Forza Horizon starter cars: how do the games compare through the series?

We've taken a look at the Forza Horizon 5 starter cars and we're excited to get driving in Mexico! For the first time, there will be no regrets as all three starter cars will be added to your garage.

But how does this compare to previous Forza Horizon games? Let's take a look!

Forza Horizon

For the original Forza Horizon game there was no choice of starter car. Everyone's first racing in Colorado was in the Volkswagen Corrado VR6.

In many ways, it makes a lot of sense to start everyone in the same car. At this point in the game it's hard to know what vehicles will suit the style of racing you're more interested in, so this levels the playing field.

The Corrado is a pretty good car to learn the basics of Forza Horizon as it has plenty of grip and the very forgiving front wheel drive format. It also gives plenty of scope to upgrade!

Forza Horizon 2

Our second trip to the Horizon festival was the first with a choice of starter car. The three options were:

• BMW Z4 sDrive35is
• Toyota Supra RZ
• Chevrolet Camaro SS Coupe

Any of the three are an upgrade on the Corrado of the previous game, but the Camaro does lack the handling of the other two. The races on offer depended on your choice of vehicle, so it was actually quite a significant choice for the first few hours of your playing.

Personally I think I went for the Supra RZ, which is a well-balanced machine and put me into the Street Rivals championship. The downside of the Supra was that if you were just keen to sell your first car and buy your own choice of vehicle, the Supra was the lowest value.

The BMW had the best resale value of the three and also the highest PI, being an A class car. It was probably the best option for experienced Forza players.

Forza Horizon 3

As the festival moved down under, we were taken to the beach to choose between four potential starter cars. These choices were:

• Ford Shelby GT250R
• Nissan Silvia Spec-R
• BMW M4 Coupe
• HSV Limited Edition Gen-F GTS Maloo

All of these are significantly more powerful than the Corrado of the original Horizon game, and also benefit from rear wheel drive so you can get sideways from the start!

I remember I chose the Nissan, primarily because of its huge wheel arch flares and otherwise discreet looks. They were all great options!

Forza Horizon 4

In Great Britain, the choice of starter cars was slightly toned down from the previous instalment. We were back to three options:

• Ford Focus RS
• Audi TTS Coupe
• Dodge Charger R/T

Aside from the styling, essentially you were choosing between front, four, or rear wheel drive. I picked the Charger, which seemed like the most fun option.

While the Ford and Audi are pretty common sights on British streets, driving a Dodge through the Lake District landscape and Edinburgh seemed like a bit of a novelty at the time. Certainly on my trip to the Forza Horizon 4 settings I didn't see any retro American muscle!

Forza Horizon 5

The fifth Horizon game breaks the mould in terms of starter cars. This time around, you get to keep all three and so it doesn't matter which you pick to drive initially.

These choices are:

• Ford Bronco
• Chevrolet C8 Corvette Stingray
• Toyota GR Supra

Which one will you drive first?