Forza Horizon 5 will let you drive a slice of Europe through Mexico in the newest content update, available now

Image of one of the new cars coming in Forza Horizon 5: European Automotive.
(Image credit: Xbox Game Studios)

What you need to know

  • The next Forza Horizon 5 content update has been announced, and it's bringing 12 new cars from European automotive manufacturers.
  • You'll be able to earn cars from Lotus, Mercedes-Benz, Aston Martin, and more in addition to a new four-car DLC pack.
  • All routes from the Rally Adventure DLC is being opened to all car classes, too.
  • Finally, EventLab is getting a massive injection of new props, including terrain pieces, lots of shapes, and even giant dinosaurs.

Update, Feb. 27 at 12:30 p.m. CT — Playground Games has now released the Forza Horizon 5: European Automotive content update across Xbox and Windows PC platforms. New bug fixes, EventLab props, and DLC cars will be available immediately, but players will have to wait until Thursday for the European Automotive Festival Playlist to kick off. You can read the official changelog at Forza.net.

The Forza Horizon 5 European Automotive Car Pack DLC is also now available for $4.99 at Microsoft Store (Xbox & PC).

Our original article continues below.


Right on schedule, Playground Games has announced the details of the next Forza Horizon 5 content update, which lands tomorrow alongside a new Car Pack DLC and ahead of the new Festival Playlist later this week. Players can look forward to 12 new cars, a lot of new options to create custom events, and even some dinosaurs. Let's get into exactly what's coming to Forza Horizon 5 this week.

  • New Festival Playlist cars. Of course Forza Horizon 5: European Automotive includes a brand-new themed Festival Playlist with more challenges, races, and events to tackle, and eight new cars from European manufacturers are up for grabs as reward cars.
    • 1966 Volkswagen Double Cab Pick-up
    • 1968 Lancia Fulvia Coupé Rallye 1.6 HF
    • 1975 Citroën DS 23
    • 1992 Mercedes-Benz 500 E
    • 2002 Lotus Esprit V8
    • 2021 Mercedes-AMG SL 63
    • 2021 Volkswagen ID.4
    • 2022 Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro
  • European Automotive Car Pack DLC. In addition to the free cars coming to the Festival Playlist, the Forza Horizon 5 car list is being expanded with yet another optional Car Pack DLC. The Forza Horizon 5 European Automotive Car Pack is launching on Feb. 27, 2024 with the following four cars.
    • 1987 Mercedes-Benz AMG Hammer Wagon
    • 2019 Jaguar XE SV Project 8
    • 2020 Automobili Pininfarina Battista
    • 2021 Bentley Continental GT Convertible
  • New EventLab props. Forza Horizon 5's EventLab is expanding yet again with a ton of new props that players can use to design custom events, including:
    • 25 new ramps and platforms spread across five different terrain types
    • 40 different geometric shapes in various sizes and materials
    • Six giant dinosaur models
    • A giant golden star trophy
  • More Rally Adventure races. Finally, Forza Horizon 5: Rally Adventure is becoming a little more open, with all races opening up to cars of any performance class. Players can now set lap times in any rally race with their favorite cars.

The usual batch of bug fixes and improvements accompany the new cars and features. Overall, this is a more modest content update for the best Xbox racing game, but a welcome one nonetheless (especially for those cars). The Forza Horizon 5: European Automotive update should be dropping on Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2024 alongside the European Automotive Car Pack DLC, but the Festival Playlist won't kick off until Thursday, Feb. 29.

Playground Games also teased the next Forza Horizon 5 update, which will be called "Race-Off" and presumably focuses heavily on competitive racing. We'll learn more about that particular update near the end of the European Automotive Festival Playlist.

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Zachary Boddy
Staff Writer

Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter @BoddyZachary.

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