Not sure I agree. I mean they tweaked it a bit, but it still seems very familiar to me. I remember playing TOCA race driver at the beginning of the decade and really enjoying the Career mode considering there was actually the sense of progressing as a race car driver. GT could take a huge step forward if they introduced things like sponsorship (which would add to your income) and AI opponents with personalities (That you raced against multiple times). As it stands now it's just random races against random opponents and aside from a (inadequate) Cr payout, it never seems as though there is any "career" involved in the single player.
Just imagine. You consistently place #1 in and you get a sponsorship from Bilstein that pays X amount per race in addition to the prize money. Or, lets say you don't always win races, but you finish in the top 3, and you get a sponsorship from some other company that doesn't pay as well. Or you get free perks like new racing gear or car tuning components.
I could go on and on... but there is no need. Other games, years ago... had a better sense of progression than GT. I simply don't get any real satisfaction when I pass a license test and confetti sprays across the screen. The career mode seems very "arcade" to me as-is. There needs to be depth.
Edit: don't get me wrong, I love GT. I really really do... It just a frustrating kind of love. In the physics/weather/track department, I have no complaints... well, only a few.