Forza Horizon 5’s new season begins today, also marking the start of a whole new, four-week Series.
Dubbed “Summer Party”, the latest Series is all about celebrating the warmest part of the year (while we still can), with a selection of events and challenges — and a world makeover — all based on the summer theme.
That includes some new beach decor at the Horizon Street Scene Outpost, as well as another redecoration of the Horizon Stadium which features some waves to surf. There’s also a longer night-time period, as Playground Games reacts to the fans’ response to a similar feature in Series 19.
For the second month in a row there’s a new Horizon Story, centering on “Icons of Speed”. You can do this Story at any time, to collect its Evolving World Accolades, but it only counts towards this month’s Playlist.
Of course there’s also brand-new cars available this month, and another Evolving World Accolade for collecting the five of the six which are available through the Playlist. They drop, as usual, as 20 points each Season and for 80 points in the Series.
Table of Contents
- Series 23: Summer Party
- Series 23 Summer/Wet Season Rewards
- Series 23 Summer Playlist: Forzathon Events
- Series 23 Summer Playlist: Season Events
- Series 23 Summer Playlist: Challenges
- Series 23 Summer Playlist: Monthly Events
- Series 23 Summer Bonus DLC Events
- Series 23 Summer Forzathon Shop
Series 23: Summer Party
As this month offers up another bumper crop of points, courtesy of the new Story, players could be getting their hands on the first Series reward car this week.
That’s the Ford Mustang GT DeBerti Design, which is a custom muscle car that returns from FH4 where it was a Car Pass car.
Available for 80 points this Series, the Mustang DD combines a host of aesthetic changes — including a widebody kit and neat ducktail wing — with a supercharged version of the Roush-tuned five-liter V8, good for 750hp.
Scoring 160 points across the Series will drop the Dodge Super Bee into your garage, giving you another opportunity to earn this Playlist exclusive machine.
Although Mexico got its own version of the Super Bee — based on the A-body Valiant Duster — this is the all-American version, a sporty model of the two-door, B-body (hence the name) Coronet. It boasts a big-block Hemi V8, producing almost 1hp per cubic inch, or 425hp from 426ci (7.0 litres).
Series 23 Summer/Wet Season Rewards
This month’s first new seasonal reward car is another returnee and a star on the race track and the silver screen, with a British supercar as backup.
Scoring 20 points in Summer will earn you the Ford Falcon XB GT, a legendary Australian performance car which made a star turn — heavily modified, of course — as the Pursuit Special of “Mad Max” Rockatansky in the film of the same name.
Even in standard form the Falcon sports a 300hp, 351ci (5.8-litre) Cleveland V8, so there’s little surprise Ford Australia sent it up again the Holdens in Group C touring car racing. Only 949 cars were built in this hardtop coupe body, so it’s a pretty rare sight.
Hit that 40-point target and you’ll earn the markedly faster McLaren 765LT. While the “LT” stands for “Long Tail” — part of a McLaren lineage going back to the F1 built by its predecessor brand — the 765LT is mostly longer in the nose than the 720S on which it’s based.
A crash diet has stripped a whole person’s-worth of weight compared to the 720S and, as the numbers in the name suggest, power is up by 35hp thanks to some tweaks to the four-liter V8 carried over from the Senna.
The Summer Season will run through to 1430UTC on Thursday July 27, with Series 23 continuing for another three weeks until the same time on Thursday August 17.
Series 23 Summer Playlist: Forzathon Events
A quartet of V8s fill the Forzathon Weekly Challenge slots this month, and we’ll be starting off with a modern icon in the Dodge Hellcat unit. Own and drive the Challenger SRT Hellcat ’15 to get Cat Out of Hell underway.
It shouldn’t be too tricky to complete the next step, as you just need to blast through Speed Traps and collect a total of six stars from any. After that, just take a photograph of the car to move onto the last stage.
Finally, put the Hellcat to its primary use and win a Drag Race. Complete that and you’ll earn five Playlist points and 80 Forzathon Points — with the FP doubled if you own the Casa Solariega player house.
Weekly Challenge: Cat Out Of Hell
- Car: Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat ’15
- Chapter 1: Own and drive the Challenger Hellcat
- Chapter 2: Earn six stars at Speed Traps in the Challenger Hellcat
- Chapter 3: Take a photo of the Challenger Hellcat
- Chapter 4: Win a Drag Race in the Challenger Hellcat
- Reward: 5 points, 80FP
Seven new Daily Challenges come along at the usual one-a-day rate to start the series. They unlock sequentially at 1430UTC each day during the season, giving you a full seven days to complete them even if that runs into the next season.
