2011 Monster Sport Suzuki SX4 

What do you get with a 3.1-liter twin-turbocharged V6 with a monstrous 897 horsepower and a rear spoiler the size of your average Manhattan apartment? A new record on the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, that's what. The 2011 Monster Sport Suzuku SX4, driven by Tobuhiro "Monster" Tajima, claimed the first sub-ten minute climb at 2011's running of the annual hill climb in Colorado. To put some context to the record: that's nearly 12.5 miles, 156 turns, and an average seven percent grade over gravel and paved surfaces alike. All in under ten minutes, or 9:51.278 to be precise, a time that bested the previous record (also set by Tajima) by more than ten seconds. You'll be able to experience the raw fury of the Monster Sport Suzuki SX4 yourself in Forza 4. Might we suggest a run on the biggest hill of all in Forza 4--Fuimi Kaido--as your first baptism by fire? After all, the SX4 knows its hills… 

2011 Mazda RX-8 R3 

Though the 2011 Mazda RX-8 will be the last production model of the RX-8 series, it appears to be going out with a bang. The 1.3 liter engine is capable of 232 horsepower, a top speed north of 130 mph, and a 0-60 time of around seven seconds. The six-speed manual transmission and light weight make for a responsive ride and there's no denying the pleasing whines of that rotary engine. It might be going away, soon to be replaced by Mazda's next sports coupe, but you'll be able to enjoy the RX-8's swan song in Forza 4 for years to come.

2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor 

Here's a tip, Forza 4 fans: Once as you purchase a 2011 Ford F-150 SVT Raptor in Forza Motorsport 4, get yourself to the "Aero and Appearance" upgrade menus as quick as you can, because there are some gems to be found. From extra headlamps up front and on the roof to an open bed in the back complete with a pair of thick-treaded tires, the visual options for the already menacing-looking Raptor are a treat for fans of pickup fans and sweet-looking rides alike. The Raptor will please driving fans too; it's a three-ton monster with more than 400 horsepower and an engine that sounds like it woke up on the wrong side of the garage. In fact, with all that growling power and the unique FORD logo embedded in the grill, it's precisely the last car your opponent will want to see up close and personal in his rear view mirror. 

1967 Chevrolet Chevelle SS-396 

The '67 Chevelle SS-396 introduced a number of improvements to the then-three-year old Chevelle model line including improved tires, better steering response and optional front disc brakes. While the three-speed automatic was standard, the Chevelle you'll drive in Forza features the four-speed option, 375 horsepower, V8, which was a dealer-installed conversion fitted into just a few hundred of the SS-396 models at the time. That rip-roaring power pushing a chunky hunk of Detroit steel weighing more than 3,500 pounds makes the '67 Chevelle a classic piece of American muscle car heritage and a car that's just as fun to listen to as it is to slide around a track. 

1977 Ford Escort RS1800 

With a storied history in rallying and a body style that's ripe for race replica paints (or whatever style you like, really), the 1977 Ford Escort RS1800 should prove as desirable in Forza 4 as it is by Ford enthusiasts and collectors in real life. Begun in 1975, the RS1800 used the legendary Cosworth 1.8L BDA engine, which churns out 115 horsepower, and powered its way to multiple rally wins and a couple of World Championships.

NVIDIA announced that system builders worldwide are now shipping the fastest PC gaming platforms ever built, thanks in part to NVIDIA(R) SLI(R) technology and the just-released Intel Core i7 Extreme Edition processors and X79 chipset-based motherboards.

The combination of NVIDIA SLI technology -- which allows for multiple GPUs to run on a single PC -- and new X79-based motherboards allow gamers to customize their PC experience with up to four NVIDIA GeForce(R) GTX GPUs, including the GeForce GTX 580 and GTX 570, the world's fastest DX11 GPUs. Licensed by the world's leading motherboard manufacturers -- including Intel, ASUS, ASRock, EVGA, Foxconn, Gigabyte and MSI, SLI technology is crucial for playing this year's hottest graphics-intensive games, such as the recently released Battlefield 3 and upcoming Batman: Arkham City with detail, resolution and immersion settings cranked up.

"Falcon's entire desktop lineup will be moving to Sandy Bridge-E, and NVIDIA SLI technology was an absolute necessity for every model we make," said Kelt Reeves, president of Falcon Northwest. "It was critical for us to offer our clients multi-GPU options, and pairing Sandy Bridge's monstrous new CPU horsepower with SLI's monstrous graphics power will give gamers and enthusiasts smoother frame rates and a better visual experience."

Simbin has released the newest title of the RACE-series as RACE Injection is now available for purchase.

RACE Injection pairs up the content of RACE07 with all the content that was released as expansion packs earlier this year.

The result is a rich selection of cars and tracks, including the 2010 WTCC & STCC seasons, historical machinery and lots more. You can check out a full list of the new content and a video trailer below.

