Flying down the Topgear test track

Crisp visuals

We all know Polyphony deliver the graphics but the trailer also proved true many of the rumours that have been flying around the internet for what could actually be years. One of the rumours was that the Topgear test track would feature in the game. Well take alook whos driving the red Subaru there, or the Ferrari above, thats right, the Stig himself! Not to mention the Replays have that trademark feel that Topgear has, like the filters on the camera and classic angles of the track, for example, the tire wall. Apart From the Usual array of cars and tracks and now drivers, the trailer revealed some updates that us hardcore GT’ers was looking out for. Engine sounds are much improved, there was no doubt about this when the Lamborghini flew up the Topgear test track with its Virtual V12 at full shout. Also tire squeel as been updated.Car Models Seem to look maybe slightly better than prologue and I think this is due to a update in the lighting area. Light just seems to hit and reflect that much better than it did. The trailer also revealed damaged bodywork which is a first in the GT series, many thought this would only be a feature on racing spec cars such as Nascar or WRC cars, so seeing standard production models take damage was a joy for me. But the latestic (new word ) revealation was how cars will also race in day and night time conditions. You can even start the race during the day and end the race at night, and watch as the sun goes down and the moon comes up! It seems polyphony have modeled the headlights and rear lights in great, and I mean great detail. The light clusters look exactly the same as there real life counter-part, seemingly having a dipped and full beam setting which are used real time during the race as night time draws in. I garentee you have not seen cars at night rendered so well on your TV screen. You will find it ever so harder to tell that these cars are not real.Just another thing to note from the trailer is how reminisent it was to GT3′s E3 trailer all them years ago when we saw a ever so impressive smokey mountain. I remeber how everyone was taken back by the particle effects of the dust.Well thats all been done again where we see a WRC car battle between the Focus and STI. The dust effects are much better than anything else we have seen, not to mention how when racing at night the dust even glows red as the brake lights shine through! Last of all it may seem GT5 and RedBull have abit of a partnership going on. Not only have we seen Sebastian Loeb and his RedBull sponsored C4 alot, but in the trailer we see a diffrent Sebastian, Mr Vettel who seems to be doing voice recordings for the game, saying something about going 400KPH. This takes place in the RedBull Technology Center. Will we see F1 cars other than Ferrari maybe? Im excited

Probably the more important revealation was the 2nd of November release date, the trailer is below

Today was a tough drive to work. A lightweight car with 225/16 tires at the back results in serious slippage not only in the corners, but on the straights aswell. You can be going in a straight line at a constant speed and something as small as a bump or anything that can upset the grip of the back wheels,  just alittle, then you have to be able to counter steer and maintain  the vehicle continues in a straight line. Faliure to do so means that you can hit a a curb, lampost or even another car. Knowing this and therfore been continuosly aware of the danger can make you nervous. Today I was court in a blizzard. So I was a nervous driver. Never as a FF driver have I been nervous. The Mr2 is a drivers car, and you have to really learn how to drive. Today I have become a better driver, and I’ve nerver felt so proud of how I’ve driven

The roads today are greasy, slushy, icey, and snowing. The temperature is somewhere between 0 and -8 degrees, and that means driving conditions dont really get much worse, and technically this is MR2 killing conditions. I managed to get my car out of its snowy pit at the side of the road. That I thought would be the hardest part, that and climbing the hilly ungritted road to turn around so I can head towards the main road. I slowly climbed the road building momment which carried me up without too much sliding. I turned around and slowly made it down the hill. Not a problem

It was obviously slippy but nothing too harsh, not yet. I got onto the main road towards wakefield, where I joined other cars and picked up the pace since the main roads condition was much better than my road. A mile on and with only a mild  sweeping bend to the right, the car suddenly broke free at the rear which required a sharp turn to the left and instant lift off the throttle. The car realigned itself and recovered the little grip availible and i reminded myself not to become to complacent. I continued ahead but after such an episode you become hyper anxieous and paranoid it could happen again, maybe to a worse degree.

I got into a rythm and didn’t have anymore trouble. I just made smoother movements, was more fluid on the throttle and watched out more for bad patches of ice or slippy looking surfaces. Thinking about it now, I have automatically been forced to use all these techniques, all of which are the basics of racing theory. Smooth driving = Fast driving. The MR2 is teaching me to driver better. Its taught me this in one night, taken me higher in one night than the Fiesta ST and the Type-R did in 3 years. I’m really regretting not starting out in this car. Although I do believe they gave me a good foundation to start my MR2 journey with.

