Sony recently released Patch 1.10 for Gran Turismo Sport on PlayStation 4, and with it the introduction of the new ‘GT League’ mode and 12 new cars. While we were glad to see cars like the Mazda FD RX-7 and Nissan Skyline R34 GT-R reintroduced back into the game, we were surprised to see the Volkswagen Samba Bus has also returned – and this gave us an idea for a Top Gear style challenge.
Remember the Top Gear Nurburgring van challenge back in Series 6 Episode 7? For those who missed it, Richard Hammond went to the Nurburgring to see if professional racing driver Sabine Schmitz could complete a lap of the track in under 10 minutes… driving a Ford Transit van!
When tuned, the Samba can easily post a sub 10-minute lap (bridge to gantry), and even under 8-minutes 40-seconds if you push hard enough. So this gave us an idea for a challenge, open to all you Gran Turismo Sport players out there…
Can you lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife in under 8:40 driving a van?
The rules to this challenge are very simple:
- You must select ‘Arcade’ > ‘Time Trial’ mode (no other cars on track allowed).
- You must select the Nurburgring Nordschleife Tourist Layout circuit.
- You must use the Sambabus Typ 2 (T1) ’62 vehicle from your garage.
- You have to set a time on Lap 1 without any additional run-up. So basically when the game says ‘START’ you simply have to go for it!
- Just like on Top Gear, the ‘lap’ is Bridge to Gantry as per the video above.
- Any and all car modifications are allowed – you’re going to need all of them!
- Upload your video to YouTube and provide a link in the comments below.
- If you break any of the above rules your time won’t count. Good luck!
This challenge will test every ounce of your Gran Turismo Sport ability – as you’ll be forced to tune the Samba to achieve the very best performance possible, and then drive it on the absolute limit in order to achieve a sub 8:40 lap time. All it takes is one small slip up or even a mis-timed gear shift to fail.
You’re going to need to max-out your Samba’s Power Level and Weight Reduction Level, fit a set of Racing Super Soft tyres and also play around with the van’s suspension settings to help you achieve the fastest time. Oh, and most importantly, fit a Fully Customised Transmission and tweak your gear ratios.
You’re also going to need extensive Nurburgring track knowledge and try to drive the path of least resistance at all times – keep off the curbs and try to follow the shortest, fastest racing line possible. Carry as much speed as you can – because you’re going to need every single bit of it!
Good luck and let us know how you went in the comments below.