Autumn Ring Is Back: Gran Turismo 7's Spec IV Update Digs Into the Series' Roots
Polyphony Digital is bringing the classic Autumn Ring circuit back to Gran Turismo for the first time in 13 years. The Spec IV update also adds a dozen new cars and the real-life Sportsland Sugo track, rolling out in two parts in October and December.
Ana Horvat
Friday, September 4, 2026
Autumn Ring. If you played the early Gran Turismo games, you probably just heard tyre squeal in your head. That tight, twisty original circuit was where so many of us learned that braking points are a thing - and after 13 years away, it's finally coming back.
Polyphony Digital has revealed that Gran Turismo 7's next big update, called Spec IV, brings Autumn Ring home to the series. And it's not travelling alone: the update packs a dozen new cars, plus the series debut of Sportsland Sugo, a real Japanese circuit that racing fans have been asking about for ages. Polyphony says there's a variety of other features coming too.
The rollout happens in two parts. The first, in October, brings Sportsland Sugo, six of the new cars and the fresh features; Autumn Ring itself headlines the second part in December - so the whole package is here before the year is out.
Why this one got me
Honestly, original GT circuits are a special kind of nostalgia. Real-world tracks are wonderful, but Polyphony's fictional courses were designed purely to be fun to drive - no compromises for safety runoffs or grandstands, just corners that flow into each other like a good song. Autumn Ring was one of the best at that. Seeing it rebuilt with everything GT7 can do on PS5 - the lighting, the surface detail, the way the trees catch the sun - is the kind of glow-up I'll happily lose an evening to.
And I love that this is all still free, ongoing support for a game that launched back in 2022. Gran Turismo 7 has quietly become one of the best examples of a live game done right: no drama, just steady updates that keep giving players reasons to come back. Twelve new cars across the two drops is generous, and adding a real circuit like Sugo alongside a fan-favourite original shows Polyphony is listening to both camps - the sim purists and the people who just miss the old days.
So my autumn plan basically writes itself: October is the Sugo warm-up, and then in December I'm taking something small and nimble around Autumn Ring, badly, with a huge grin on my face.
Image: Alexander Migl / CC BY-SA 4.0, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mercedes-Benz_AMG_Vision_Gran_Turismo_DSC_8420.jpg