Forza Horizon 5 guide for beginner racers

This Forza Horizon 5 guide has all the basics covered for beginner racers and Horizon Festival novices, helping you to top the podium and eventually reach the Hall of Fame. It’s a complex journey to the top because FH5 features a wide array of activities that can boost your reputation in the festival, so it’s not just about racing and being the fastest.

With a massive open world version of Mexico to explore, there are also lots of challenges to complete and secrets to find as you drive around, be they limited-time treasure hunts or Barn Finds waiting to be discovered. Below, you’ll find all of our Forza Horizon 5 guides to help you have fun behind the wheel.

Forza Horizon 5 tips and tricks

Whether you’re a novice driver or a podium-pro, these Forza Horizon 5 tips will help you get comfortable in the driver’s seat. It includes tips on what assists to use, how to progress through the race series, and how to spend your Skill Points and Credits.

Forza Horizon 5 cars

There’s a massive selection of cars available to buy and unlock so we’ve compiled a Forza Horizon 5 car list of every car in the game – there are over 500 for you to collect!

With so many motors to choose from, you’ll want to spend your hard-earned Credits on the best Forza Horizon 5 cars to help you dominate the competition and get even greater race winnings. Some of these cars are extremely expensive and difficult to unlock, so you definitely need to save up a fair bit, or hope that you get lucky with a Wheelspin prize.

Forza Horizon 5 Barn Finds

As one of the most coveted collectible types in the game, you’ll want to know where you can find all the Forza Horizon 5 Barn Finds. There are 14 in total, and each one unlocks an exclusive old banger in need of serious restoration. The problem is that they’re locked inside barns hidden across Mexico, and you’ll need a tipoff to find each one. Once the old car has been retrieved and restored though, it’s yours to keep and drive around.

How Forza Horizon 5 Car Mastery works

As you race around Mexico, you’ll be performing daring tricks and earning Skill Points. You can then spend these on all sorts of Forza Horizon 5 Car Mastery perks for each individual vehicle, allowing you to unlock Credit boosts, things that improve your Skill Chains scores, or even entirely new cars.

How Forza Horizon 5 Drift Zones work

Forza Horizon 5 Drift Zones are a fan-favorite challenge in the Horizon series, allowing you to test your ability to maintain control of an out-of-control car as you set it sideways round a corner. Longer and faster drifts mean more points, which means a higher rating at the end, but you’ll need to progress a bit through the main series to unlock Drift Zones in the first place.

Forza Horizon 5 open world challenges

Forza Horizon 5 has a lively week-to-week schedule of challenges, rotating races, and new championships with exclusive rewards. However, some of them have very specific requirements or are a bit cryptic, so it’s not always clear what you need to do. To help with that I’ve explained some of the more confusing open world challenges you can complete below:

• What counts as a Forza Horizon 5 Reasonably Priced Car?: While it’s an obvious Top Gear reference, you’ll need to know what exactly counts as “reasonably priced” if you want to compete.
• Where to find Forza Horizon 5 Solar Panels: There aren’t many spots to find solar panels in FH5, but we’ve laid out a great option in this guide.
• Where is the Forza Horizon 5 Lion Mural?: There are certain Accolades and challenges that get you to find artistic murals scattered around Mexico, one of which is this lion mural out in Playa Azul.
• Forza Horizon 5 Holiday Accolades and Forza Horizon 5 New Year Accolades are (unsurprisingly) not available all year round, but if the time is right, here’s some help.

Forza Horizon 5 Treasure Hunts

One open world challenge subset is the treasure hunts that task you with completing a few tasks before searching for a chest filled with helpful rewards. I’ve got your covered if you need help with the following Treasure Hunts:

• Forza Horizon 5 Tropical Fruits Treasure Hunt
• Forza Horizon 5 New Heights Treasure Hunt
• Forza Horizon 5 Hold Your Horses Treasure Hunt

How to access Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels DLC

If you want to switch from the tropical landscapes of Mexico to the bonker, bright-orange Hot Wheels tracks, I’ve explained how to start the Forza Horizon 5 Hot Wheels DLC in a separate guide.

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