On track modeling:
- Gran Turismo software designers typically spend at least one week at the track capturing data. Most of this is spent taking measurements, capturing hours of video, and taking up to 80,000 photos.
- The team uses architectural plans and blue prints to build the track model.
- Afterwards, it takes the team at least one year to graphically model the track.
- Yamauchi claims the accuracy of his teams track topography is +/- 1 cm.
- The Nurburgring took them a month to do, because all measurements had to be taken at night, when the road was not in use. During the day, they shot all the photos.
- Yamauchi claims most car manufacturers do not have the level of information they have on certain tracks.
On crash damage:
- GT5 Prologue will not support crash damage, although it is in their future plans.
- Given the time and expense they go to to make sure even the smallest details are accurate, you can understand why crash damage is such a massive undertaking. (Consider that there isn't a lot of data about crashing a Ferrari 599 at 150mph. How would you find out what the fender does, without crashing one?)
- Accurate damage simulation is Yamauchi's dream.
On what he'd like to be able to do in Gran Turismo that he can't do now:
"There are many many things we'd still like to work on - that we can't get our heads around - but let's say in real life, you're driving and you hit a thunderstorm and suddenly it starts raining. And then it clears up. Sun is coming through the clouds. The car in front of you is creating a water screen and sun rays are hitting it. Not just the weather aspect, but the replication of that - you know, the waterscreen that the car in front of you creates, and the way it sparkles. Things like that."
On the new cars:
- Ferrari is in.
- Porsche - still not.
- Lamborghini - maybe.
- Formula 1 cars are still not even a remote possibility (Thanks Bernie!)
We ended our conversation with an discussion of Yamauchi's relationship with the new Nissan GT-R. As is well documented, Yamauchi is quite the car nut. He personally owns many exotic sports car, and is a big fan of the GT-R. Given his expertise, it was quite natural that the GT-R's chief engineer and product planner, Kazutoshi Mizuno, would tap him to join their R&D team to help develop the user interface of the GT-R's trick multifunction display (MFD).
Yamauchi and his team of five engineers dealt with the design and layout of only the menu system governing the vehicle dynamics aspect of the multifunction display. They were not involved with the Carwings navigation aspect, and hence, there is little integration between the two -- which is unfortunate. But, there was a lot of ground to cover - the GT-R's MFD has five modes and sixteen pages of information, covering everything from exhaust gas temperature and boost pressure, to lateral acceleration, lap times, and individual wheel traction.
Yamauchi is very proud of his involvement with the legendary GT-R. And well he should be. In fact, he has already put money down on Vibrant Red GT-R with the Premium package. He doesn't know which chassis number he will receive, but he says Nissan has told him he'll get his early -- within the first week the cars start delivery in Japan. Odds are pretty good that it will be a low chassis number too, given his connections. When the Ford GT went on sale, Yamauchi scored No. 33. When the 350Z came out in Japan, Yamauchi received chassis No. 3. You'd expect nothing less from a true car enthusiast.
Special thanks to Tsubasa Inaba for his translation skills.