It’s a very easy one to start the Series off, as you’re only required to Meet and Street the Horizon Street Scene Outpost by heading there to check out the makeover. As there’s also a Photo Challenge there this week, double it up for efficiency.
Next up you’ll be Lifting Your Weight by earning two stars at any Trailblazers in any Classic Muscle vehicle. It’ll be worth pairing this up with the PR Stunt this week.
Do Some Light Speeding to start your weekend off, earning five Awesome Speed Skills — for approaching speeds of around 180mph, depending on the car — in any Street Race events.
Win a Road Racing event in any Track Toy next, to prove you’re not just Toying Around.
You’ll need to show you’re the Bee’s Knees at stunting next, earning a total of 50,000 Skill Score in any vehicle from the 2000s decade.
Send a special Delivery on Tuesday by providing a car through the Gift Drop feature to any player.
Finally smash up five Picnic Tables — you can find several at a roadside rest stop near Hotel Mirador — to complete Picnic Lunch.
Daily Challenges
- July 20 – Meet and Street: Visit the Horizon Street Outpost
- July 21 – Lifting Your Weight: Earn two Stars at Trailblazers in any Classic Muscle vehicle
- July 22 – Some Light Speeding: Earn five Awesome Speed Skills in Street Race Events
- July 23 – Toying Around: Win a Road Race Event in any Track Toy
- July 24 – Bee’s Knees: Earn 50,000 Skill Score in any vehicle from the 2000s
- July 25 – Delivery: Send a Gift Drop to another player
- July 26 – Picnic Lunch: Smash five Picnic Tables
Series 23 Summer Playlist: Season Events
Eight events make up the solo Playlist this week, with three PR Stunts, two Seasonals, and two Event Labs alongside Horizon Arcade which you can of course do in multiplayer if you wish as the targets scale to the number of participants.
However you choose to do Horizon Arcade, you can do any of the five event themes: Air, Chaos, Drift, Speed, and Wreckage. Just find one of the two pink Horizon Arcade zones on your map (or look for the airship) and wait in the area until the event starts. You’ll earn three points for completing it.
For this Series the PR Stunts return to their almost open-category format, simply requiring any car up to the top of the S2 Class (901-998PI), for two points and a Super Wheelspin apiece. That does send the targets up to a higher level though, with less room for error.
While you could use one car for all three, you’ll need something slidey for the Farmland Trail Drift Zone, something grippy for the City Escape Trailblazer, and something fast and light on aero for the Valle Danger Sign.
Although the targets are a little testing, none is so far beyond three stars as to make them particularly difficult. 300m at Valle and 170,000pt at Farmland Trail will be easiest, with 45s at City Escape a little trickier if you don’t get a clean run.
The Seasonal Championships are the usual three-race events against Highly Skilled AI. You’ll start each race in eighth place, meaning you’ll need to fight through several AI to reach the rabbit at the front in each race. However you don’t need to win all three, just top the points table at the end of the championship to earn five points and a bonus prize.
Low power is the theme this week, and nowhere is it lower than the And Now The Classics Street Race. You’ll need a D Class (≤500PI) Classic Sports Car, and the reward is a 1969 Chevrolet Camaro. Scrambling for More is a Dirt Race for B Class (601-700PI) Modern Rally Cars, and gives a 1971 Lotus Elan for victory.
The EventLab route follow a recent theme of extensively reworked locations with custom routes created above the terrain. Each offers three points in addition to a bonus reward.
Arco Raceway is an event for A Class (701-800PI) vehicles in a custom Open Top Cars hopper, and consists of a weaving asphalt route down the beach at Dunas Blancas and around — and through — El Arco de Cabo San Lucas. Complete the laps to earn a BMW M1.
The other event is over in Copper Canyon, for A Class (701-800PI) Track Toys. This Circuito de los Pinos route closely resembles a log flume, albeit in concrete, and is another quite wild ride.
