment of the limited-slip effect during acceleration and deceleration. Although capable of greatly changing a car's performance, this modification requires careful adjustment as improper adjustment can destroy the car's balance." The differential is the set of gears on your car that marries the driveshaft to the drive axle. A limited-slip differential, occasionally described as "positraction" (as in "four-speed dual-quad positraction 409," for you Beach Boys fans), is a widget that controls the torque split between the drive wheels, sending more torque to one wheel so as to give it more power. For practical driving, this is handy for keeping both wheels moving your car, even on slippery surfaces -- the wheel that needs more power to grip gets it. For racing, it also has its uses, maintaining uniform grip so you can get braking and acceleration force down to the track when you're heading into and out of a turn. As for which one you want to buy, total gearheads should naturally take the Full Custom option, since it unlocks the broadest selection of variable LSD settings. 1- way and 1.5-way both work quite well for FF cars, and the 1.5-way offers the most effect for beginning drivers who don't quite have a handle on when to brake and when to accelerate in a turn. If you think you really know how to apex, though, you'll get the most out of the 2-way. Be warned, however, that it's possible to throw your car completely out of whack by fiddling with the LSD. See the settings section for some tips. TURBO KIT SYSTEM Turbo Kit: Stage 1 "A turbo kit that uses a compact turbocharger to generate high-rpm torque without sacrificing torque in the low to medium rance. Minimal turbo lag and high response combine to create an excellent balance suitable for all types of circuits. metal gaskets, oil coolor, a reinforced oil pump, and other high-durability parts are also installed." Stage 2 "A turbo kit that stresses high-rpm peak power and low to mid-range balance. Torque in the low range is somewhat low compared to Turbo Kit 1, but mid to high range power is boosted considerably. In addition to metal gaskets, oil cooler, a reinforced oil pump, and other high- durability parts, a fuel pump, injector, computer, and other turbo components are also installed." Stage 3 "A turbo kit that focuses on quarter-mile acceleration. The powerband shifts further into the high-rpm range than with Turbo it 2. For greater effectiveness, this turbo kit should be combined with a close-ratio transmission and other parts. The cam is also replaced with one designed for turbo characteristics. In addition to metal gaskets, oil cooler, a reinforced oil pump, and other high-durability parts, a fuel pump, injector, computer, and other turbo components are also installed." Stage 4 "An oversized, high-rpm, high-output turbo kit designed purely with maximum horsepower in mind. Suitable for maximum-speed contests, for instance. The cam is also replaced with one designed for turbo characteristics. Ina ddition to metal gaskets, oil cooler, a reinforced oil pump, and other high-durability parts, a special fuel pump, injector, computer, and other turbo components are also installed." A turbocharger derives its name from its mechanical centerpiece, a turbine. That turbine spins at an extremely high rate to power a compressor that forces more air into the intakes, improving the power and efficiency of combustion. Just for trivia's sake, though GT3 draws no practical distinction between the two, a supercharger does the same thing, but also steals a little mechanical assistance from the engine's driveshaft (for a nice visual lesson in how it works, watch the opening chase in The Road Warrior). The turbocharger is likely the most popular upgrade in any GT game, and it's definitely one of the most effective when it comes to boosting your performance. It's worth noting, however, that it's not necessarily worth the cost or the effort to turn your ride into a drag racer just for the sake of posting the highest possible horsepower number. Remember that RUF set its speed record in a car with less than 500bhp. That monstrous horsepower is balanced somewhat by turbo lag and loss of torque in the low revs, which makes it tough to climb out of low speeds in case you spin out or crash. In very imprecise terms, you sacrifice some acceleration for that evil top end. Thus, when you equip your turbo, it's wise to also have the corresponding parts for better acceleration (like the flywheel, clutch, and prop shaft modifications) and transmission modification. A Full Custom transmission lets you tune your ratios to compensate for problems at the low end and stretch out your potential at the top end. Intercooler: Sports "This air-cooled intercooler cools the hot intake air after it is pressurized by the turbocharger. By lowering the intake air temperature, air density is increased, allowing for more fuel to be used and boosting power. An essential part for a high- performance turbo engine." Racing "Boosts the power of a supercharged engine by lowering the intake air temperature. The larger capacity increases the temperature-reducing capabilities but slightly lowers engine response. This high-capacity intercooler is a suitable upgrade for engines with a high maximum supercharging pressure." Practically speaking, an intercooler just provides a horsepower upgrade to complement that provided by a turbocharger, but there's no reason to turn down extra power at this price. TIRES Sports "Sports tires are for paved-road driving and have a greater grip than normal tires. Mounting high-performance tires enhances a car's cornering, acceleration, and braking performance and is the most effective upgrade. Purchasing tires entitles you to subsequent tire services for as long as you own those tires. Front and rear tires must be purchased together." Sports tires are cheaper than racing slicks and demand a little less pondering of the balance between hardness and grip. Kit out a street racer with these and you'll see a nice improvement in all areas of handling. Racing Racing tires, also known as "racing slicks," are nearly treadless tires used exclusively for high-speed driving on the glass-smooth surface of a racetrack. In GT3, there are six types of racing tires: Super Hard Hard Medium Hard Medium Medium Soft Soft Super Soft The harder a tire is, the more resilient it is, the longer it takes to warm up to maximum efficiency (when you see race drivers doing zig-zags during caution laps, they're warming their tires), and the less grip it offers. In GT and GT2, there was essentially only one choice: Super Soft tires provided the most grip and needed no warming, so they were the best option, despite their high price. GT3, however, throws a bigger kink into the tire situation, because tire wear is a factor in many more races, and tires generally wear out much, much faster than they did in the previous games. A set of Super Soft tires will now die before the end of a five-lap race, although you'll corner on rails for as long as they last. Thus, go ahead and run Super Soft tires in races with no tire wear, but you'll want to turn to a compound on the harder side of the spectrum for the tire-wear-enabled races in the Amateur and Professional leagues. Try out various compounds once you have some money to play with and see which one offers you the best balance -- we like Hard or Super Hard for endurance races, but that may be a bit on the conservative side. Professional "A tire that even more closely approximates the characteristic of actual, real-life tires. These tires make driving with the game controller extremely difficult and so provide a virtual experience of real-life driving (as opposed to video-game driving), requiring early braking, careful steering, and delicate accelerator manipulation. This is a set of front and rear tires for paved surfaces." If anybody actually uses these, we'd like to hear their comments. So far as we can tell, they're only for the curious or the demented. Rally "Dirt racing tires, which must be mounted on all 4 wheels for racing on dirt courses. These tires are designed to ensure vehicle controllability on slippery gravel and other unpaved surfaces. Dirt racing tires are available only for certain vehicle types." Rally tires are essentially just a racing license for the rally championships. It's surprising how many cars in GT3 can run them -- it's not just Lancers and Imprezas. Bolt some knobby tires on your turbocharged Skyline and you'll run away with most special stages. STABILITY CONTROL & OTHERS Weight Reduction: Stage 1 "Lightens the vehicle by removing unnecessary parts and replacing others with parts made of