1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1 Is a Fun Toy for Tsukuba in GT7

I again powered up the PlayStation 5, thinking I'd unwind after a long week at Tsukuba. I considered buying the slowest car in the game and seeing how far I could push it.

I haven't unlocked engine swaps yet. I've noticed some people using Bugatti engines in smaller cars, and that doesn't feel too realistic, does it? I visited Legends Cars to see what's new there, although my initial budget wasn't that big at just over 800,000 credits.

Pontiac GTO 'The Judge' '69

I considered taking a different route for this test. Instead of using Japanese cars on Japanese soil, I opted for some good old American Muscle. The Pontiac GTO "The Judge" '69 was available for 268,000 credits. I must note that I only used my controller pad throughout the entire test, so you'll surely be able to get faster laps on a steering wheel if you go down that route.

I could already anticipate how the Pontiac would do around Tsukuba. Thanks to a 6.6-liter V8 engine (364 hp), it has plenty of horsepower but is also quite heavy at 3510 lbs (1592 kg). With RWD and a 4-speed gearbox, it's not ideal for the twisty Japanese racetrack. I soon discovered plenty of wheelspin to deal with up until third gear.

It's quite fast in a straight line, and the V8 engine sounds wonderful. But just be careful with your throttle inputs going around any corner, as you'll instantly find yourself sideways, losing precious time in the process. I'm not sure none of this would matter if I could drive a car like this in the real world.

But I suspected a '90s JDM machine would be quite a bit faster. Whereas I set a fast lap of 1:13.248 in The Judge, the Mazda RX-7 GT-X proved slightly more nimble despite having almost half the horsepower at 1:10.778. I know the comparison isn't fair, but let's focus on the Tsukuba perspective only for today, shall we?

Fiat 500 F '68

The Fiat 500 F '68 is one of the slowest cars in Gran Turismo 7. Its 499cc engine is smaller than that of my Suzuki SV650-S, and it only produces 16 BHP. It does have a weight advantage over other vehicles, though, as it weighs 1,100 lbs (520 kilograms). I knew it would be slow around Tsukuba, but I didn't think it would almost make me fall asleep halfway through the track.

Two things surprised me during my first lap: it hit a top speed of 89 kph and was the first car I had driven around this venue that didn't require me to brake before turning into the last corner. Remember, we are talking about a 2,045m-long piece of tarmac. It took me 1:48.875 to finish while using the flying start format.

Tuning your car in GT7 may cost credits, but it doesn't cost dollars (at least if you're not prone to buying credits with real money as some people do). And it's always exciting to see what a series of upgrades can do to a car. I took the little Fiat to the shop with 427,092 credits in my bank account.

Five minutes later, I had spent 200,000 of them on what may have been the silliest thing I've done since I installed the game. With all the possible performance upgrades, I increase its output to 64 bhp while decreasing its weight to 1,031 lbs (468 kg). While at it, I figured no modified car would be complete without a cool paint job and some wheels.

I painted it like a Hot Wheels Super Treasure Hunt in the virtual world, installed a set of Enkei rims, and gave it the wide body kit treatment. I was aiming for a sub-80-second lap, which I got at 1:15.874. It took me three laps to understand how the car behaves after all those upgrades: it's rather sketchy due to the short wheelbase. Once you go off-throttle, it's almost a nightmare around the corners, or at least it felt like one without using the steering wheel.

Ford Mustang Mach 1 '71

The car I was most eager to test was the Ford Mustang Mach 1 '71. I drove it just after the '23 Tesla Model 3 Performance, which required 64 seconds to do a full lap. Right off the bat, I could feel the Mach 1 was slightly underpowered compared to The Judge. But that's only normal, considering it packs a 5.7-liter V8 with just over 300 horsepower.

Underpowered doesn't always mean slower, though, and driving was much more exciting than the Pontiac. It felt more modern and stable (even though it can go sideways just as easily). In stock form, I was just 0.05 seconds slower in the Mustang than in the GTO. (that may be down to practice time, too). I knew a visit to the shop would make it even better, even though I decided not to boost it in any way.

I spent almost all my credits upgrading the brakes, suspension, tires, gearbox, and body. The final result was rather satisfying: 401 bhp and 1,195 kg. Still, I didn't expect it would instantly join Tsukuba's "Gone In 60 Seconds" Club.

I severely misjudged this car's capabilities, and I'm sure using a steering wheel would bring the lap time down to 58 seconds or less. Now, if I can only find the right color combo for it before I take on multiple tracks around the virtual Gran Turismo 7 world.