GT3 ISCC Official Rules

International Street Car Challenge
Created in cooperation by Azuremen and TankSpanker

Current Challenge:
Week Week 3 - Tokyo R246 II

Introduction:
The ISCC, or International Street Car Challenge, is a competition designed to test a driver’s ability to both tune and drive his/her selected car. It will be a fastest lap competition, whoever turns the best time wins. Three fields of competition have been established, and each is defined by a restriction to the power to weight ratio (abbreviated as PWR), and a tuning budget. See below.

The Classes:
You may run in any one, two, three, or all four of the following classes.
(Reminder, PWR means power to weight ratio, determined by weight/horsepower)

Street Touring B (STB)

Street Touring A (STA)

Street Touring Special (STS)

Street Touring Challenge (STC) *NEW*
This class was devised to be a means of offering a slightly more confined setting for competition, as well as a method of comparing driving and tuning abilities on a common platform. We hope if becomes popular. Its budget restrictions will generally be a bit tighter than the classes mentioned above, such that it will place further emphasis on the part selection process.

Individual Challenges:
I have no problems with entrants issuing individual challenges within this thread for the other entrants to try and accomplish. