GP4: Benetton B197 v1.1 updated

If you’ve downloaded the B197 recently, you’ll know it already features David Marques’ excellent mapping and 4K textures as part of the original release.

While he was preparing the F1 Challenge release (available here), David noticed a detail that deserved a slight correction.

Specifically, the yellow section at the rear of the B197 — an important mark of the colours of Benetton livery — wasn’t matching its real-world reference as closely as it could. Even subtle variations in tone  can be noticeable when compared to period photography or in-game lighting, so David made a quick adjustment which looks a lot better.

All texture files have now been updated to incorporate this change for all races.

You can download the updated version here.

1997 Benetton B197 v1.1

by fongu & David Marques

Download v1.1

GP4: 1997 Benetton B197 Renault by fongu & David Marques

I’m excited to unveil my newest release: the Benetton B197 (1997) in collaboration with the talented David Marques.

If you’ve tried my 1997 Jordan, you’ll notice immediately: this 3D model is on another level. I faced a familiar dilemma every modder knows too well — do I sink countless hours into a hyper-detailed model that could stand proudly in a modern engine? Or aim for something simpler and more in line with an older game’s limits?

This time, thanks to the wealth of reference photos from track-run B197s in recent years, I went for detail!

The result is we have a high quality car, complete with a fully built cockpit, accurate rear-end geometry, diffuser, crash structure, gearbox, and subtle internal components. The best thing is that this car is still within GP4 limits for polygon counts. 

While I tackled the painting on most of the internal elements, David Marques once again elevated the project with his impeccable mapping and paintwork on the main body, plus new 3D bolts, multiple wing specs, and gorgeous full 4K textures. Every race of the 1997 season gets its own unique livery — all thanks to David’s dedication and obsessive eye for historical detail, with help from Quickslick.

Since the B197 evolved directly from the ’96 car — itself evolved from the ’95 championship winner, which I made not too long ago, it helped me recreate some parts quickly and accurately that would usually take me a long time in making parts that are difficult to see from pictures. 

On track, the B197 had flashes of brilliance. Wurz debuted in it and immediately impressed with a podium at Silverstone. Alesi delivered a pole and several strong finishes. And of course, after recovering from illness and reeling from personal tragedy, Berger returned to the cockpit with that unforgettable, inspired victory at the German Grand Prix. This would also be Berger's swansong season finishing a strong fourth place, just shy of the podium at the final round at Jerez. 

This release is for Grand Prix 4 of course, but it is also jointly being released in F1 Challenge. 

I hope you enjoy driving it as much as we enjoyed bringing it back to life.

1997 Benetton B197

by fongu & David Marques

version 1.1 updated February 2026

Download v1.1

GP4: 1995 Ferrari 412T2 now available to download

Today, I release my 1995 Ferrari 412T2 for GP4, one of my favourite cars from the 1990s. The download link is at the bottom of this post.

The car comes ready to replace the original car from the 1995 mod, with low downforce shape and non-tobacco textures, as well as early and late season variations of the airbox logos.

My thanks goes to David Marques who did much more than just paint this car and really making it look fantastic. The car and textures are fully compatible with the F1C car. 

David was able to remap much of the extra parts of the car, including the cockpit and the parts at the rear of the car which enabled them to have a much better texture. 

This is also my first venture into AO shadow maps. I think it looks OK, but there is room for improvement for future works. 

Overall, I'm really pleased with how this car worked out. I hope you enjoy it. 

You can read my previous blog posts on my inspiration and build diary here:  https://fongugp4.blogspot.com/search/label/412T2

GP4: 1995 Ferrari 412T2 v0.9 release

I have finished shaping the car and I have mapped the car ready for painting. Though I enjoyed painting the Ferrari 412T1B, I have to admit it's not my forte, and I simply don't have the time. So I release the car with the wireframe included as an EPS file for the community to paint. 

Please report any bugs, usually there are some.

• I know the mirrors don't work in-game properly
• I know that the second car needs mapping
• and it's missing seatbelts. 

I hope you enjoy this car and I look forward to seeing your textures.

This website is a fantastic source for detailed pictures gurneyflap.com

EDIT: Thanks to David Marques for picking up the painting duties and adding his own details and the car is available here: 

GP4: 1995 Ferrari 412T2 WIP 5

This will be my last WIP update until I finish the car I think, so time to concentrate near the rear end of the car.

GP4 1995 Mod

First up as always is my original 1995 car. As mentioned in the previous posts, Tony (b-tone) had simplified the car before mapping it. The rear wing was not bad.

RR3

Moving onto the Real Racing car, and you can see there is a lot more detail than my original car. There's an additional hole in the engine cover as part of the launch spec. You can see the vents clearly modelled here. The rear wing only has one set of winglets. It is however missing the two bumps near the back of the engine cover.

F1 2017

 The F1 2017 car is very beautifully modelled and pretty accurate.

WIP

For my car, I have more or less followed the contours of the F1 2017 car. Actually, I think the rear end is a little short on the Codies car, so I've extended the rear out a little bit. The vents have 3D grills, just to make them a bit more pronounced. I was tempted to model the late-season winglets, but for simplicity and time, I decided to go with the early season version which I prefer anyway. I don't think you can quite see it from this angle, but there's a nice bit of detail on the leading edge of the rear wing endplates.



Moving onto the rear end of the car, and here's where there isn't much commonality.

GP4 1995 Mod

My original car, has a generic rear end, I can't remember where it was from. It was just bolted on and I built my Ferrari over the top of it.

RR3

The RR3 car extends a little further rearward than the F1 2017 car. Though the diffusers are based on the same early season version, their detail is quite different. They have a put a lot of cables in there which makes it look good, but I can't find any good photos of the area to know whether to copy it or not.
The central diffuser section is great, as is how the rear wing supports integrate with it. But the outboard parts of the diffuser is where I think this falls down. Firstly, it goes too high, it goes too far rearward (should only go the rear axle) and they haven't bothered integrating the lower rear suspension arms, so it just goes through it. The upper arms also penetrate through the rear wing endplates. It's a shame because some of the rear of the car is fantastic. It's also missing the exhaust outlet.

F1 2017

There is also lots of detail on the damage model of the F1 2017 car, although I don't think you get to see much of it in-game. The rear suspension is beautifully modelled, and the exhaust nicely slotted in. The central diffuser section is the same as the RR3 car, though there's less cables. The outboard diffuser area also extends past the rear axle, but I can see that they've done that to fit the lower rear suspension arms in front of the thick end of the wedge shape. The other thing to note is the floor just in front of the rear wheels is quite narrow for some reason, it doesn't line up with the sidepod from top-down view.

WIP

My car is still a work in progress and I've consulted as many photos as I could find, which I've tried to avoid to speed up the process, but I can't help myself. So I've gone for the late season version of the diffuser, with the central section quite standard but with a slot in the central section. The underside of the rear wing endplates has half-holes cut out ready for the suspension when I model it. The outboard diffuser section is as per the rules and pictures that I could find and the rear axle already modelled so that I could line up the diffuser with it. The width of the floor fixed. I will need to introduce a cut out of the rear end of the outboard diffuser so that the lower suspension arms can fit past it. I've also not finished the rear of the bodywork, nor the underside, and I also might add a little more detail like suspension springs and more cables.

GP4: 1995 Ferrari 412T2 WIP 4

In today's WIP update, I wanted to show you the cockpit area. As those who have been modding or plays with mods in GP4 will know, the in cockpit view is a generic shape with a 2D steering wheel with no arms, and that the outboard steering wheels are also 2D as well as 2D driver arms with no good views. So it limits what you can model and play with a little. It's an area I notice on other games that have come on a long way from when I was heavily involved in GP4 modding, so I have included a much more detailed cockpit even though it may not be as well appreciated in-game, at least in this blog there is an outlet to show it to you.

GP4 1995 Mod

Back when the 1995 mod was in development, there were a lot of shared parts, the cockpit being one of them and it allowed cars to be produced much quicker. I think the 1995 generic cockpit is on over 50% of the cars in that mod. The surroundings of the cockpit was also very simple, with a token driver body model.

RR3 (in cockpit)

In looking at the Real Racing 3 files, they too have a more detailed cockpit shape (pictured) and a less detailed, low poly version for the main car. Interestingly, the mirrors are much larger on the in-cockpit view model than on the outside of the car. The dashboard is incredibly detailed, and there is the driver model from the waist down. There is a nice steering wheel though it's not pictured. The cockpit surrounds has this horse-shoe shaped lip across the front of the sidepod, but the inside of the cockpit seems like a little random to me, but the main car has a better modelled seat.

F1 2017

The first thing that jumped out to me about the Codemasters car was the giant mirrors, they are quite exaggerated. The dash is neat and tidy and very detailed, but there's an incredible amount of detail on the steering wheel mount. The seat is much more defined and a proper attempt at the inside of the cockpit compared with the RR3 car.

WIP

GP4 is perhaps not the game to put lots of detail in the cockpit, but with GP4Tweaker, it is possible to get a reasonable cockpit view by amending one of the onboard cameras, but its a little tricky.
The dash is very similar to the 412T1B which I did for GP4, and actually quite a bit of that I used photos for this car as an additional reference. But I decided not to recycle any of those parts and create it from new. Dials and buttons are red to highlight them. The steering wheel mount is a simplified version of the F1 2017 car. From the pictures I've seen, the right side under the dash was a little different from the Codies car, so that is unique to my car. The mirrors are also resized and I think more realistic to the pictures I've seen - they are more rectangular and deeper.

Incidentally since taking this screenshot, I noticed that the top of the monocoque from this angle and also from the T-cam view did not look particularly smooth, so I've since tweaked my poly placement.

Also I tried my generic driver body model and it did not fit in this car. Interestingly in Jean Alesi's interview on the F1 podcast, he mentioned that his unique way of holding the steering wheel at 10 and 2 o'clock positions was a way to fit his arms in the car more than anything else. I was looking to do a new driver body model for my stunted 1994 Williams, so I may do that with this car but lose the upper arms which I have modelled in the past. Anyway, I think I need to put some attention to making the cockpit a little wider.


Moving onto the rear head protection and the seat and airbox area of the cockpit...

GP4 1995 Mod

 Again this is very basic stuff in GP4. There's a generic visor, but the rest of the cockpit is very basic. The cockpit itself doesn't have any detail with a generic low poly driver body. The airbox again is very basic.

Real Racing 3

The Real Racing car has a good cockpit detail, with a nicely detailed head protection, cockpit sides and airbox. The seat is also pretty reasonable too. You can also see the small horizontal triangle where the side of the cockpit narrows into the engine cover.

F1 2017

The Codies car is has more polys than the RR3 version, but contains the same amount of detail, perhaps with a bit more on the seat.

WIP

My car then follows the RR3 structure and shape very closely. I put a bit more detail into the seat to make it more inline with the F1 2017 car. 

1/43 Model Review: 1995 Ferrari 412T2

Background

The 1995 Ferrari challenger was a development of the 1994 car, the Ferrari 412T1, and this would be the last V12 powered Ferrari in Formula One. The car was reasonably competitive, scoring several podiums throughout the year, but was not on par with the Williams or Benetton of that year. They competed for victories at various Grand Prix, such as European and Italian GP, but it was Jean Alesi who would score the only win of the year at the Canadian GP, his only win in Formula 1. They finished 3rd in the Constructors' Championship.

Minichamps

Minichamps 430950027

The Minichamps car sits very far forward in the box. I really like this model from Minichamps. I thought that the shape is pretty generic and simple, but as we will see from other model makers (and my own first attempt at modelling the car for GP4), it's perhaps not as easy as it seems. Anyway, the proportions are great on this car, the front wing has the turning vanes behind it, the rear wing and its stepped double winglets are nicely done. It's a shame that the helmet was so large and for some reason looking down at his legs. For a model of its time at a reasonable budget, I think this is a little gem.

Score: 8/10

Onyx

Onyx 237

Onyx and Minichamps produced the same car back in 1995 offering us a direct comparison. The Onyx car is based on earlier in the season whilst the Minichamps car was based on the mid-season. So just a two element front wing, a sticker for the hole in the engine cover, and only one set of winglets near the rear wheels on this model. The cockpit sits a little far forward, and so the engine cover is elongated as a result to compensate. The model also seems like it was made on a ball rather than a flat surface, with the front of the car pointing down and the rear of the car similarly pointing down, with the middle of the car slightly raised. Because of that, the shape of the nose needs to be higher around the suspension area, and so that looks weird as well. For me, this isn't really that good a model from Onyx.

Score: 4/10

Mattel Elite/Ixo

Mattel T6286

The Mattel car is based on the European GP the exiting race in mixed conditions where Alesi's great car control allowed him to put slick tyres on earlier than anyone else. He was leading the Grand Prix until the final stages when Schumacher forced his way past on a chicane that Schumacher had an input in designing.

The Ixo car is not based on any particular GP. In other blog posts, I've split the two, but as we've noted on multiple occasions, they used the same moulds, so I've combined them in this review. I was hoping for more, considering modelling had come on since the mid-90s, but I was left really disappointed with this model. The car is in general way too tall, particularly that giant airbox. The Mattel car features better decals,  but their attempt at the late season version of the rear wing winglets is laughable, it's truly terrible in how shallow it is. It's all because the sidepod does not taper down at the rear so the modellers couldn't produce an accurate winglet because the rest of the model is so ill-proportioned. The plus side is that the cockpit of the Mattel version is quite nice (of the budget cars I've reviewed so far) and the vents at the rear of the car are nicely detailed and painted.
Score: 5/10

True Scale Models / Fujimi / Looksmart

TSM TSM11FJ012

From what I can tell, these three brands have all released the same version of the model, and I can't really tell them apart. Here is the TSM/Fujimi car above.

Looksmart LSF_ES1701 

Looksmart produced a special limited edition run of 1000 for the Japanese market, this one based on the Canadian GP. The car seems too small for the wheels and tyres or vice versa. I find the nose and monocoque area a little too bulbous and not enough nuance to the actual shape. The front and rear endplates look oversized, with the rear wing so tall it looks like it was still made for the 1994 rules. The camera's are nicely done, the suspension has nice details, the bargeboards are well done and have nice chrome supports. The sidepod is really nice, particularly around the rear of the car and the rolloever bar is really nicely done too. The cockpit detail is nice, and within itself, the proportions are great, but it's a shame they are let down by the rest of the car. The vents at the rear of the car are a little over emphasised for my liking but the diffuser details looks nice. There are parts of the car I'd like to give a 10/10, but the let downs are almost as bad as some of the budget models above.
Score: 8/10

BBR

BBR Met47

This is the Italian GP version, and you can also get the Brazilian GP and Canadian GP versions as well. I do like the Italian GP specific car as it's got a stripped back front wing and rear wing, which are all nicely done on this model. Proportionally, this is of a similar standard to the Minichamps car, nicely done. There's some better details, as you'd expect from BBR on this car, but I feel it could do with a bit more attention to detail and refinement. The shape of the nose is fine, but could be better. The rear vents don't have any detail, but you do get a nice cockpit and seat. Overall, it is better than the Minichamps car as you'd expect and especially for the price, but I suppose I was expecting and hoping for more which would have propelled my mark to a 9.
Score: 8/10