lightweight-material. The numerous advantages of a lighter car include enhanced acceleration performance, improved cornering and braking, and better tire durability." Stage 2 "Lightens the vehicle more by removing more parts and/or replacing more with lighter materials." Stage 3 "Takes Stage 2 lightening a step further." Power is only half of what makes a car go fast. The real key is power-to-weight ratio, the comparison between the amount of power delivered by the engine and the amount of steel/aluminum/ceramic/carbon fiber that power has to push forward. A Dodge Caravan has more horsepower than a Lotus Elise by some distance, but it's not going to beat one off the line any time soon. Weight Reduction, then, is vital to building a fast car, and it's one of the upgrades you want to buy early on, especially considering how cheap the first two stages are. AYC Controller "This component changes the setting of the Yaw Control System, which generates rotational moment in the vehicle by controlling the distribution of torque between the left and ride drive wheels. Raising the setting creates rotational moment during cornering, for better acceleration during turns. Note that too high a setting increases oversteer, and thus the likelihood of tire spinning." In real life, there are several different specimens of what's generally referred to as Active Yaw Control. For the most part, though, they work somewhat like the limited-slip differential, automatically varying the torque split between either side of the vehicle to shove it in one direction or the other. In theory, you want the AYC to help push you into a corner just enough -- that's how it works in most road-legal cars, forcing them to follow a safe and sane cornering line in spite of potentially dangerous acceleration on the driver's part. In GT3, though, it can do a variety of things depending on how you set it up. Check the settings section for advice. VCD Controller "This center differential makes it possible to change the front and rear torque distribution in a 4WD vehicle. The setting range is 100% front/0% rear to 0% front/rear 100%. A 4WD vehicle can be made to handle like an FF car by shifting the torque distribution to the front wheels or like an FR car by shifting the torque toward the rear wheels. Torque distribution cannot be changed while the vehicle is moving." This is an all-new modification for GT3, but you can only apply it to certain 4WD cars. If you remember from our discussion of differentials earlier on, the diff is what joins the driveshaft to the axles. FWD and RWD cars only have one, since there's only one axle talking to the road. A 4WD car, however, has three: one in front, one in back, and one in the center. The VCD controller lets you mess with the torque split that happens in that center differential, sending more or less power to the front or rear. How you set this is essentially a matter of taste, but if your driving style leans toward one end or the other, this could give you an advantage on the special stages in an Impreza or Lancer, or on the GT circuit in your Skyline. SETTINGS GUIDE Before you go to the racetrack, you have the option of altering many of your car's settings, and the more tuning parts you buy, the more settings you can tweak. This is the province of advanced GT3 drivers, who want to get the absolute peak performance out of their cars -- less committed racers can still walk away with a win using the game's default settings. The following is a brief guide to what you can change and what effects those changes will have. Incorrectly altering many of these settings can completely destroy the performance of your car, so the most important advice regarding settings changes is to use caution. Before you start tinkering with settings like suspension, gear ratios, LSD, and stability control, save the default setting to a memory card, or just get a sheet of paper and write down the original numbers. You don't want to find yourself with a completely out-of-whack car that you can't retune back to normal behavior. SUSPENSION SPRING RATIO Adjust the hardness of the springs. The stiffer you make the springs, the faster and more responsively the car steers. However, over-stiffening the springs makes the car very unstable on rough roads. Some courses have smoother roads than others -- the smoother the road, the stiffer you can make the springs. Thus, stiff springs are a poor choice for rally courses, or something like Laguna Seca, but they may give you an advantage on a gentler course like Special Stage R5. RIDE HEIGHT RATIO Adjust the height of the car. Lowering the car's height lowers its center of gravity and makes it more stable on the road. However, over-lowering the car causes it to bottom out, which means you can completely go out of control following a jump or particularly vicious bump. This can be balanced by increasing the spring ratio and damper ratio -- but race the track continually while adjusting to ensure maximum balance for each particular track. Again, the smoother the track, the lower you can adjust the car. SHOCK ABSORBERS Adjust the decreasing strength (dampening ratio) of the damper. The softer the dampers, the more the car rolls into corners and over-reacts to bumps in the road. The harder they are, the more unstable the car gets out of corners. Some of the lighter cars have problems getting their power down cleanly on the road - - their tires spin and the car shakes. By softening the dampers, the tires are able to grip better -- the down-side is that the body roll is over-exaggerated through corners. When this happens, adjust the Spring Ratio and to lessen the effect. CAMBER ANGLE Adjust the negative camber angle. Camber angle is the angle at which your tires sit in relation to the car when viewed from the front or rear. This makes little difference to overall performance, and setting this wrongly can completely ruin the car's handling, braking and steering. A slight tweak negatively (so that the tires lean slightly towards the car) increases the car's stability through corners, but this is offset by loss of braking ability and steering effectiveness. In most cases, it's best to leave this as is. TOE ANGLE Adjust the toe-in or -out of your tires. Toe angle is the angle at which your tires sit in relation to the car when viewed from the top. Like camber, a little negative toe can improve handling, but it's not a major factor in performance, and too much toe either way can seriously damage performance. It can also increase the speed of tire wear, which is a much bigger factor in GT3 than it was in GT2. STABILIZER Adjust the roll rigidity of the stabilizers. The stabilizers affect the car's cornering ability by making it more stable. Over- adjusting the stabilizers causes the car to become over-reactive on the straights. Under-adjusting makes it roll through corners and become very unstable. Just remember -- the car's stability is also directly affected by the dampers and spring ratio -- so adjust this in relation to the other two. BRAKE Adjust the brake balance front and back. The more powerful the brake setting, the more the car's weight is thrown forward during the braking process. This can cause real handling problems if you brake while turning. Basically, the more powerful the front brakes, the more the car understeers (that means it wants to carry on in a straight line) and the more powerful the back brakes, the more the car oversteers (the back wants to slide around). The latter condition is more preferable because it helps the cornering effort, but can cause a loss of traction. Tweak the brakes to suit your driving style, starting with the rear brakes first. ENGINE TURBO BOOST PRESSURE Adjust the turbo boost pressure. The higher the setting, the higher the peak power is raised, but this detrimentally affects the low-down acceleration is affected. Generally speaking, you want to have turbo pressure at maximum, unless you're driving a course that requires strong low- and mid-range acceleration (such as Special Stage R11). DRIVETRAIN GEAR RATIOS Adjust the ratio for each speed gear. Lowering the final drive ratio reduces the car's acceleration, but enables it to reach faster speeds (idea for a top speed test, for example, or very high speed courses). The higher the final drive, the better the acceleration, but it lowers top speed. Adjusting each individual gear ratio enables you to ensure that the engine revs are always kept in the car's power band. This is particularly important for turbo cars where the power band kicks in at higher revs -- by not keeping the revs in the power band results in very poor pickup, reducing the car's low- and mid-range performance, drastically