Gran Turismo 7’s 1.71 update landed just a few days ago, and while four new cars is a fairly modest haul, the changes underneath are anything but: this is the biggest shake-up to the game’s physics since update 1.49 back in 2024, with new behavior for tires, suspension, steering, and input devices.
Our forum members have spent the last few days figuring out exactly what’s changed, what’s better, and what needs work. The main update thread alone has racked up nearly 900 replies, so consider this your guided tour of the discussion and an open invitation to jump in yourself.
The Physics: A Genuine Improvement
The general consensus, particularly among road car fans, is that the new physics model is a step forward. One word that keeps coming up is “progressive”, with the transition between grip and slip no longer an on/off switch.
Grip overall seems to be smoother and more “progressive”, as others have pointed out. It isn’t the on/off switch it was before, and it feels really good to drive FR cars. For race cars, the GR010 Hybrid which was notorious for the terrible power oversteer it had at low speed feels much better now, for example.
TL;DR: Much better handling physics, overall.
For drifters, it might be even bigger.
Personally, I’d rate the new physics a 10/10.
I love drifting and have enjoyed it in other simulators and sim-cades like Forza, AC, and LFS.
However, in GT titles since GT4, the transition between losing and regaining grip felt incredibly “peaky”—almost like an on/off switch. It was impossible to drift properly anywhere other than on gravel, let alone enjoy it. (Since I’m playing on PS4, the lack of trigger feedback is likely one of the contributing factors.)However, the new physics have greatly improved this issue, allowing for smoother tail slide control, similar to the aforementioned games, and finally making drifting freely enjoyable in Gran Turismo.
Intentionally pulling the handbrake to drift for fun during a race? That was something unthinkable for years!
GTalaune, a self-described critic of GT7’s handling, went as far as comparing the new feel favorably to GT Sport, describing sliding as “more progressive and natural in a very satisfying way.”
There’s methodical testing going on, too. lbpomg95 ran back-to-back Nürburgring laps in a tuned Mk4 Supra, beat their pre-update pace on their very first post-update attempt, while Bonneville120, midway through the Le Mans endurance race from the Power Pack, catalogued shorter braking distances, slower tire wear, and AI that finally obeys blue flags.
Not everyone is convinced, of course: ArronWestley finds road cars too soft even with stiffness maxed out, concluding that “all chassis are made of papier mache honestly.” The long-running Gran Turismo 7 Physics thread is where the deepest analysis is happening, and it’s well worth a read.
The Controller Question
Update 1.71 didn’t just change the physics; it changed how standard controllers translate your inputs into steering, throttle, and brakes. For pad players who make up a significant portion of the player base, those two changes arrived tangled together, and untangling them has become its own discussion.
The most common observation is a wiggle when the steering returns to center.
The main thing I’ve noticed is the car seems to wiggle when steering centres. So if I do a slight dab of the steering, it feels like the auto-centre is a lot more aggressive than previously? I’m not sure I’m explaining this correctly tbh. But rather than a more gradual return to centre, it’s feels a lot more digital now to me.
They’re not alone, and several players report that lowering in-game steering sensitivity helps take the edge off. It’s worth noting plenty of pad players still count themselves as fans of the update overall: Voodoovaj reckons controller sensitivity “has finally been fixed”, and SoulSilvera’s glowing impressions above came from a controller too.
Dirt Is a Sore Spot
If there’s one area where the reaction has been consistently rough (pun intended), it’s dirt racing, especially on controller. Buckethead75 doesn’t mince words:
Dirt racing is completly broken, at least on a pad. It’s like the game is constantly trying to correct the steering when the car slides, despite all assists being turned off. The results is the car is zig zaging all the time even though I’m not touching the pad.
But the more I drive with this update the more I feel this is also impacting road racing, just a lot less.
Highlandor tested a stock Lancer Evo on dirt tires to isolate the variables, and came away mourning what the discipline used to be:
I’m not a huge rally fan, but it’s always been fun, alot of fun. Once you learnt the track and brake/turn in points, being able to ‘throw’ a car into the corner then trying to balance and steer on the throttle…
Now it’s just horrid, really bad.
What a shame, the rallying was a genuine alternative to really having ‘fun’ if you got a bit tired of road/race cars and just wanted something different.
Nakano219 singles out the tarmac sections of the Barcelona Rallycross layout (home of the update’s new Circuit Experience) as “absolute knife-edge death traps.”
Given that this week’s Weekly Challenges include dirt running, this conversation isn’t going away.
Throw Away Your Tunes
The update’s new default suspension, differential, aero settings, along with changes to Performance Point calculations have made virtually every existing tune and custom race out of date. suomi1 captures both sides of that coin in one post:
As an example, they totally destroyed again Gr.1 cars, or at least all of the Hypercars which are now 20km/h slower in the straight lines and 5 seconds a lap slower at Le Mans.
Changes made to the physics are really good as a controller player. The downside being all my setups are to be thrown away, as are all my custom race grids….
Add in the across-the-board reset of event leaderboards and target times, and there’s a lot of re-learning to do.
Over in the Online Time Trial thread, pabloprp69 sums up the first session back: “After hearing some first impressions of our community, I jumped into the game after the update… and wow… they weren’t kidding.”
The New Cars (and Their Customization Options)
Amid all the physics talk, the update’s four new cars have quickly built a devoted following of their own, unsurprisingly led by the Toyota siblings of the Chaser Tourer V and Mark II Tourer V.
The star attraction is the sheer volume of customization. Razgriz2118 has catalogued the full options list for both Toyotas, and WanganDream spotted a lovely detail: the Mark II’s optional yellow taxi roof sign. The livery makers wasted no time either, with Imbissbrunto recreating Toyota Team TOM’s 1998 JTCC racers within a day of the update.
The Caterham gets some customization love, too, and you can even put a suitcase on the back.
The star car of this update gets a cornucopia of goodies.
This must be the most customisable car in the game. Thanks PD! 👍🏼
As for the returning Caterham Seven Superlight R500, Cowboy predicts it’s “gonna make for some really fun one make racing”, though time trialists wrestling it around the new Caterham event are less charmed. rheinaoi speaks for them:
The Cateram’s persistent skittishness annoys me on a deep personal level. I may learn to hate the car by the end of this TT. Decreasing controller sensitivity has helped. I may turn on counter-steer assist later.
At least the Cateram feels much better than the BAC Mono… Though, truthfully, the Mono set that bar in hell.
Join the Conversation
Three days in, the community is still mapping the edges of this update, and the Undocumented Changes thread is always turning up new details.
Whether the new physics have won you over, the controller feel has you reaching for the settings menu, or you’ve simply fallen for the Chaser, the discussion is happening right now in our GT7 forum. See you there!
See more articles on Gran Turismo 7 Game Update and GTPlanet Community Spotlight.