Rally Perfection
I've always regarded the Colin McRae series as one of the very best racing games out there. You'll have to pay attention to the co-driver if you want to complete a race here, which lends a greater element of tactics to this game as opposed to most other racing games. The physics are so realistic that if you just put the pedal to the metal you're in for a surprise, you're going to have to pay attention to every twist and turn if you don't want to end up with your car wrapped around a tree.
As expected, the graphics are just beautiful. This, combined with some highly impressive damage modelling makes for some stunning scenes. Believe me when I say that it's very tempting to start smashing your car apart just to see what kind of damage you can cause. Windows shatter, hoods fly off, spoilers tear apart, paint chips.
As far as racers go, it doesn't get much better than this.