The Polyphony Digital masterpiece Gran Turismo is always a hot topic among racing game aficionados, so here's something more to talk about - we've got more details on the upcoming Gran Turismo 5 to make the release-waiting much less bearable and the game much more incredible.

Dutch PS3 community site PS3 Sense managed to get the goods on GT5, and this is what they've managed to gather:

• "...we can work with NASCAR"
• Official license from the WRC
• Car damage
• "Full freedom" for car customization
  
• Web browser to buy parts for your car

Car damage really isn't new to the genre, but the source indicates that the cars "can also piece" which could mean that being a bad driver or a being a victim of one can take bits and pieces out of your ride. Since this is Gran Turismo, I think it's even possible for the shrapnel to damage other cars, but that's just my theory.

What interests me here is the "Full freedom" for customization. The translation is a bit hazy, but it might be possible for GT5 to allow engine switching. It's pretty vague at this point. The translation says "...if you have a Ferrari, you can also stop an Audi engine." In the context of the sentence, full customization and detailing is being described, and it doesn't appear to be talking about Ferraris stopping Audis. It's more like Ferraris sporting Audi engines.

A very interesting feature. If you could switch engines, then it presents many variables to the game. For instance, the GT-R Skyline would lose its 4WD power advantage since you could stuff the engine into a lighter body. Speaking of stuffing engines, I'm also wondering about the implementation of engine bay size limits, or if "full customization" holds true and you can stuff anything under your hood.

Right now, Gran Turismo 5 is in revving and ready for release, but Polyphony is still making sure that everything - not just the cars - is running smoothly. If they add some more features or if they reinforce the ones we already know about, we'll let you know.

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More on Gran Turismo 5:

• Yamauchi speaks: weather changes, night racing in Gran Turismo 5
• E3 2009: Gran Turismo 5 could be released any time, PS3-PSP connectivity planned for GT-PSP, GT5