Autoblog

Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will be dropping April 17th in the U.S., both as a downloadable game from the Playstation Store and on actual Blu-ray disc. We reported last week that damage modeling, long missing from the Gran Turismo series despite being featured in many of its competitors, was for the first time being considered, and today we have word from Gran Turismo head Kazunori Yamauchi that it could come as a downloadable feature for the game as early as this fall. Gran Turismo games have always set the standard for racing sims, but the lack of physical damage to the cars when buddy bumping on a back straight or flying grille first into a barrier have held them back. In fact, smart players can use the lack of damage to their advantage by heading into turns without breaking and bouncing off the wall. Hardly the perfect line, but it gets the job done on those particularly difficult courses. Thanks for the tip, Brad!

[Source: PS3 Fanboy]

Click above for more stills from Gran Turismo 5 Prologue

If you're lucky enough to own a PS3, you're most likely deciding whether or not to fork out $40 for GT 5 Prologue. While that might seem like a lot of money for a "demo" game, the latest news on the full version is that it's still a full year away from launch. That's quite a while to wait, so we're guessing most people will break down and buy the Prologue when it's released on April 17.

Part of that wait will hopefully be because GT 5 may include realistic damage to vehicles for the first time. While manufacturers still aren't keen on the idea, Gran Turismo creator Kazanori Yamauchi says that they are coming around to it. Damage modeling appears in other driving games like Forza Motorsport 2, so we don't see why manufacturers would mind seeing it Gran Turismo, as well.

Since we are still a few weeks away from the launch of GT 5 Prologue, you can whet your appetite with the trailer, refresh your knowledge of the track and car list, or drool over the gallery below.

[Source: Joystiq.com, VideoGaming247.com]

Click above to view more screenshots of the Ferrari F2007 on GT5

The beauty about driving games like Forza 2 and Gran Turismo 5 is that they give us (yes, even us here at Autoblog) the chance to drive cars we otherwise couldn't get anywhere near. The latest virtual joy ride to hit the news cycle is the Ferrari F2007, the very same Formula One car that Kimi Raikkonen drove last year to the drivers' title and – with a little help from teammate Felipe Massa – the constructors' championship, as well.

According to the latest information posted on the official Playstation blog, the F2007 will be among the many exciting new cars available for your gaming pleasure in the new GT5 Prologue. The championship-winning racer in officially sanctioned rosso livery will be available for 2 million game credits from all Ferrari dealerships on Gran Turismo 5, so start earning your points as soon as you get your hands on the game. Then spend your sleepless nights trying to beat Kimi's laptimes. Until then, keep the dream alive with the screenshots in the gallery below. Thanks for the tip, Peter!

[Source: Playstation.Blog]

With things like cheap gas and the value of a dollar slowly being taken from us, it's good to see that somebody wants to give us something. For the US release of the Gran Turismo 5 Prologue, Polyphony has thrown in features the Japanese version didn't get.

There's a drift mode that judges drivers on three parameters, there's two-player, split-screen racing and there are new events and challenges for racers online and offline that can support up to 16 racers simultaneously. Plus, there's a new track, bringing the total to six. And for us, that means there's a new list of excuses we're going to need to come up with when people start asking "Where have you been?" and "You look tired -- were you up late last night?"

In case the cars, tracks and gameplay aren't enough, Winding Road has a new trailer video of the GT5 Prologue featuring a fair bit of Ferrari action -- and that's never a bad way to start the week. Follow the jump to see the complete list of tracks, and check out our updated hi-res photo gallery of the prologue below.


[Source: PS3 Fanboy]

Alex just bought a PS3, John already has one, and I'm trying to convince the Misses that after Blu-Ray won the war against HD-DVD we're due to replace our aging console with a new unit from Sony. Logitech just upped the ante with the release of its new Driving Force GT Wheel, but I highly doubt that it's going to help my case.

Regardless, the new wheel carries over all the features we loved about the outgoing model, including 900-degrees of rotation, steering-wheel mounted paddle shifters and a separate stick to swap cogs when we're sliding sideways through turn 11 at Laguna. But Logitech hasn't stopped there. The new wheel was designed in collaboration with Gran Turismo's developers at Polyphony Digital, and features a new force-feedback system that supposedly recreates the feeling of understeer, oversteer and all-out traction loss, along with new controls on the wheel that allow you to adjust brake bias, traction control and damper settings on the fly. Plus, the horn lights up.