EventLab: Arco Raceway
- Car: A Class, Open Top Cars
- Location: Dunas Blancas
- Challenge: Finish the race
- Reward: 3 points, BMW M1 ’81
EventLab: Circuito de los Pinos
- Car: A Class, Track Toys
- Location: Copper Canyon
- Challenge: Finish the race
- Reward: 3 points, Super Wheelspin
Horizon Arcade: Mini Games
- Car: Any
- Location: Horizon Arcade (any)
- Challenge: Complete three rounds of Horizon Arcade
- Reward: 3 points
Danger Sign: Valle
- Car: S2 Class
- Location: Gran Puente
- Challenge: 300m
- Reward: 2 points, Super Wheelspin
Drift Zone: Farmland Trail
- Car: S2 Class
- Location: Los Jardines
- Challenge: 170,000pt
- Reward: 2 points, Super Wheelspin
Trailblazer: City Escape
- Car: S2 Class
- Location: Guanajuato
- Challenge: 45s
- Reward: 2 points, Super Wheelspin
Seasonal Championship: And Now The Classics
- Car: D Class, Classic Sports Cars
- Location: Cordillera
- Challenge: Win the Championship
- Reward: 5 points, Chevrolet Camaro ’69
Seasonal Championship: Scrambling for More
- Car: B Class, Modern Rally Cars
- Location: Atlantes de Tula
- Challenge: Win the Championship
- Reward: 5 points, Lotus Elan ’71
As we’re down to one multiplayer race, for which you’ll need an Xbox Live subscription in order to race on console (PC players have free multiplayer access) that will obviously be the permanent fixture of The Trial.
It’s a best-of-three-race championship event against Unbeatable AI Drivatars, pitting a team of you and your up-to-five human team-mates against a squad of six AI.
The key word there is “team”; players on each team score 100 points for every opponent they beat (meaning up to 600pt), but nothing for beating their own team-mates, except a 50pt bonus to first place as a tie-breaker. That means you need to work together, keeping the AI from scoring good points while helping each other out.
This week it’s a Road Racing Series event for C Class (501-600PI) Rods & Customs. That should mean relatively controlled driving all round, unless the humans have built overpowered drag cars with no cornering ability, and an easy two-race win. You’ll all earn ten points and a Volkswagen Golf R ’14 for victory.
The Trial: Hot Rod
- Car: C Class, Rods & Customs
- Location: Bahia de Plano
- Challenge: Win the Championship
- Reward: 10 points, Volkswagen Golf R ’14
Series 23 Summer Playlist: Challenges
It’s a three-Challenge week, as Treasure Hunt remains in place alongside Photo Challenge, and a Horizon Open event.
You’ll need access to online multiplayer to compete Horizon Open, Summer Fun, but it’s a very simple one this week. Just complete any Horizon Open Racing event to earn two points and a Clock Tower horn.
The redecorated Horizon Street Scene Outpost stars in this week’s Photo Challenge, #HotShot. Head to this hub and photograph any Hot Hatch car there to earn two points and a Doodle Pattern Cap.
Finally there’s the Treasure Hunt, Sting Like a Beetle. As you’ll spot from the tile’s image and clue, “Trade colours as these tiny bugs menace the road”, you’ll need to grab a Volkswagen Beetle — any model will do.
Once you’ve got your car, head out onto the road and earn some Trading Paint skills. You’ll get this for a light, side-to-side contact with any other vehicle; collect three and the Treasure Hint — a red zone on your map showing the chest’s approximate location — will pop up on your map.
This week that’s at Costa Rocosa, right on the beach. Just go to the farthest lifeguard tower on the beach to find the chest among the surfboards. Smash it to earn three points and 100FP.
Horizon Open: Summer Fun
- Cars: Any
- Location: Horizon Open
- Challenge: Complete any Horizon Open Racing event
- Reward: 2 points, Clock Tower Horn
Photo Challenge: #HotShot
- Cars: Hot Hatch (any)
- Location: Horizon Street Scene Outpost
- Challenge: Photograph any Hot Hatch at the Horizon Street Scene Outpost
- Reward: 2 points, Doodle Pattern Cap
Treasure Hunt: Sting Like a Beetle
- Cars: Volkswagen Beetle
- Location: Any
- Challenge: Earn three Trading Paint skills in any Volkswagen Beetle; find and smash the Treasure Chest
- Reward: 3 points, 100FP
Series 23 Summer Playlist: Monthly Events
Two new Monthly Rivals events are available starting today, and running across all four weeks of the Series. You can complete them at any point during the Series, as they award one point to each week — four in total for each event — regardless of when you do so.
