[rant]The official website once told us also that the game would be release on November the 2nd
[/rant] (just kidding...)
I think I know what you mean but you cannot disassociate one thing (physical damage) from the other (mechanical damage), when a game has them both incorporated (as it is supposed to be the case).
The first hit of the Gallardo in Tekken's video would be more than sufficient to inflict severe mechanical damage to the car, besides the physical that was apparent, causing it to be undriveable if the damage (both damages!) were realistically implemented.
Coming to physical damage alone, and comparing it to the physical damage (remember) showned on the demos (that you in fact also played if I remember) it is unquestionable that it has been severely tuned down. (just look at the pictures)... This can mean one out of two things:
a) The damage level has been tuned down or, b) the damage level increases (in realism) as further as you progress in the game. I believe it is the option a), since a don't see the point of having an increasingly realistic damage level in a game which is supposed to be the "real driving simulator".
Now this is an assumption as you said so from my part. True. But your believe that mechanical damage is at the moment also an assumption of yours based solely on what was once/is referred at GT's webpage. But as I said earlier, based on the experience we have and what we have seen, it also fair to assume that feature was (another?) to be discarted.
)