The Logitech Driving Force GT Wheel will go on sale sometime in early May, carrying a price tag of around $150. Gran Turismo 5 Prologue will be released on April 17th on both Blu-Ray and through direct download, but for those of us that can't convince our significant others a new PS3 is worth the cash, the new wheel is compatible with both GT3 and GT4 on our existing PS2s.


[Source: Joystiq]

It looks like Jaguar isn't the one with its sites set on the Porsche 911, as Maserati may have plans to bring a new sports coupe to market in the €80-90,000 price range. The revelation comes straight from the horse's mouth: Maserati CEO Roberto Ronchi outlined that his company will decide on a new model sometime this quarter, with an eye towards market introduction over a broad window of 18 to 36 months from then.

Ronchi knows that in order to achieve its sales target of 12,000 units in 2011, his company will need an additional model. Although an SUV to compete with the Cayenne was tipped to be the way forward, Ronchi says a new sportscar positioned underneath the GranTurismo, which grew significantly in size over the Coupe it effectively replaced, is the better choice. The design students from Turin just might have the right idea with their upcoming Chicane concept.

[Source: Motor Authority]

Click the image above for a high-res gallery of the BMW CS Concept.

BMW will be joining the four-door "coupe" fray in 2010 when it launches its new flagship sedan, the Gran Turismo. Automotive News sat down with former M engineer, Gerhard Richter, who's been tasked with figuring out what design elements will be carried over from the CS Concept that debuted last year at the Shanghai auto show.

The Gran Turismo would slot in above the 7-series, being both longer and wider than BMW's largest sedan, and is likely to pack either a V8 or V12 powerplant. CSM Worldwide pegs production of around 15,000 units annually with a cost of around $150,000. That puts it in the same realm as Porsche's soon-to-be-released Panamera, Audi's rumored A7 and the Aston Martin Rapide, all of which will create a new class of high-priced, high-powered sedans that have yet to be proven in the marketplace.

[Source: Automotive News – Sub. Req.]

click above to view more high-res images of the gorgeous GranTurismo

Since Maserati unveiled the GranTurismo almost a year ago in Geneva, the question on everybody's mind has been, when is the convertible coming? The Trident marque from Modena has finally answered the call, announcing that, although it has yet to decide which show will feature its debut, the convertible will hit the market in March 2009.

Based on the GranTurismo's platform, itself shortened from the four-door Quattroporte's, the remaining question is what form the convertible will take. Although Maserati is thought to be developing a hardtop convertible, sources suggest the upcoming model will adopt a folding soft top, leaving the door open for a smaller hard-top convertible in the future.

The convertible GranTurismo will fill a void in Maserati's line-up created by the departure of the previous-generation Spyder – which ended production along with the GranSport and Coupe – and will form a vital component to achieving its sales targets. When the final figures come in later this month, Maserati expects to post its first profitable year since being taken over by the Fiat Auto Group some 17 years ago, buoyed by steadily increasing sales: In 2006 Maserati sold 5,714 units, rising to 7,353 units in 2007, anticipated to reach 9,000 in 2008, putting the company on track to reach its target of 12,000 vehicles annually by 2011.

[Source: Automotive News – sub. req'd]

Click the image above for a hi-res gallery of the 1960 Corvette from GT5

GT5 will come with a 1960 Corvette, and we heartily applaud the inclusion. The car looks like it's had an afternoon session at a tuner shop -- nothing fancy, just a slight drop, some rims and wider tires. The rims could be a bit questionable, not in themselves, just on this particular car. However, if the physics have kept up with the tires, then the car will be much easier to drive on the track as opposed to the pencil-thin whitewalls the car wore on the showroom floor. Not that you're going to be flying past any GT-R's, but a nice wind-in-your-helmet lap in a car that requires true finesse to get the best out of it will still be a lot of fun. Click the gallery below for hi-res images of the classic 'Vette.

[Source: PS3 Fanboy]

Click photo for gallery

Fret not. The new Maserati doesn't have issues and isn't in need of therapy or anything. The baggage we're talking about is the kind you pack your clothes and shaving kit in. The slinky new coupe is actually the beneficiary of a little tie-in with Salvatore Ferragamo, which has produced a new five-piece set of fitted luggage inspired by the GranTurismo. To celebrate the car's UK arrival, the set is being displayed in the window of the Salvatore Ferragamo store on London's Bond Street through Christmas Eve. It's the perfect gift for that special someone who pretty much has everything else there is to have already. You can see it in the gallery below, which also contains four nice new hi-res shots of the car. We know that's what you really want to look at anyway.

[Source: Maserati]