Test Drive 6/Cars

The cars in Test Drive 6 are modeled after their real life counterparts (more or less). Each has distinctive attributes for acceleration, speed, handling, and so on. Some of these attributes have been given a numerical rating (most of the time--but not always--the game's ratings for each car will be very close to the real life specs), but some can only be compared by taking the cars out for a spin. For example, the Caterham 7 and the old Boss 428 have similar enough stats in acceleration and top speed, but what the stat screens don't tell you (even though anyone with a decent knowledge of cars would know this already) is that the Mustang is hundreds (thousands?) of pounds heavier than the Caterham and can really be hard to handle for inexperienced drivers. Meanwhile, the little 7 can zip through corners more easily thanks to its smaller, lighter frame. It's just something to think about--use common sense when picking your vehicle.

Below is a breakdown of all the cars in Test Drive 6. One thing to make note of: the 0 to 60 times are taken from the real life cars' times and are very accurate in that respect. However, with TD6's wacked-out physics, none of the times come close. In the game, a stock '90 Mustang (according to its stats, its 6.1-second 0-60 is tied for the worst) hits 60 mph in 4.1 or 4.2 actual seconds. The Audi TT, also with a reported time of 6.1 but with supposedly more lateral acceleration (0.91G versus 0.85G), takes about a tenth of a second *longer* to get to 60. Go figure. On the other end of the spectrum, the Speed 12 is supposed to take 2.8 seconds to get to 60, but a stock Speed 12 gets there in about 1.2. And, just because you're curious, I should mention that a maxed out Speed 12 tuned for acceleration will get from 0 to 60 in an outright ludicrous 0.7 seconds. The main thing to remember is that although the 0-60 times don't match up with their actual performance, all the stats are still relative from one car to the next. Therefore, the times shown in the game are still quite useful in comparing cars.