But my new technique was soon going to become outdated already. While passing the coal mining museum few and fine snow started falling. Nothing worrying but I was thinkingnmaybe if it got worse later on I could get early leave from work. The driving gods had another plan. Every mile I travelled and the closer I got to Wakefield City center the thicker and more intest the snow fall became. The “smooth technique I had to apply earlier now had to be tuned up to a high level, more and more bit by bit. About 5 miles from the city center the snow had layed quite thick on the road, depite other cars on the road the snow was getting thicker and adding to the already deep layed snow at the side of the roads and un driven sections of the road.

Now I was following in other cars wheel tracks and really begining to notice the grip disappearing from the MR2. It felt like I was balancing the car on a knife edge. As a result I had another slide out which I caught again. Theres only so long you can feel nervous and now I was calm and just felt confident that I knew what to do when I had to do it. I had to drive, but now I had to watch out for other drivers since we all was affected. That did’nt stop some idiots that was behind me when I was basically snow drifting, run along at the side of me when the lane split into two just as a S-bend was coming up. That ment I had to turn a tight left, and then a right in a narrow lane with a car at the side of me. Thankfully I did’nt break lose which was an achievment. About a mile from work the roads was 100% covered in about 2-3cm of snow. There was no tire tracks to follow and I still had two hills and a round about to clear. To add to the conditions the snowfall had turned extreme. It was hard to see the the plentiful of thick snow. I managed, and on the last corner up the steepish hill, I climbed it with full lock to the right and continued to go perfectly straight. That seemed weird.

I got there and my supervisor was waiting. He pointed to the car park when I told him I was going straight back home. And so it all started again. The hill I climbed with full right lock I now slid down unable to stop. Heading towards the main road, seconds from death with the ABS working away, I was somewhat excited. I really love all this car stuff. I knew I had advanced and learnt more about my car. Now I was going to learnEven more. I was just going to drive the same road again, this time in the opposite direction with even more snow. I was somewhat happier knowing I did’nt have 8 hours of work, so this was also going to be the smuggest drive so far aswell.

I got onto the main road alive. The roads had gotten pretty quiet so there was me, the MR2 and the snow covered road. Brilliant. I drove along and became familiar with the dynamics and grip level and slowly took the hill down and exited the round about. All while staying alive, and without crashing which was my main concern. I stuck to about 20mph. No one was going as faster but still this did’nt stop the unual flaunt of idiots who would suddenly slam on there brakes or park in un appropriate place, hassling already fully occupied drivers. Up ahead I saw a truck wanting to turn onto the road. Perfect, I flashed him (with the headlights not the pee pee) to go ahead. He dugged through the snow nicely for me and I follow through his tracks. That did’nt mean I was’nt skidding all over the place. Or more precisley, I was consistently having to control the car from not skidding. It was an ongoing battle. Also from the numorous braking I had to do, I found the perfect amount of which to brake without activating the ABS which in turn gave noticable reduction in braking distance. Tonight really had taught me loads. I had to learn this all in one trip or simply lose control. 

Entering Horbury Bridge, going down the steepest hill was chaos for cars. Cars needed to get momment to get up, cars had problems with too much mommentum going down. Of course the was a van blocking the uphill lane meaning there was one lane to share. If i had of seen that van driver I woud have kicked him in the balls. Twice. Past Horbury bridge was the long hill which was completely covered with snow aswell. Although abit thinner than what was in the City center. Things got easier and easier from there on as the snow got thinner and thinner. By the time I was in Huddersfield there was no snow falling. I also had now problem driving. Considering I was struggling before this was proof I had advanced. I left a amateur and came back a stig. I could good on the same road with a much high pace.

I got home and realised my new found technique. How i’d obviously advanced and I had reconised just how well the MR2 will teach the driver how to drive properly. I was thrown into the deep end tonight but came out of it all the better with many relisations. Dependant on the conditions, dry or wet or snow. Its only a case of applying what I have learnt tonight in relation to that particular condition. Looking back it was the most educational, most fearful and most tense drive I’ve had. In a FF car it would have been simple. Which is why this was also the most fun and rewarding drives. WOW!