Tameo

Tameo TMK193

Tameo TMK202

The first picture is the Brazilian GP version and the second is from the Canadian GP. I love the Ferrari 412T2 and it's a shame I've spent so much time modelling it, that I'm left deflated by many of the models, with the original mid-90s Minichamps version being a strong contender for my favourite of the lot so far. But trusty old Tameo have knocked it out the park again on their model. For me, it's not perfect, but it's close enough for the scale. The front wing is a masterpiece, the nuances of the front fins, nice separated front wing elements and turning vanes, the nose is spot on. The cockpit is really nice, and all the minor bumps on the headrest and airbox is nicely done too. The opening of the sidepod could be better from top-down view, but that's only a very minor point. The rear of the car is beautifully done, the rear wing and diffuser area is lovely, though, again, I think they could have put a bit more detail into the vent on the engine cover/rear sidepod.

Score: 9/10

GP4: 1995 Ferrari 412T2 WIP 3

It's been a particularly busy month for me, but I have been chipping away at this car when I had a spare half and hour here or there and the car is not too far away from being complete.

In my last post, I was showing a work in progress of the nose, saying that there was still some fine tuning to be done.

WIP

As you can see, I've emphasised the wavy shape on the top part of the nose which you can see from the front view, but from top down, you can see the bottom of the nose is a smooth taper.

WIP

As you can see, I'm pretty happy with the front of the car now and baring any 3D bodylines which I'm still 50/50 in whether to add them or not, but this is pretty much the final version on front half of the car.



The front suspension was only more or less completed last night, but before I show you my new version, let's have a look at the other models.

GP4 1995 Mod

So my original car took Nick Ovey's suspension created for his Jordan 195. It's pretty basic compared to the models you get nowadays, but it had all the elements in a very generic way. The brake ducts on the actual Ferrari are quite unique, where as these are pretty generic.

RR3

The Real Racing car has some good suspension elements with a nice amount of detail, but there was no wheel hub that I could find, so the details kind of stop at a generic plate. What's there though is pretty accurate and is pretty similar to the F1 2017 car.

F1 2017

As you can see there's a lot more detail on the wheel hub itself on the Codies car, as well as more detail on how the suspension attachs to the monocoque. I love the work on the wheel hub on their car.

WIP

As you can see, my car is mostly based on the F1 2017 model. I couldn't help myself with to include all the lovely details on the Codies car though I did not use quite as many polygons. I did however add some of the cables that run along the rear of the lower front suspension arm which are clearer on the shot below. The only thing missing at the moment is the brake disc, which I will take off one my other cars.

WIP

Moving to a shot of the underneath of the nose and quite a nice touch is the mounting of the front element of the lower suspension arm. This is recreated in the Real Racing car...

RR3

and the F1 2017 car...

F1 2017

So of course I had to add my own version. 

WIP

You can see how busy it is from this angle, with the front wing vanes, the bargeboard supports (and there are additional ones that aren't on the F1 2017 that I've added based on photos) and the suspension elements. Again I just couldn't help myself but put a bit of detail in there that I have done for my 1994 cars.

GP4 1995 Mod

Moving to the bargeboard area and the sidepod opening, the original GP4, I rather cheated on the beginning of the sidepod joining the monocoque in that they aren't joined at all. The bargeboard was rather crude, it's very basic.

RR3

The Real Racing car doesn't have any bargeboards, which was how the car was launched. The sidepods are nicely created on this car. 

F1 2017

The F1 2017 car throws lots of polygons at the sidepod opening, and you can see the inside of the sidepod runs quite deep into the car and the radiator, whereas the Real Racing car stops much sooner. Again there are lots of polygons used to make a nice smooth curve on the bargeboard.

WIP

On my car, I continue to use the philosophy of keeping close to the RR3 polygon structure, but keeping close to the Codie's contours. The bargeboard has a lower polygon count, and the Codies car was missing a mount which I have added. For the inside of the sidepod, I have decided not to model too deep, as GP4 doesn't have a lighting algorithm that projects shadows onto itself.