There’s a lot going on in this week’s Gran Turismo 7 Spec II update, but among the many details it was also the biggest single content update we’ve had since the game’s launch in 2022.
With seven new cars and a new circuit location boasting three layouts — each with a reverse-direction variant — there is a whole lot going on and you might not have had time to appreciate it all just yet, especially if you don’t have access to the quite literally game-changing PlayStation VR2 hardware. Or can’t get to play until the weekend!
We’ve been putting the best of the new content through its paces in a series of new videos on our YouTube channel, all of which are in 4K60 and feature VR2 driving, and we’ve lined them up below for ease of viewing. There’ll be more to come too, of course, so watch this space for more!
Gran Turismo 7 Spec II: Lexus LFA
Despite being in development for almost a decade, the LFA was a car that all-but came out of nowhere. Although it wore Lexus badges all through development, including when it raced at the Nurburgring 24 Hours as a concept car, few seriously expected this entirely bespoke machine to be anything but a new Supra — and certainly not a world-beater from the luxury sub-brand known for barges like the LS400.
That was exactly what it turned out to be though, setting a then lap record (unofficially, as they all were back then) of the Nurburgring for a production car with that legendary V10 in the nose, a carbon-reinforced polymer (CFRP) chassis, and fully carbon fiber body. Of course that all sounds pretty expensive, and the $375,000 sticker price — three times that of any other Lexus — backed that up.
But when it comes to sounds, it’s the V10 that is the only thing anyone cares about, and you can hear that coming through in full in the video above.
Gran Turismo 7 Spec II: Lake Louise
In terms of things almost nobody saw coming, a brand-new off-road circuit with snow and ice conditions is pretty high on the list, but that’s exactly what Gran Turismo 7 added with Spec II.
This fictional track is based at a real location with a famous ski resort in Alberta, Canada, continuing GT7’s exclusively North American post-launch track additions. It’s the first snow/ice location in the series since Chamonix in Gran Turismo 6, although GT Sport — oddly — had snow tires available despite the lack of use.
There’s six tracks in total, with a Long Track, Short Track, and a Tri-Oval (the first off-road oval in the series’ history), each hosting reverse variants. The location also features a day-to-night cycle with some spectacular lighting for the dark hours.
You can see all three layouts in the video above, and the impressive night-time visuals.
Gran Turismo 7 Spec II: Mercedes 190E 2.5-16 Evolution II
A fan favorite car from the days of Gran Turismo 4, the 190E is one of that breed of cars that everyone loves: the homologation special.
As the name suggests, this is a second evolution of a car Mercedes used to go racing in the famous Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM) back in the late 1980s and early 1990s under Group A regulations.
The first car was, in essence, a 190E sedan with a pretty hot, Cosworth-designed 2.5-liter engine (itself a development of the early 2.3), with the Evolution adding some new aero pieces. For the Evo II though, Mercedes took that idea and ran with it — resulting in, among other things, that absolutely wild rear wing.
It worked too. After producing the 502 road cars (of the 500 required to homologate it), the Evo II took two from two manufacturer championships in 1991 and 1992 and a driver’s title for Klaus Ludwig in the latter year — before DTM switched to Class 1 regulations.
The road car adds to GT7’s Group A homologation stable, along with the BMW M3 Evo, Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500, and Nissan Skyline GT-R Nismo, and you can watch it in all its glory at Deep Forest above.
See more articles on Gran Turismo 7 Spec II and PlayStation VR.
