Two new Gran Turismo 7 Online Time Trials are now available, as the regular fortnightly cycle of events is supplemented by a special challenge as part of the Gran Turismo World Series live events that start in London next weekend.
Although we have recently had an update, the new regular challenge doesn’t use any of the content from it — suggesting that this is being spaced out ahead of the next update which we’d guess at being late-June — but it does take in a track that is rarely used in competitive modes.
That’s the curious Test Course layout at the Alsace location, one of the shortest and oddest tracks in the game. New for GT7 — though the location made its debut in Sport — Test Course comprises the cambered 180-degree bowl and the transition from sector two to sector three of the Village course, and then a cut through the infield. This features a wild 180-degree turn with a huge incline and decline that’s noteworthy for being a trap for low-powered classic cars.
Luckily you’re not in such a vehicle for this week’s event, instead driving the Z34-generationNissan Fairlady Z (known as the 370Z outside Japan) which has ample power for this pretty violent arch of asphalt.
You’ll need to set the fastest time you can while equipped with the slipperiest Sports Hard tires, with the early attempts at snatching the world record just breaking under the 52-second mark as of this morning. The very short track means that there’s not a lot of time to find here, but we wouldn’t preclude a low-51 by close of play.
That means that if you want to grab the 2,000,000cr reward for hitting the gold target of 103% of the world record when the event closes, the current goal of 53.428 won’t be enough; we’d suggest getting into the 52s if you want to be more relaxed about it.
There’s a week still to go on the Alpine Vision GT event at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya — host of the F1 race this coming weekend — and times have already sunk to the point we’d expected, and in fact gone a little quicker too.
Currently the world record is a 1:27.248, which sets the gold time at a 1:29.865. With seven days remaining we’re not going to rule out something quicker still, but hopefully not by too much. Getting into the 1:29.7s ought to be enough, given the gaps on the leaderboard.
Time Trial addicts will be pleased to see a third event this week, also running for two weeks. That’s the GTWS London tie-in event teased last week, which will set you a Gr.3 hot lap challenge at Tokyo Expressway South Counterclockwise.
As this is a direct reference to the Manufacturers Cup races at the London event, you’ll be limited to the Gr.3 cars from the 12 brands represented there: BMW, Ferrari Honda, Lamborghini, Lexus, Mazda, McLaren, Nissan, Porsche, Subaru, and Toyota. Under the in-game BOP and on Racing Soft tires, it looks like the Toyota Supra is the car of choice, but don’t take that as a peek into the London races as live events use a custom BOP.
Currently the record here is a 1:54.638 — set by London finalist and Toyota representative Kenta Morimoto — so you’ll need to be getting to a flat 1:58 if you want the gold prize (the standard 2m credits, despite being teased with “significantly enhanced rewards”). There’s a decent chance this will improve over the two weeks too, so look for a 1:57.5. There’s also a more generous boundary and double the reward for bronze, at +20% and 500,000cr.
In order to access the Online Time Trials, you’ll need to unlock Sport Mode, by completing Menu Book 9 (“Championship: Tokyo Highway Parade”) in the GT Cafe single player hub. As it’s just you against the clock and not a direct, head-to-head multiplayer event, PlayStation Plus is not required.
You’ll usually need to be within 3% of the fastest time globally once the event finishes in order to secure “gold” status and a 2m credit bonus prize. There’s smaller prizes of one million for being within 5%, and 250,000cr for bronze at 10% off.
The events update every Thursday, with each individual challenge usually remaining available for two weeks and the oldest of the two events being replaced each week. You can look forward to the next new Time Trial arriving at 0700 UTC on Thursday June 5.
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Challenge May 29 – Alsace Test Course
- Track: Alsace Test Course
- Car: Nissan Fairlady Z (Z34) ’08 – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tires: Sports Hard
- Settings: Fixed
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Special Event May 29 – Tokyo Expressway
- Track: Tokyo Expressway South Clockwise
- Car: Gr.3 Car Selection – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (H)
- Tires: Racing Soft
- Settings: Fixed
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Challenge May 22 – Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
- Track: Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya GP No Chicane
- Car: Alpine Vision Gran Turismo 2017 Gr.1 – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tires: Racing Soft
- Settings: Fixed
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