Road Tripping My 1.5JZ Toyota To the Lake District and Forza 4 Horizon Comparisons

I recently took a trip up to Lake District with my partner and son to catchup with my sister and some of my other family that live up there - I say up there as I'm based down the South of the UK!

Might be down there for you lot above in Scotland, or North Wales.

Specifically, Lake Windermere.

For those that haven't been there, it is incredibly beautiful and I have always found that pictures don't do the place justice. For those that have been there - no explanation is needed. I have been there previously to see family in Kendal and they took us round some of the local places as well so I have a good feeling for the place.

If you aren't familiar with the Lakes - Everywhere you look is another potential scenic picture for a post card or a massive print or picture you would enjoy having on your wall at home.

For the most part, we were in and around Bowness-on-Windermere as that's where my sister lives and works at a small Hotel there, So she was essentially our Tour guide while we were down there.

If any of my fellow petrol heads want a good idea/feel for the place in real time that don't live in the UK or have not made it there- you can get a good idea if you play Forza Horizon 4!

Lake Windermere is essentially the big Lake over to the left of the Forza 4 map. Ambleside is at the top of the map and it is a pretty accurate representation of the place - of course the game has been designed with drivability in mind, but the buildings are accurate and the shoreline and what you see from the shoreline is pretty accurate too. Bowness would be towards the bottom of the map and off to the left, but of course that isn't accessible in the game- but geographically and scenically it is quite accurate for sure.

While Edinburgh in the game isn't the full one with all the suburbs etc, its got the core of it in there and again, visually- it is a very accurate representation and the game really does capture the feel of the place- having been to the Lakes end of 2024 and visiting the place- then playing it in the game- I did recognise the landmarks I walked around and the bars and cafe's I visited and walked past. Obviously its not one to one with licensing and permissions stuff in mind, but the shop fronts and in particular The Royal Mile are definitely representative, beautifully rendered and very visually appealing and accurate in Forza 4. I'm definitely excited to see Forza's interpretation of Japan in the upcoming Forza 6 if Forza 4 is anything to go by!

We took the Soarer up there and it was the perfect car for the journey- we had managed to pack over a weeks worth of stuff in the boot for the 3 of us, and it was a smooth, quiet, comfortable grand tourer when it needed to be, with ample power, torque and theatre when the mood took me too for the overtakes and nicer roads as we got down there.

The low to mid-range torque that the 1.5jz configuration has is perfect for the motorway pulls and flowing corners on the dual carriageways, you're always riding the nice boost curve in 4th and 5th gear on a cruise.

It was a genuine pleasure to drive it there - but not so much for the roads at the place!

While the car is narrow, the roads are very narrow too. Since I was last up there with my own car (which was 2018 i think, when i had a Nissan Skyline R32GTS-t) - the roads have definitely deteriorated like much of the UK and some of the potholes were like portals to the underworld- so even if I saw a nice bit of road ahead, I would still be driving no more than 30 mph at some points just incase one of those caverns cropped up.

The length of the Soarer could sometimes make navigating the small roads and small entrances to places a pain, particularly if they had a steep rise as the car is low and the front over hang in particular is very long. This is one place where the small cars/SUVS and anything 4X4 owned the road, I was a massive inconvenience to them in my massive, low GT car. There was a particular issue after using a small Ferry Crossing where I really struggled to get off the other side without scraping- Much to the enjoyment of a huge group of cyclists about to go onboard to head back the opposite way- I was also stuck in the car with how closely the cars were cramped on the barge and the big soarer doors not giving me enough space to get out.

Fortunately this crossing was only about 10 minutes and the guys clearly had experience with low and big cars having the same issues I did as they expertly guided me off the other side! Overall the car was perfect for the long journey, but definitely not perfect when you get to the small country roads and navigating the tiny streets there. Some of the potholes were absolute wheel and suspension busters- But I think my decent Works Wheels and Toyota's build quality with strong suspension and chassis components did me a solid here. I think some of the poor roads I encountered this time up there with my rose jointed suspension and Rota wheels on the Skyline could've spelt disaster!

Of course - as a Petrol Head, it would be rude not to visit the Lakeland Motor Museum aswell since that was just up the road from where we were staying - That will be spread out across a few parts as there is a lot to share! Dont forget to share, like and subscribe if you enjoyed this and be sure to comment below with any questions or queries :)