affecting the car's performance on the more twisty tracks. GT3 has brought back the handy-dandy gear graphs from the original GT, so it's pretty easy to intuit what kind of results your individual gear changes will have. The farther forward on the graph the gear's little line goes, the more top speed you'll get. The steeper the line is, the faster you'll accelerate through that gear. This being a game, you can do stuff with your ratios that would turn your transmission and engine into hash in reality. For example, you might want to have very short low gears and very long high gears. The vast majority of shade-tree tuners, though, will want to just use the "Short-Long" slider at the bottom of the menu to quickly trade off between acceleration and top end. LSD -- INITIAL TORQUE Adjust the initial torque provided by the LSD. Depending on your car's drivetrain, you'll have one or two options here. FF cars can change the front setting, FR cars can change the rear, 4WD cars can change both. Raising the initial torque increases your stability in turns, but at a cost in cornering ability -- i.e., it's harder to turn. Generally, raising the initial torque is not recommended, except for Drift Kings with a knack for using the accelerator to push themselves around turns. LSD -- ACCELERATION Adjust the effect of the LSD while accelerating. A higher LSD acceleration setting gives you more grip when accelerating, for faster acceleration out of a corner, but a corresponding decrease in grip when decelerating, which can cause a loss of stability while braking. This can be moderated by adjusting the LSD deceleration setting as well. LSD -- DECELERATION Adjust the effect of the LSD while braking. Take the LSD acceleration description and turn it around. A higher LSD deceleration setting gives you more grip when braking, which makes for more comfortable turning when you slow down quickly, but less when accelerating, which you can compensate for by adjusting the LSD acceleration setting. MISCELLANEOUS DOWNFORCE Adjust the downforce. Increasing the overall downforce (by adjusting both front and rear by the same amount) essentially makes the car heavier, this making it more stable at higher speeds. However, this increase in "weight" is to the detriment of top-end performance. If you follow auto racing at all, you'll hear plenty of discussion about drag as it relates to spoiler angles, and this is at the heart of that -- downforce is good for handling and stability but bad for top speed. Meanwhile, changing front or rear downforce individually can affect cornering. Increasing the front downforce alone causes it to oversteer. Increasing the rear downforce causes it to understeer. Thus, more rear downforce can give you a cornering advantage in a tail-happy car, while more front downforce will push you into a turn more effectively if your car would rather stay in a straight line. [Reverend's note: Thanks to those who wrote in to correct this bit in the first rev of the guide.] AYC CONTROLLER Adjust the setting of the Active Yaw Control. The AYC slider determines the effect that a car's Active Yaw Control system has on its performance in turns. A higher setting will assist in pushing your car through the turns, enabling better acceleration in the corners, but if it's turned up too high, the possibility of fishtailing and spinning out becomes significantly greater. Not that many cars have AYC, so you probably won't find yourself adjusting this very often anyway, but as with all professional-level modifications, use caution and remember the initial settings so you can reset them if your performance is seriously degraded. ACTIVE STABILITY MANAGEMENT Adjust the setting of the ASM controller. Some cars have ASM, some don't. This is a system that automatically controls the brake force distribution to all four wheels. In practical applications, it's used to slow the vehicle during cornering and give it strong yaw moment when it gets out of hand in the corners. In GT3, you can set it high to provide more grip in corners, but this comes at a cost in acceleration and handling response. Set it low and you lose some of that stability, but you gain back the responsive steering. TCS CONTROLLER Adjust the setting of the Traction Control System. Traction Control is a catch-all term for a variety of systems that limit power to a wheel that is losing grip on the road. Some use a limited-slip differential, some use automatic braking, some use automatic control of the drivetrain. In all cases, their effect is to increase stability and grip in the corners, albeit at a loss in speed when going flat-out in the straights. The TCS can be a boon to cars that are difficult to handle in the corners, though, so this is an option worth exploring. VARIABLE CENTER DIFF CONTROLLER Adjust the setting of the VCD system. As mentioned above, the Variable Center Differential lets you control the torque split between the front and rear wheels of a 4WD car, making its behavior more like a front- or rear-wheel-drive car. Put it all one way and you have an FF car; all the other and you have an FR car. Adjust it to suit your driving style if you have a 4WD car you particularly want to tinker with, but as always, remember what to set it back to if things go awry. COMPLETE CAR LIST Here we have a complete listing of all the cars that we've found in the game. Most cars come in a variety of colors and there aren't any used ones available here in GT3 like there was in both of the PlayStation Gran Turismo titles. We have been able to completely confirm the existence of 185 different cars in the American version of GT3 but there might be even more. We've separated the cars based on the country that their manufactures can be found in, plus a special section for Fantasy Cars (the F1 based cars that Sony doesn't like people calling F1 cars): -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Japan USA Germany France Italy UK Belgium Australia Fantasy Cars -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- JAPAN Daihatsu Mira TR XX Avanzato R 11,140 Storia X4 13,900 Honda CR-X del Sol SiR 18,730 Civic SiR-II 18,890 Civic Type R 19,980 Integra Type R 25,160 Accord Euro R 25,330 S2000 33,800 S2000 type-v 35,600 NSX type S Zero 98,570 NSX type R 99,570 Castrol Mugen NSX 1,250,000 Mugen S2000 Spoon Sports S2000 Spoon Sports S2000 Race Car Spoon Sports Civic Type R S2000 LM Race Car Arta NSX Raybrig NSX Mazda Demio GL-X 14,660 Miata MX-5 (1989) 16,900 Miata MX-5 (1993) 17,000 Miata MX-5 1.8RS 22,950 Miata MX-5 LS 23,280 Savanna RX-7 Infini III 32,300 RX-7 LM Race Car Mazda Miata VR Limited A RX-7 Type RS 37,780 RX-7 Type RZ 39,980 RX-8 **** 787B **** Mitsubishi FTO GP version R 21,600 Lancer Evolution VII RS 25,180 Lancer Evolution VI RS 25,980 Lancer Evolution IV GSR 29,980 Lancer Evolution VII GSR 29,980 Lancer Evolution V GSR 32,480 Lancer Evolution VI GSR 32,480 Lancer Evolution VI GSR Tommi Makinen Edition 32,780 Lancer Evolution VI GSR Tommi Makinen Edition (stripe) 32,780 3000GT VR-4 Turbo 43,230 3000GT VR-4 43,230 Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car **** Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype **** Mine's Lancer Evolution VI FTO LM Race Car Nissan 240SX Fastback Type X 24,980 240SX K's Aero 23,950 300ZX Twin Turbo 2by2 43,980 300ZX Twin Turbo 2seater 39,900 Calsonic Skyline JGTC C-West Razo Silvia JGTC Loctite Zexel GT-R JGTC Mine's Skyline GT-R N1 V-spec (R34) Nismo 400R Nismo GT-R LM Road Car **** Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune (R32) Nismo GT-R R-tune Pennzoil Nismo GT-R 785,000 R390 GT1 LM Race Car **** R390 GT1 Road Car Silvia K's 1800cc 18,860 Silvia K's 2000cc 20,360 Silvia Spec-R Aero 25,600 Silvia Varietta 27,980 Skyline GT-R V spec (R33) 53,900 Skyline GT-R V spec II (R33) 52,600 Skyline GT-R V-spec (R34) 55,980 Skyline GT-R Vspec II (R32) Skyline GT-R V-spec II (R34) 57,480 Skyline GTS-t Type M (R32) 23,850 Z Concept **** Subaru Legacy B4 RSK 26,430 Impreza Sedan WRX STi Version VI 29,190 Impreza WRX STi Version Impreza Wagon WRX STi Version VI 29,190 Legacy Touring Wagon GT-B 29,300 Impreza Sports Wagon WRX STi 29,980 Legacy Blitzen B4 30,000 Impreza Sedan WRX STi 31,980 Impreza 228 STi Version 50,000 Impreza Rally Car 300,000 Impreza Rally Car Prototype **** Impreza LM Race Car Suzuki Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited 12,220 Escudo Pikes Peak Version 1,000,000 Tommy Kaira ZZ-S 56,800 ZZ II **** Toyota Chaser TOMS X540 Vitz Euro Edition 12,880 Sprinter Trueno GT Apex 13,550 Vitz RS 1.5 14,530 Celica SS-II (new) 19,700 MR-S S Edition 19,800 Lexus IS 20,600 Celica SS-II 21,360 MR2 G-Limited 23,750 Altezza RS200 24,000 MR2 GT-S 