Probably the most difficult level in the entire game is the auto race.  It's out of place in an action game, overly long, and very unforgiving.  If you've been having trouble getting past it, it's not just you - it causes big problems for a lot of people. 

This is going to be one of those good news/bad news type of things.  I'll give you the bad news first; there's no quick and dirty way to guarantee victory, and you can't advance in the game without completing the race and winning it.  Now that that's out of the way, it's time for the good news.  There are some techniques that you can use to improve your odds and finally get past the race and back to making your way up the ranks of the family.

The first thing to work on is your start.  The race opens up almost the exact same way every time you try it, and there is a definite way that you should start the race to increase your chances of success.  Before the race starts, keep the accelerator key pressed down - there are no false starts and you'll begin accelerating as soon as the race starts.  When the race starts, tap the right turn key so that you will pass the stalled racer on its right (the car will be on your left when you pass it).  After you pass the stalled car, a white car on your right will try to hit you.  Move slightly to your left so that it misses you, being careful to avoid the green car on your left that will be cutting to its right.  If you're lucky, the green car will hit the white and knock back several other cars in the process.

At this point you should be past the main pack of cars and approaching the first turn.  A red and white car always pull out from the pack and will reach the turn first, but you can catch them as they slow to make the turn.  Now here's the critical part: you need to hit the red car and cause it to spin-out or crash, without losing control of your car.  If the red car makes it through the turn unscathed or you wipe out, forget it.  The red car is a perfect driver and his car is slightly faster than yours.  Exit and restart the race or you'll waste your time in a futile attempt to catch him.  If you take out the red car, but the white car makes it through and is ahead of you, then it is your call.  If you exit the first turn slightly behind the white car, you still have a chance to win.  You'll spend the first lap stuck in second, but when you start the second lap and reach the first turn again, the white car will slow enough for you to catch him.

In short, you really need to exit that first turn in first place or you're out of luck.  Just keep restarting until you get it right and then you'll save yourself a lot of wasted time and frustration.  Even if you do get out of the first turn in first, there is no guarantee that you'll win.  You'll still need to run a near flawless race because if you have yourself a nice little crash or wipeout, then the red car will catch you.  Once that red car gets past you, you are hosed and will need to restart.

Negotiating the track »