Both are regular Rivals events, with no EVs and no point-to-point races, so it’s just a case of setting a clean lap in the cars provided.
That might not be so easy as both tracks involve a lot of solid objects. You’ll need to watch out for tunnel walls in the Toyota GR86 at Cathedral Circuit, and for the Ford XB Falcon’s handling quirks at the Arch of Mulege Circuit.
There’s also a further 12 points available from the new Horizon Story, Icons of Speed. This eight-chapter event awards its points on the same basis, with three added to each Season regardless of when you complete it.
You’ll need to attain three stars in each of the eight chapters, which focus on different iconic performance cars across the decades, to earn all of the points. They’ll actually be awarded in stages, with one point added to the four seasons when you earn eight, 16, and finally 24 stars.
Horizon Story: Icons of Speed
- Cars: Provided
- Location: Playa Tranquila
- Challenge: Earn 24 stars on Icons of Speed Horizon Story chapters
- Reward: 12 points (3 added to each season)
Monthly Rivals: Cathedral Circuit
- Cars: Toyota GR86 (provided)
- Location: Guanajuato
- Challenge: Post a Clean Lap
- Reward: 4 points (1 added to each season)
Monthly Rivals: Arch of Mulege Circuit
- Cars: Ford Falcon XB (provided)
- Location: Mulege
- Challenge: Post a Clean Lap
- Reward: 4 points (1 added to each season)
Series 23 Summer Bonus DLC Events
Owning either of the DLC expansion packs gives you access to seven further bonus points, or 14 if you own both, consisting of a two-point PR Stunt and a five-point Seasonal Championship in each location,
You don’t need to earn these points to hit 100% on the playlist, but they offer a boost if other events don’t take your fancy.
Like the main map events, the PR Stunts are open to any car up to S2 Class (901-998PI), and award a Super Wheelspin. This week they consist of the Supersonic Spiral in Hot Wheels, with a 170mph goal, and the Orogrande Rush in Rally Adventure which requires a 160mph target; both are pretty easily attainable.
The two Seasonal Championships are a little different, although remain as three-race championships against Highly Skilled AI.
Dragon’s Quest in Hot Wheels requires an S1 Class (801-900PI) McLaren, and awards a Buick GSX. The pace slows a little in Twists and Turns over in Rally Adventure, with B Class (601-700PI) Volkswagens required and a White Skinny Jeans clothing item reward.
Hot Wheels Speed Zone: Supersonic Spiral
- Car: S2 Class
- Location: Hot Wheels Nexus
- Challenge: 170mph
- Reward: 2 points, Super Wheelspin
Hot Wheels Seasonal Championship: Dragon’s Quest
- Car: S1 Class, McLaren
- Location: Hot Wheels Ice Cauldron
- Challenge: Win the Championship
- Reward: 5 points, Buick GSX
Rally Adventure Speed Trap: Orogrande Rush
- Car: S2 Class
- Location: Sierra Nueva Orogrande
- Challenge: 160mph
- Reward: 2 points, Super Wheelspin
Rally Adventure Seasonal Championship: Twists and Turns
- Car: B Class, Volkswagen
- Location: Sierra Nueva Tierra Verdes
- Challenge: Win the Championship
- Reward: 5 points, White Skinny Jeans
Series 23 Summer Forzathon Shop
Keeping with the “Icons of Speed” theme, this week’s Forzathon Shop showcases two high-performance vehicles separated by nine decades.
Leading the way is the Bugatti Type 35C, a supercharged sports car from the 1920s. It’d be an understatement to say the Type 35 line has some impressive history, with reputedly over a thousand wins on the European grand prix circuit in nine years.
That includes five successive victories at Targa Florio — two of which went to the Type 35C. However this success isn’t reflected in its FH5 price, coming in at a cheap 1.3m credits in the Autoshow against a 550FP cost this week.
Zipping forward 90 years brings us to a roadgoing performance car that the legendary drivers of 1926 wouldn’t believe, in the shape of the 2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS.
This model leads the line for naturally aspirated 911s, a car that’s no stranger to racetrack success itself, extracting five times the power from its four-liter flat six than the two-liter straight eight Bugatti. It’s also considerably cheaper at 235,000cr, versus 250FP this week.
Other store items this week include the Minecraft Theme Horn and the Red Round Glasses at 75FP each. The Wheelspin (60FP) and a Super Wheelspin (150FP) occupy their regular spots.
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