27,130 Celica GT-Four 32,660 Supra SZ-R 34,700 Supra RZ 44,800 Corolla Rally Car 300,000 Castrol Tom's Supra 1,250,000 Celica Rally Car **** GT-One Race Car **** Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex S.S. version Denso Sard Supra Celica TRD Sports M Super Autobacs Apex MR-S GT-One Road Car Altezza Race Car UNITED STATES Acura Integra Type R 27,480 3.2 CL Type S 34,230 NSX 94,790 NSX 99,570 RSX Type-S **** Chevrolet Camaro Z28 22,830 Camaro SS 29,530 Corvette Grand Sport 40,010 Corvette Z06 54,000 Corvette CR5 1,000,000 Camaro Race Car Chrysler PT Cruiser 17,980 Dodge Viper GTS 78,680 Viper GTS R Concept **** Viper GTS R Team ORECA 1,000,000 Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R 31,150 Escort Rally Car **** Focus Rally Car 350,000 GT40 Race Car **** GT40 Panoz Esperante GTR-1 2,000,000 Shelby Cobra 500,000 GERMANY Audi S4 39,730 TT 1.8 T Quattro 46,580 >BMW 328 ci 50,690 Mercedes-Benz SLK 230 Kompressor 55,310 CLK 55 93,110 CL 600 133,950 CLK Touring Car **** Opel Speedster 38,390 Calibra Touring Car **** Astra Touring Car **** RUF 3400 S 76,740 RGT 160,000 CTR2 382,000 Volkswagen New Beetle 2.0 15,930 New Beetle Rsi 70,000 Lupo Cup Car **** New Beetle Cup Car **** FRANCE Citroen Xsara Rally Car 350,000 Peugeot 206 S16 23,360 206 Rally Car 350,000 Renault Clio Sport V6 24V 43,400 Clio Sport Race Car 300,000 ITALY Alfa Romeo 156 2.5 V6 24V 38,910 Fiat Coupe Turbo Plus 21,030 Lancia Delta HF Integrale Rally Car 500,000 Pagani Zonda C12 275,010 Zonda S 352,440 Zonda Race Car UNITED KINGDOM Aston Martin DB7 Vantage Coupe 154,720 Vanquish **** V8 Vantage 455,000 Jaguar XKR Coupe 104,890 XJ220 Road Car 780,000 XJ200 Race Car Lister Storm V12 Race Car 1,198,000 Lotus Elise 190 58,530 Esprit V8-SE 106,000 Esprit Sport 350 113,540 Motor Sport Elise 100,000 Mini Cooper 1.3i TVR Griffith 500 62,410 Tuscan Speed Six 80,780 Speed 12 **** BELGIUM Gillet Vertigo Race Car 1,200,000 AUSTRALIA Tickford Falcon XR8 Race Car 1,500,000 FANTASY CARS F090/S F686/M F094/H F094/S F688/S F687/S PRIZE CARS There's no doubt in our minds that the prize cars you can win in GT3 is one of the game's strongest aspects. You're given a after getting all gold medals in every single Gran Turismo Mode event, with single race and rally events providing a single prize car that can't be won more than once and the championship race and endurance races giving up one of four random cars. GETTING THE PRIZE CAR YOU WANT Save your game before the last race in a championship series that you have at LEAST an 11-point lead over the second place opponent. Start the final race and quit out of it. Since you had an 11-point lead over the closest opponent, you'll still win the race series and get the bonus car. If the prize car you're awarded is the one you want, then keep it and move on. If it's not the car you want, then go back and Load your save game from before the last race and repeat the process until you get the prize car that you were hoping for. MULTIPLE PRIZE CARS FROM ONE RACE To do this trick, you're going to need a LOT of money and two PS2 memory cards. Save your game on MEMORY CARD #1 before the last race in a championship series that you have at LEAST an 11-point lead over the car in second place. Start the final race and quit out of it. Since you had an 11-point lead over the closest opponent, you'll still win the race series and get the bonus car. Once you are rewarded your bonus car, save your game onto MEMORY CARD #2. Load your game off of MEMORY CARD #1, then once again start the final race and quit out of it to finish the series. If you get the same prize car as before, exit out of the series and load your save from MEMORY CARD #1 again. If you get a different prize car, then head to the next step. Now, you must go to the Trade section in your Home and Load Garage Data from MEMORY CARD #2. Buy the first prize car that you won. You'll now have both prize cars in your current Garage. Save this data onto MEMORY CARD #2. Load the save data from MEMORY CARD #1 and repeat the above process to get the third prize car. Buy the first two prize cars from the MEMORY CARD #2 saved game, and then save the Garage with all three cars onto MEMORY CARD #2 again. Load the saved data from MEMORY CARD #1 and quit out of the race again to get the prize car. Keep doing this until you get the fourth and final random prize car. Once you get it, simply buy the three previous cars from MEMORY CARD #2. TIP: You should make sure that the fourth prize car that you get is the most expensive of the three because it's the one you will NOT have to pay for. Buy the three lowest priced prize cars and just win the most expensive one. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- BEGINNER LEAGUE Sunday Cup -- Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex (AE-86 Type I) Clubman Cup -- Mazda MX-5 Miata FF Challenge -- Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 FR Challenge -- Nissan Silvia K's 1800cc MR Challenge -- Toyota MR-S S Edition 4WD Challenge -- Suzuki Alto Works Suzuki Sports Limited Lightweight K Cup -- Mini Cooper 1.3i Stars and Stripes Grand Championship -- Chevrolet Camaro SS Spider/Roadster Cup -- Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS 80's Sports Car Cup -- Mazda Savanna RX7 Infini III NA Race of NA Sports -- Honda CRX Del Sol SiR Turbo Race of Turbo Sports -- Daihatsu Mira TR XX Avanzato R Tourist Trophy Audi TT Race -- Audi TT 1.8T Quattro Legend of Silver Arrow Mercedes Benz -- Mercedes SLK 230 Kompressor Altezza Race -- Toyota Celica SS-II (New), Toyota Celica SS-II, Toyota Celica SS-II, Toyota Celica SS-II Vitz Race -- Toyota Vitz RS 1.5, Toyota Vitz RS 1.5, Toyota Vitz RS 1.5, Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 Type R Meeting -- Acura RSX Type-S, Acura RSX Type-S, Acura RSX Type-S, Acura RSX Type-S Evolution Meeting -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR Beetle Cup -- Volkswagen New Beetle RSi, Volkswagen New Beetle RSi, Volkswagen New Beetle RSi, Volkswagen New Beetle RSi Grand Turismo World Championship -- Toyota Celica GT-Four, Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI GSR, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Nissan Skyline GTR Vspec II (R32) Get all Golds -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution V GSR AMATEUR LEAGUE Japanese Championship -- Mazda RX-7 Type RZ, Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IV GSR, Mitsubishi FTO GP Version R, Subaru Impreza WRX STi Version VI Wagon American Championship -- Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi Version VI, Chevrolet Camaro Race Car, Audi TT 1.8T Quattro, Mazda RX7 Type RS European Championship -- Lotus Elise 190, Nissan GTR V-Spec, Gillet Vertigo Race Car, Mini Cooper 1.3i Gran Turismo World Championship -- Nissan C-West Razo Silvia, Nissan Z Concept car, Toyota GT-One Road Car, Mazda RX8 German Touring Car Challenge -- Volkswagen Lupo Cup Car, Volkswagen New Beetle Cup Car, Opel Astra Touring Car, RUF 3400S FF Challenge -- Celica TRD Sports M FR Challenge -- Toyota Sprinter Trueno GT-Apex Shigeno Version MR Challenge -- Honda NSX Type S Zero 4WD Challenge -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII GSR Stars & Stripes Grand Championship -- Spoon Sports S2000 Race Car Boxer Spirit -- Subaru Legacy B4 Blitzen 80s Sports Car Cup -- Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune NA Race of NA Sports -- Mazda RX8 Turbo - Race of Turbo Sports -- Mines Lancer Evolution VI GSR Gran Turismo All-Stars -- Mine's GT-R-N1 V-spec, Raybrig NSX, Ford GT40, Nismo GT-R R-Tune All Japanese GT Championship -- Arta NSX, Denso Supra Race Car, Calsonic Skyline, Loctite Zexel GT-R Tourist Trophy -- Audi S4, Audi S4, Audi S4, Audi S4 Race of Red Emblem -- Nismo 400R Legend of Silver Arrow -- Mercedes Benz CLK Touring Car (D2 AMG Mercedes) Altezza Championship Race -- Tom's X540 Chaser, Toyota Altezza LM Race Car, Toyota Vitz RS 1.5, Toyota Vitz RS 1.5 Type R Meeting -- Honda NSX Type-R, Spoon Sports S2000, Mugen S2000, Honda S2000 Evolution Meeting -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car Dream Car Championship -- Mitsubishi FTO LM Race Car, Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car, Honda S2000 LM Race Car, Subaru Impreza LM Race Car Get all Golds -- Dodge Viper GTS-R Team Oreca PROFESSIONAL LEAGUE British GT Car Cup -- Aston Martin Vanquish Gran Turismo World Championship -- Ford GT40 Race Car, Opel Calibra Touring Car, Nissan R390 GT1 Road Car, Jaguar XJ220 Race Car FF Challenge -- Spoon Sports Civic Type R FR Challenge -- Nismo GT-R LM Road Car MR Challenge -- Tommy Kaira ZZII 4WD Challenge -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype Spider & Roadster Championship -- Shelby Cobra Boxer Spirit -- RUF RGT NA - Race of NA Sports -- Pagani Zonda C12S Turbo - Race of Turbo Sports -- RUF CTR 2 Gran Turismo All Stars -- Nissan R390 GT1 LM Race Car, Dodge Viper GTS-R Concept, Toyota GT-One Race Car, Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi All Japan GT Championship -- Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune, Castrol Mugen NSX, Toyota MR- S Autobacs Apex, Pagani Zonda Race Car Italian Avant Garde -- Pagani Zonda Race Car Race of Red Emblem -- Calsonic Skyline Vitz Race -- Toyota Vitz RS 1.5, Toyota Altezza LM Race Car, Tom's Castrol Supra, Toyota Supra RZ Elise Trophy -- Lotus Elise 190, Lotus Elise 190, Lotus Elise 190, Lotus Elise 190 Clio Trophy -- Volkswagen Beetle Cup Racer, Volkswagen Beetle Cup Racer, Volkswagen Beetle Cup Racer, Volkswagen Beetle Cup Racer TVR Tuscan Challenge -- TVR Speed 12, TVR Griffith 500, TVR Griffith 500, TVR Griffith 500 Dream Car Championship -- Toyota GT-One Race Car, Panoz Esperante GTR, FTO LM Race Car, F090/S Polyphony Digital Cup -- Suzuki Escudo Pike's Peak Edition, F094/S, Toyota GT-One Race Car, TVR Speed 12 Like the Wind -- Mazda 787B Formula GT Championship Race -- F686/M, F687/S, F688/S, F090/S Get all Golds -- F686/M RALLY Rally Challenge -- Toyota Celica Rally Car Tahiti Maze -- Ford Escort Rally Car Smokey Mountain Rally -- Ford Focus Rally Car Rally of Alps -- Peugeot 206 Rally Car Rally Challenge II -- Toyota Corolla Rally Car Tahiti Maze II -- Subaru Impreza Rally Car Smokey Mountain II -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VI Rally Car Rally of Alps II -- Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution VII Rally Car Prototype Super Special Route 5 (Wet) -- Citroen Xsara Rally Car Super Special Stage 5 (Wet II) -- Subaru Impreza Rally Car Prototype Get all Golds -- Suzuki Escudo Pikes Peak Version ENDURANCE Grand Valley 300 -- F090/S, Subaru Impreza LM Edition, Nissan 390 GT1 Road Car, Spoon Sports S2000 Race Car Seattle 100 Miles -- F687/S, Nismo GT-R LM Road Car, Panoz Esperante GTR-1, Tommy Kaira ZZ II Laguna Seca 200 Endurance -- Calsonic Skyline, F686/M, F687/S, Toyota Altezza LM Race Car Passage to Colosseo -- Gillet Vertigo Race Car, Lancia Delta HF integrale Rally Car, F688/S, Pagani Zonda Race Car Trial Mountain Endurance -- F094/H, Lister Storm V12 Race Car, Mine's Skyline GT-R N1 V-spec, Honda S2000 LM Race Car Special Stage Route 11 -- Toyota MR-S Autobacs Apex, Arta NSX, F687/S, Nissan C-West Razo Silvia Roadster Endurance -- F688/S, Mazda MX-5 Miata, Mazda MX-5 Miata 1.8 RS, Mazda Miata VR Limited A Tokyo Route 246 -- F094/H, Mazda RX7 LM Race Car, Nissan C-West Razo Silvia, Toyota GT-One Road Car Mistral 78 Laps -- F686/M, Mitsubishi FTO LM Race Car, Jaguar XJ220 Road Car, Pagani Zonda Race Car Super Speedway 150 Miles -- Chevrolet Corvette C5R, Tickford Falcon XR8 Race Car, F090/S, Clio Sport Race Car Get all Golds -- F094/H LICENSE TESTS All Golds on B License -- Mazda MX-5 Miata LS All Golds on A License -- Mazda RX8 All Golds on IB License -- Nissan Z Concept Car All Golds on IA License -- Aston Martin Vanquish All Golds on S License -- Dodge Viper GTSR Concept Car All Golds on Rally License -- Subaru Impreza Rally Car Prototype MISCELLANEOUS 50% Complete -- Chevrolet Corvette C5R 75% Complete -- Mazda 787B 100% Complete -- F094/S All Races in Gran Turismo Mode -- F688/S Complete Time Attack Mode -- Panoz Esperante GTR-1 THE TRACKS In Gran Turismo 3 A-spec you will find 19 completely different tracks, with Special Stage Route 5 having a wet road version bringing the total up to 20. And of these 20 tracks, 16 offer a reversed version, thus the grand total of tracks in the game can be considered 36, depending on what your personal definition of a different track is. While you'll only encounter 34 of them in the Simulation Mode, as you can't race on Complex String, you have access to all 36 in the Free Run section of the Arcade Mode. This section of the strategy guide is here to provide you with a general look at the tracks, as well as some basic strategy to use when racing on them and more detailed tips on taking each track's key turns. Apricot Hill Raceway Total Length: 2.402 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Complex String Total Length: 6.981 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Cote d'Azur Total Length: 2.090 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: No -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Deep Forest Total Length: 2.222 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Grand Valley Speedway Total Length: 3.121 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Laguna Seca Raceway Total Length: 2.276 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: No -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mid-Field Raceway Total Length: 2.235 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rome Circuit Total Length: 2.459 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Seattle Circuit Total Length: 2.400 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Smokey Mountain Total Length: 2.223 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Dirt Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Stage Route 11 Total Length: 2.834 miles Condition: Night / Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Stage Route 5 Total Length: 2.350 miles Condition: Night / Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Stage Route 5 Wet Total Length: 2.350 miles Condition: Night / Wet Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Super Speedway Total Length: 1.494 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: No -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Swiss Alps Total Length: 2.044 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Dirt Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tahiti Circuit Total Length: 2.313 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Dirt Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tahiti Maze Total Length: 2.209 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Dirt Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Test Course Total Length: 6.426 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: No -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tokyo R246 Total Length: 3.182 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Trial Mountain Total Length: 2.437 miles Condition: Dry Surface: Tarmac Reverse Available: Yes -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- APPENDIX Acura Homepage: www.acura.com Honda's American prestige brand has a sportier side than its rivals Lexus and Infiniti, with its best-known models being the Integra coupe and the semi-exotic NSX. GT3 has the honor of hosting both those and the new RSX, the coupe that will replace the Integra with the coming of the new model year. Standout models: The RSX is more of a curiosity than a serious racer, but the Integra Type R is as good as its reputation for FF races. The racing NSX models, such as the JGTC Raybrig NSX, are a little more difficult to drive than some of their competition, but their MR handling can reward practice with very fast cornering. Alfa Romeo Homepage: www.alfaromeo.com Like Fiat, this name is actually an interesting acronym: Alfa stands for "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." "Romeo," however, just means "Romeo," that being the last name of founder Nicola Romeo. The argent, a serpent ondoyant in pale azure, crowned with a ducal crown or and vorant a child gules, as well as those nifty five- circle Alfa rims, appears on only one car in GT3, the V6 version of the new 156 coupe. This is not a car with a lot of go for its class -- it'll be handily beaten by the Integra or the Fiat Coupe -- but the Alfa name and styling have an undeniable cachet. Aston Martin Homepage: www.astonmartin.com Aston Martin has a brilliant history as one of England's most respected luxury automotive manufacturers, but to be brutally frank, in GT3 terms these cars are and always will be slugs. Too heavy and too slow, no matter how much V8 power is stuffed under the hood -- you can't appreciate a beautifully-appointed interior in this game, after all. Standout models: The big surprise here is the V12 Vanquish, which is notable on account of you can't actually drive one in real life yet. Thus, GT3's the perfect chance for a test drive. Audi Homepage: www.audi.com German automaker Audi produced some of the greatest driver's cars of the 80s -- the 4WD Quattro served as the inspiration for the Subaru Impreza. Nowadays, it has not yet managed to recapture that magic, although the S4 is a pretty decent go at it, and the