Today’s Gran Turismo 7 Update 1.69 brings three new cars to the game, and Polyphony Digital has wasted no time putting one of them straight to work. The new Online Time Trial, live now through May 7, hands you the keys to the freshly added Yangwang U9 ’24 and sends you out onto the chicane-less Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix circuit on Sports Soft tires.
Of course, this isn’t the big, powerful Yangwang we had been teased with.
When Yangwang first exposed itself, the reveal trailer featured the 2,977hp U9 Xtreme variant — the limited-run track weapon that holds the EV production car lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife and made an unofficial 308mph one-way speed run.
That’s the car we were rumoring back in October, and that’s the car the community largely assumed was coming. What actually arrived in today’s 1.69 update is the standard U9. It’s still a 1,270hp electric hypercar, but not the halo variant most expected. Whether the Xtreme arrives in a future update remains to be seen.
Real-World “Honors” on the Line
There’s an added dimension to this round that’s worth flagging. Yangwang itself is promoting the competition and has announced some kind of prize for the top 20 fastest times, posted via Chinese social media platform Bilibili.
Details are thin: it’s not clear what the prize is, and it’s not yet confirmed whether the competition is open to international players or restricted to those in China. You can find the original post here if you want to follow along as more details emerge.
Accessing Online Time Trials
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. PlayStation Plus is not required. Once the event closes, gold goes to players within 3% of the fastest time (2m credits), silver within 5% (1m credits), and bronze within 10% (250,000cr). Events update every Thursday, with each challenge running for two weeks. The next new Time Trial arrives on April 30.
GT7 Lap Time Challenge April 23
- Track: Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix (No Chicane)
- Car: Yangwang U9 ’24
- Power/Weight/PP Limit: BOP (M)
- Tires: Sports Soft
- Settings: Fixed
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