RACE Injection is now available in stores in many European countries, the title is also available for purchase on the  RaceRoom.net website, selling for 29.99€.

CARS

GT Power

• Pagani Zonda R
• BMW M3 GT2
• Matech GT

RETRO – Historic classics

• ’68 Volvo Amazon
• ’72 Volvo P1800 ES
• ’71 BMW 2002
• ’68 Mini Cooper S
• ’71 Opel Commodore GS 3001
• ’73 BMW 3.0 CSL
• ’74 Chevrolet Corvette
• ’70 Chevrolet Camaro

Official WTCC 2010

• Chevrolet Cruze
• Seat Leon TDI
• BMW e90 320i 2009eugeot 308

Formula RaceRoom

• RR1

Official STCC 2010

• Opel Astra
• VW Scirocco
• Toyota Corolla T-Sport
• Chevrolet Cruze
• Alfa Romeo 156
• BMW 320si e90 2008
• BMW 320si e90 2009
• Chevrolet Lacetti
• Honda Accord Euro-R
• Volvo C30
• Seat Leon TSFI
• Volvo S60
• BMS Incognito

Mauro Delegà has finished the work on his impressive Imola 2010 for netKar Pro track project and announced the date of the upcoming release.

Starting next Thursday, all netKar Pro owners will be able to experience the Italian Grand Prix venue that has been built completely from scratch. To shorten the waiting time, below is a new preview video of the track.

Steel Series has released plenty of info on their new SRW-S1 “wheel” controller that has been developed in co-operation with SimRaceWay.

The SRW-S1 is a crossover between gamepad and steering wheel, giving players better control over braking, throttle and steering than using a keyboard or gamepad while not coming with the confines of a full wheel set up.

The cable-bound controller is shaped like a wheel and comes with rubber hand grips and plenty of buttons and dials as well as a LCD rev-meter. Needless to say, the controller does not offer any kind of Force Feedback but might be an interesting alternative for those who want to race in an environment that forbids real sim gear to be used (offices etc.).

Steel Series promises compatibility with all major PC titles and real plug & play without configuration hassle. Right now, the SRW-S1 is only available in the United States, selling for ¢119.99.

BigBen interactive has announced to be publishing the newest edition of the legendary Test Drive franchise, titled “Test Drive Ferrari”.

Following the two open-world Test Drive Unlimited titles developed by Eden Games, the new title apparently centers around the iconic Italian sports car make.

U.S. Gran Turismo producer Taku Imasaki shared an interesting statistic about the game’s recent batch of new content, which included Spa Francorchamps and 15 new cars. As of November 3rd, two weeks and two days since its European release, it had received over 1 million downloads.

A while back, Eurogamer ran a report revealing that full-resolution stereoscopic 3D using the HDMI 1.4 standard was coming to the Xbox 360. Five months on, Batman: Arkham City is the first shipping game to utilise it.

Previously there has been some confusion as to whether the Xbox 360 hardware is physically capable of carrying the HDMI 1.4 stereoscopic 3D signal. There was some concern that the older HDMI 1.2 standard supported by the Xbox 360 couldn't be extended in the same way that the HDMI 1.3 controller in the PlayStation 3 was repurposed to support the new standard.

However, the release of Batman: Arkham City confirms that from a hardware perspective, any Xbox 360 with an HDMI port can offer the same level of support as the PlayStation 3. Our analysis of the game confirms that the two consoles are both outputting the same 1280x1470 60Hz signal. This comprises of two native 720p images, with 30 lines of blanking information between them.

Ferrari has released the “Adrenaline Pack” for the official Ferrari Virtual Academy simulation, adding two new cars to the simulation.

The pack adds the Ferrari F150, Ferrari’s current Formula One challenger, as well as the Ferrari F458 Challenge car to the netKar Pro-powered simulation.

The F150 comes with full simulation of DRS and KERS, the pack does not add any new tracks or other features though. The Virtual Academy only offers hot lapping as the title features no AI or online mod to race against other players.

The Adrenaline Pack sells for 9.90€ for existing Virtual Academy owners, existing owners also receive the Nürburgring & Mugello if they don’t own it already.

Sim racers who have missed out on Virtual Academy can buy a complete package for 19.90€, containing not just the two new cars but also the Ferrari F10 and three tracks (Mugello, Fiorano and the Nürburgring).

If you haven’t checked out Virtual Academy yet, make sure to read the VirtualR review of the initial release.

Slightly Mad Studios have announced a new licensing deal with Caterham as their WMD-powered Project CARS title will feature three of the British company’s lightweight sports cars.

Project CARS Team Members will soon be able to drive both the Caterham Classic and the R500 Superlight, both based on the legendary Lotus Seven. While the Classic is powered by a 105bhp Rover engine, the R500 Superlight is powered by a two-liter Ford engine putting out 263hp and helping the nimble Caterham to race car-like performance.

The third car in the mix is a true race car as Caterham’s brand new SP/300.R is build in co-operation with Lola Cars.