TT coupe is nothing if not a head-turner. Standout models: The S4 is an interesting drive, but the beastly RS4 variant would have been more fun (it tacks on about 100 extra horsepower). The TT inspires very mixed opinions, regarding both its styling and its performance, but the fact of the matter is that you're going to have to learn to drive one at some point for the Tourist Trophy races. BMW Homepage: www.bmw.com BMW's showing in GT3 is a bit of a head-scratcher. If its reputation, as the ad taglines put it, is to be built around the Ultimate Driving Machine, why is it that all they'll let you drive in this game is the 328ci coupe, favored ride of nouveau- riche jackasses the world over? Presumably rides like the M series and the Z8 are locked up in other license agreements or beyond the reach of SCE's pocketbook, but if so, why did they even bother shelling out for the BMW name in the first place? Chevrolet Homepage: www.chevrolet.com Chevrolet gets no respect outside the United States, and it certainly has its foes in the homeland as well, but the Corvette and Camaro do represent many years of racing heritage, checkered though the company's reliability record may be. Furthermore, it looks as if the Corvette might be undergoing a bit of a rehabilitation as far as its international reputation -- its designers have recently put some admirable work into bringing its handling up to snuff. Standout models: The Camaro is still the red-headed stepchild of the brand, with plenty of cheap power but very little in the way of class or finesse. The new Corvette Z06, however, is a far better drive than you might expect of the model or Chevy as a brand. For something with as much FR power as it has, it has remarkably forgiving handling. The C5R racer is a bit more along the lines of what you'd expect, though -- it's maniacally fast in the straights, but it's a drag car in the corners, and it has a tendency to burn tires a bit faster than is convenient. Chrysler Homepage: www.chryslercars.com There is no Chrysler -- now, there is only the hideous shambling conjoint-twin beast that is DaimlerChrysler. The company has one claim to fame as far as even vaguely track-suited cars are concerned, and it is included in GT3: the PT Cruiser. Which is actually not a bad choice for a starting-out car, since you can now afford it from the beginning in the American version. Silly though it may look, it's not half as ugly as the Sprinter Trueno (well, depending on your taste, anyway), and it can actually make a pretty respectable showing in the earliest races. Citroen Homepage: www.citroen.com France's down-home automaker, known outside Europe mainly for the extremely cheap, extremely fragile, and extremely charming 2CV city car, is quietly becoming a force in the World Rally Championship these days. The new Citroen team is getting off to a slow start as far as its frequency of race entries, but when the new Xsara does hit the special stages, it generally posts some impressive times, at least when mechanical difficulties don't intrude. That car, which is the one Citroen entry in GT3, may not have the big-name credibility of the Lancer or Impreza, but it's a nice quirky choice for rally enthusiasts. Daihatsu Homepage: www.ingway.co.jp/~daihatsu Why is this make here? The Gran Turismo mini-car ranks have thinned to the point where all that is left is the Mini Cooper, the Suzuki Alto Works, the Toyota Vitz, the Mazda Demio, and the Daihatsu Mira and Storia. Of the lot, only the Vitz offers any reason to race it. So why Daihatsu, when its only contributions are a dying class, and the modeling time could have been spent on an actually cool K-car? That these are here and the Honda Beat is not is frankly criminal... Dodge Homepage: www.4adodge.com Chrysler's more successful brand is here for one reason and one reason only: the Viper, beloved of GT fans throughout the life of the series. GT3 gives you all the Viper you can handle, with the current GTS, the 2003 GTS-R concept, and the Team Oreca racer. The concept Viper is a bit of a surprise, with unusually good handling containing its brute power -- good luck finding it, though. Fiat Homepage: www.fiat.com It stands for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino -- betcha can't say that three times fast. Like the rest of the venerable Italian brands in GT3, it fields only one entry, the sporty Coupe Turbo Plus. This is definitely not a car to count out in its class, though, since its stock 223ps will beat the Integra Type R. Ford Homepage: www.ford.com Is it First On Race Day, or Fails On Race Day? To toss in a third option, my late grandfather's preferred interpretation was Fix Or Repair Daily. But anyway, enough with the cheap shots. Though Americans generally associate FoMoCo only with NASCAR competition (that being the only breed of racing this country seems to know exists), it actually has a history of success across the whole spectrum of motor racing, and GT3 represents this very well. Standout models: Ignore the SVT "Cobra" R -- it's fast, but wretchedly tail-happy. The Escort and Focus are both durable rally competitors, the Escort having been a WRC presence for decades now, and the GT40 can still hang in the class it dominated 30 years ago. Produced by Lee Iacocca's marketing schemes and Carroll Shelby's race know-how, the GT40 was the crowning achievement of Ford's racing efforts in the 60s - - it finished 1-2-3 at Le Mans, Daytona, and Sebring in 1966, and continued to be a force in competition for the rest of the decade. Gillet Homepage: www.gilletvertigo.com There's only one, the ridiculously powerful and bizarrely styled Vertigo race car. Probably the fastest thing to ever come out of Belgium (and don't ask "Why Belgium?" because we don't know). Where this car shines is acceleration, the stock version's 3.2 second 0-60 time being a world record. It will be beaten on the straights by more highly-tuned racers, but the funky lines make this a great individualist's car. Honda Homepage: www.honda.com GT3 is the first game in the series to divide up Honda and Acura in both the Japanese and American versions. Strangely enough, though, some models appear both places -- you'll still find the NSX under Honda. Whatever...in any event, the choice of rice-boys everywhere is as solid a make as it has been in Gran Turismos past, running the gamut from sporty coupes to all-out JGTC power. Standout models: Under the Honda badge, there are two cars to pay attention to -- the Civic Type R and the S2000. The Civic, of course, is the ride every import tuner wishes he could drive. Pity it's not available in the states. The S2000, meanwhile, is terribly fun to drive, especially given the accompaniment of its 9000 rpm at peak, and while the stock model's handling pales in comparison to a few, see if you can't find the GT-livery racing S2000. It's one of the most entertaining race models in the game. Jaguar Homepage: www.jaguarcars.com Gran Turismo offers a unique opportunity to the Jaguar enthusiast. You can drive one of England's most beloved luxury cars while resting secure in the knowledge that the electrical system will not go tits-up on you at any given moment. Lancia Homepage: www.lancia.com Lancia has been making automobiles in Italy for nearly a hundred years, and has been a competitor in rally events for more than half that time. Today, its competitor is the Delta HF Integrale, which is the one representative of the brand in GT3. It is not cheap, nor does it have the smooth lines of most of the other WRC cars, and it certainly doesn't have the Lancia Stratos' exotic appeal, but is a surprisingly strong competitor on the dirt tracks. Lister Homepage: www.listercars.co.uk Lister is a racing company first and foremost, having run cars with a variety of power and other sponsors for decades now. Appropriately, it's a racer that takes point for the marque in GT3, the street-legal Storm V12 having been left behind in GT2. To be precise, the Lister Storm featured in the game is the green and yellow GT2 version, which has met considerable success in GT racing worldwide. Lotus Homepage: www.lotuscars.co.uk Colin Chapman's garage tuning company eventually became one of the world's most respected sports brands and the winningest Formula 1 team in history (although either Ferrari or McLaren should eclipse the record in a few seasons). Lotus fell on hard times after Chapman's death, but the development of the Elise in the mid-90s heralded a renaissance for the company and the concept of the hardcore sports car. Standout models: The Elise is available in both Sport 190 and Motorsport editions, but the Motorsport version is the one you want to drive