A themed event is now available in the Gran Turismo 7 Online Time Trial mode, bringing something with a little relevance to real-world motorsport events to this competitive hot-lap mode.
The Formula One season is approaching its end right now, with four races remaining and three drivers still in the realistic hunt for the title (though the constructor title was wrapped up absurdly long ago). This weekend the circus is heading to Brazil, and the Interlagos circuit that has often hosted the final round.
Appropriately then the latest Time Trial visits the same location, with the game’s only South American circuit — which made its debut in GT Sport — the venue. It’s a track inexorably linked with the nation’s most famous F1 driver, Ayrton Senna, though it took him until 1991 to win there and he only ever won twice.
The car of choice is one that’s also linked with Senna, as the driver powered by Honda engines from 1987 to 1992 also had a role in developing the car for the same brand: the NSX supercar. It’s the first-generation Type R variant, which is the peak of the three-liter cars as both the lightest and most powerful.
Early running of this combination, with the NSX on relatively slidey Sports Hard tires, has seen only a handful of times dropping below the 1:47 mark but those that have already have a decent gap to it. In turn, that’s taken the gold target just below a 1:50 already.
It’s tough to say how well that’s going to hold up over the next two weeks, but we’d say that there’s probably a decent chunk of time yet. Figure on needing a 1:49.5 or better in the final reckoning, but that’s one we’ll have to take another look at next Thursday.
Your rally event from last week still has another seven days to run, and while the leader is still the same person the time has fallen dramatically — taking the gold target down right along with it.
The good news is that there’s probably little left on the table in this bouncy event, at the reverse Colorado Springs Lake circuit in the Toyota GR Yaris (on Dirt tires, of course), so the current 1:27.042 target is either going to stick around or at least not drop much further. Aim for a high-1:26 (something in the point-eight region) for a little breathing room.
You have one week left on a third event too, with a special Time Trial that ties into the upcoming final preliminary round of the GT World Series in Los Angeles and uses the same combination as the Nations Cup qualifying race there.
That sets you the challenge of lapping the Watkins Glen Long Course in the tricky Chaparral 2J, which uses a ducted-fan active downforce system, on Racing Soft tires. The GTWS finalists have been having a go at this one, dropping the world record to a 1:28.169 and setting gold at 1:30.814 at present. We don’t think that there’s much left to give here, so if you’re below a 1:30.5 you’re probably safe now.
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 — with that final prize and margin doubled for the special event.
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 November 13.
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Challenge November 6 – Interlagos
- Track: Autodromo de Interlago
- Car: Honda NSX Type R ’92 – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tires: Sports Hard
- Settings: Fixed
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Challenge October 30 – Colorado Springs
- Track: Colorado Springs Lake Reverse
- Car: Toyota GR Yaris ’20 – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (L)
- Tires: Dirt
- Settings: Fixed
Gran Turismo 7 Lap Time Challenge Special Event October 30 – Watkins Glen
- Track: Watkins Glen Long Course
- Car: Chaparral 2J ’70 – Garage/Rental Car
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tires: Racing Soft
- Settings: Fixed
See more articles on Gran Turismo 7 Time Trial.