unless you absolutely can't stand the extra styling gimmicks. It's upgraded with better suspension and aerodynamics, and you can tune it to a higher level of performance. A fully-tuned Motorsport Elise is what you need for the Elise Trophy, and it's not a bad entry in the MR championships. All around, this is one of the sharpest driver's cars in the game and the real world, a supremely nimble sports car that makes up in finesse what it lacks in power. Meanwhile, the Esprit Sport 350 model is one of the biggest sleepers in the game. In GT2, you couldn't tune it into a serious competitor, but now an aftermarket turbo will kick it up over 1000ps. The result is a car with ridiculous performance and some of the quickest handling in the MR supercar ranks. Mazda Homepage: www.mazda.com Mazda is currently trying to pull itself out of a bit of a sink, with the gradual degradation of its brand image leaving it somewhat adrift in the market these days. The Miata/Roadster is of course a big hit worldwide, but the RX-7 is well behind the pack among sporting enthusiasts. Thus, the impending arrival of cars like the RX-8 and the Mazda Performance Series (a pair of sporting concepts based on the 323 and 626, likely due out in time to appear in the next GT game). Standout models: The RX-8 is of course the fun model to test drive, and the structure of the prize-car system early on will probably put you behind the wheel of a Miata once or twice, but for a real competitive edge, you need to look to the race- car ranks. The 787B won at Le Mans for good reason. It may very well be the best car in its class in GT3, with better acceleration and cornering than other high-powered prototypes like the Nissan R390 and the Toyota GT-One. A great choice for the upper echelon of races. Mercedes Homepage: www.mercedes-benz.com Neither of the big German marques has a very impressive showing in GT3, but the Silver Arrow fares better than the blue propellor. The SLK230 is a fun little roadster, the CL600 is entertaining in a thuggish sort of way, and the CLK DTM racer is as sturdy a competitor as the other fast touring cars. Slide a copy of "Seminar" into the CD changer and enjoy the waft. Mine's Homepage: www.mines-wave.com Mine's is a Japanese aftermarket tuning company that takes stock sportscars and turns them into absurdly powerful turbocharged monsters. Two of its models appear in GT3, a Lancer Evo and a Nissan Skyline. Both of these are to be respected more for their looks than their performance, though, since you can take a stock version of either car and tune it into something much more powerful than the Mine's editions. Drive them for fun, but not necessarily to win. Mini Homepage: www.mini.com The Mini is dead, long live the Mini. The above web link does not actually go to a site dedicated to the classic Mini, but to the home of BMW's forthcoming new Mini. The original Mini, designed by Alec Issigonis and produced by Rover for round about 40 years, has finally gone out of production, BMW having taken the brand name as the one souvenir of its brief association with Rover. GT3, then, in an odd sort of way, stands as one monument among many to a classic automotive design. Yes, it won't win you many races, even in the comparatively sporty Mini Cooper trim, but it's one of the most darling cars ever made. Mitsubishi Homepage: www.mitsubishi-motors.co.jp Mitsubishi Heavy Industry is one of the world's largest manufacturing combines, with its three-diamond logo appearing on everything from cars to computer parts. In auto racing, it's best known for the mighty Lancer Evo, which is currently a dominating force in the World Rally Championship in the hands of driver Tommi Makinen. The Evo, currently on its seventh iteration (IV through VII appear in GT3), is respected worldwide as a true 4WD supercar -- well, "worldwide" in that case refers to "everywhere but the US," since you can't buy one over here. Standout models: There's the Evo, and then there's everything else. GT3 producer Kazunori Yamauchi drives one, so why shouldn't you? The FTO is a decent FF sports car, but the Integra Type R is probably a better choice there, and while the 3000GT has characteristics similar to the mighty Nissan Skyline, it's heavier and less responsive. Take advantage of the chance to test-drive the brand-new Evo VII instead. Nissan Homepage: www.nissan.co.jp The link given is to the Japanese Nissan page, because it's Japan that gets all of the Nissan models worth driving. The Z is beloved, but well past its prime, and the SX is a pale imitation of the beast to which it's meant to represent the alternative. As we all know, there's only one Nissan worth driving. Standout models: The Skyline, described by CAR magazine as "the car every PlayStation addict wants in real life." It is available in many trim lines and no less than three racing versions in GT3, and they are all brilliantly powerful cars to drive. The Skyline's presence is so strong that it nearly eclipses the R390 Le Mans winner, which is a strong competitor against the likes of the Mazda 787B and the Toyota GT-One. Opel Homepage: www.opel.com To explain, Opel is the Continental arm of General Motors, just as Vauxhall is its British extension. Its catalog differs substantially from the one you'd see at a GM dealership in the states, though, and in the opinion of most Europeans it differs substantially for the better. Standout models: The Opel touring cars have the same rough-and-ready speed and handling as most of the other cars in their class, but the real sleeper in these ranks is the Opel Speedster, the European version of the new Vauxhall VX220 (if you look VERY closely at the jumble of logos in the Japanese intro movie, the VX220 badge is there, though it never appears in the actual game). It's designed somewhat like the Lotus Elise, and happens to be built in Lotus' factory, but it's got more power and arguably more friendly handling. Definitely a car to try out, especially for MR races. Pagani Homepage: www.modena-design.it/pagani.htm Pagani was founded by an ex-Lamborghini designer, Horacio Pagani, who sought to build his own mid-engined supercar with Mercedes power in memory of legendary race driver Juan Miguel Fangio. The result is pretty special: 500 horsepower from a Mercedes/AMG V12 and a 0-60 time scraping the 4-second mark. Standout models: Both the C12 and C12 S versions of the Zonda don't differ significantly -- the S variant just has a bit more horsepower. The Zonda worth driving is the gorgeous racing edition, which handles better, offers more tuning options, and has a cute little Michelin Man decal on the right rear quarter. Panoz Homepage: www.panozauto.com "Panoz" sounds a trifle Italian, but founder Daniel Panoz was born in Ireland and set up his car company in Atlanta. The company's first model, the Roadster, was a lightweight sports car cast from a Lotus 7 sort of mold. It's since become better known for more practical cars like the Esperante Roadster, as well as unusual success (for a small American company) in GT racing. Standout models: Panoz enters only one car, the Esperante GTR-1. This Batmobile lookalike is one of the more successful American-made GT cars in recent years, and particularly notable because it's one of the only cars in its class to use a front- mounted engine. It sits rather back in the pack compared to some of the Japanese prototype cars, but it's one of those cars that endears with its distinctive appearance and performance. Peugeot Homepage: www.peugeot.com Peugeot got its start in steam-powered cars in the late 19th century. It has, of course, come a long way since then, forming a powerful alliance with Citroen to become the PSA Group. It's also become a World Rally Championship competitor of late -- as Citroen is now with its dark-horse Xsara, so Peugeot was just a season or so back with its 206 rally car. It's smaller than the Evo or Impreza, handling more like Toyota's Corolla racer, making it extremely nimble when sliding around the turns. Definitely high on the list for rally racers. Renault Homepage: www.renault.com Renault is a name normally associated with staid, Christian Democratic French transport, but in fact the company is a quietly powerful racing force. Renault engines have won the majority of Formula One championships in the last ten years or so, and the company is ready to field its own full-fledged F1 team next season. GT3 shows off the company's racing chops remarkably well: the sporting versions of the Clio hatchback are supremely fast despite their small size. The V6 Clio is the king of the hot hatch ranks, and the race-tuned Clio is one of the best racers in the game, pound for pound. RUF Homepage: http://www.ruf-automobile.de Alois Ruf Sr. founded his company as a service garage in 1939, and over the next couple of decades made some small fame modifying Volkswagen Beetles and other cars for superior efficiency. Alois Ruf Jr. succeeded his father in the mid-70s, and took the same basic idea in a rather different direction, eventually setting a world speed record for a street-legal car with the original RUF CTR Yellow Bird. RUF creates Porsche-derived supercars of mind-boggling performance, all of which are excellent entries on the GT3 track. Standout models: All of the RUFs go like hell and handle surprisingly well for that, although things will still get a little squirrely if you tune them to their four- figure horsepower maximums. The most distinctive of the lot is the Boxster-derived 3400S, which is a very neat-handling MR car, but for raw power nothing beats the CTR 2 -- its 4WD drivetrain makes it more friendly (relatively speaking) than the RWD RGT. Shelby Homepage: www.shelbyamerican.com Carroll Shelby started out life as a chicken farmer, a rather humble beginning for a man who would eventually co-drive a Le Mans winner, design a world-champion GT car, and become one of the few people in history who could get away with saying "Ferrari's ass is mine!" He's since settled down to working on the occasional aftermarket-modified car, contributing to the development of the Dodge Viper, and marketing the limited-run Shelby Series 1 sports car. Standout models: With the legendary GT350 out of the game, all that is left is the original AC/Ford hybrid Shelby Cobra. Its short wheelbase compensates somewhat for the massive amount of power heading for its rear wheels, but this is still a tough car to control, especially when highly tuned. The nostalgic should enjoy driving it to success in FR or NA championships. Spoon Homepage: spoonsports.co.jp Spoon Sports falls into the same category as Mine's, an aftermarket parts outfit that occasionally turns out a sporting version of a popular road car. Their efforts are concentrated on modified Hondas, all marked by the company's trademark carbon- fiber bonnet. Standout models: The question is, do you drive a stock Civic or Integra Type R, or do you go for the Spoon model and suffer the iniquitously ugly rims and hood for the sake of the slightly improved handling and extra 20-odd horsepower? Particularly considering you can tune that lovely Integra to well beyond the Spoon's limits? And we won't even speak of the Spoon S2000... Subaru Homepage: www.subaru.com In ten years of the 90s, Subaru evolved from a second-line Japanese specialty manufacturer to the producer of some of the world's finest practical fast cars. Patterned after the famous Audi Quattro of the late 80s, the turbocharged Impreza won the hearts of motoring enthusiasts and more than one World Rally Championship, with the aid of racing company Prodrive and driver Colin McRae (heard of him, have you?). This year, Subaru's made the first attempt to change the familiar, if slightly dull styling of the Impreza, and GT3 gives you the chance to drive the new and old versions in both STi-tuned street trim and WRC blue and gold. Standout models: Well, it is naturally all about the Impreza. The Legacy models are fun in a Stage-4-turbo-station-wagon sort of way, but it's the shorter sedan that properly gets down to business. The new version of the Impreza has very similar power to the old one, but its driving dynamics have improved as advertised. Try both to see what you think, and be sure to come up with some kind of smart remark about the new headlights -- everyone else in the world has. Suzuki Homepage: www.suzukiauto.com Gran Turismo presents a very unfamiliar view of Suzuki. In the mass culture of the United States, the company is still remembered for the brief Samurai fad, and its accompanying rollover scandals, hideous breaches of taste in customizing, et cetera. In GT, it fields one of the weakest cars in the game (the Alto Works K-car), and the unquestionably fastest, the ridiculous Escudo hillclimb car. Standout models: When you absolutely don't want to actually have to drive a race, you pick the Escudo. It can now take a Stage 4 turbo to boot it up near something like 1800 horsepower, which is more than enough to let you ride the walls all the way through the Super Speedway endurance race. It has no style, no elan, no respect whatsoever, but it certainly gets the job done. Tickford Homepage: http://www.fordtickfordracing.com Tickford is an Australian firm that began life in the early 18th century, building horse-drawn coaches. It's now an Australian division of Ford, although it produces cars unique to itself, particularly the V8 Falcon. It's the Falcon that represents the company in GT3, in the race-tuned form that competes in the Australian touring- car series. The Falcon XR8 is a surprisingly powerful competitor, and a much better handler than the superficially similar Corvette CR5. 620bhp is nothing to sneeze at, and it's extremely stable in the turns. Tommykaira Homepage: www.tommykaira.com Properly speaking it should be "Tommy Kaira," but we'll respect his desire for quirkiness. Tommy kaira is a small Japanese manufacturer of limited-run sportscars with Toyota power. They're built rather on the Lotus Elise model, emphasizing light weight over brawny engines. Standout models: The ZZ-S is a fun sports car, but the real thrills can be found behind the wheel of the ZZ-II, which is a brute for all its tiny coupe size. 550ps and 4WD make for a car that can hang with the RUFs while delivering Lotus-like handling. Toyota Homepage: www.toyota.com Of the Japanese big six, Toyota is at the forefront, it and Honda being the only major Japanese automakers who haven't had to seek an alliance with foreign firms to survive the turbulent auto industry of the last several years. It's arguable that it fields the largest variety of models in GT3, from hatches all the way up to Le Mans prototypes. Regardless of what sort of car you want to race, there is probably a Toyota for you. Standout models: Plenty. Your first car will probably be a Toyota, actually -- the Sprinter Trueno, ugly bastard though it may be, is cheap enough to buy right off and it'll easily burn the Sunday Cup competition. Beyond that, what to choose...The Vitz you'll have to race at some point, since there's a Vitz-specific race series. Pity, because it's pretty rotten as hatches go. In the racing ranks, many of Toyota's entries stand a slight second-best. The GT-One will be beaten by the 787B, and the Tom's Supra GT is a difficult drive in comparison to other JGTC rides. The Celica rally car is a definite sleeper, though, as is the street GT-Four. You can tune a Celica up to Lancer or Impreza levels of power, and its 4WD handling is dynamite. TVR Homepage: www.tvr-eng.co.uk Trevor Wilkinson got started in car design with a modified Alvis Firebird in the late 40s, but the company that bears his name (TreVoR, get it?) was soon something much bigger. Since the 50s, TVR has stubbornly plowed its own route, selling some of the most inexpensive power on four wheels that can be had anywhere in the world. The average modern TVR will match or beat a Ferrari for about a third of the price. The flip side is that a TVR places the vast majority of the responsibility for controlling that power in the driver's hands -- no traction control, stability management, or even anti-lock brakes have ever found their way into a production TVR. Standout models: There really isn't one. TVRs are all variations on the same theme -- light weight, huge engine, minimal assistance, hold on tight. The Speed 12 is driven by the same philosophy as the Griffith, it just takes the idea a little bit further. That said, the Speed 12 is essentially a novelty, not something you can drive very effectively off the test track. The Griffith is the best of the TVRs for actual driving, but you'll naturally need to master the Tuscan for its model- specific race series. Volkswagen Homepage: www.vw.com Ferdinand Porsche's "people's car," a term which came to define the entire manufacturer that produced it, is of course the centerpiece of VW's showing in GT3. It comes in three flavors: stock, RSi, and "cup car," the latter being a race-tuned version for Beetle-specific race series. The one that puts the most power to the ground is the turbo V6 RSi, though, which is downright mad for a Beetle, particularly considering that you can tune it up to ridiculous heights of power. It's arguable, though, that VW's most charming entry isn't a Beetle at all -- the Euro-only Lupo cup car has some of the cutest styling in the world today. THE END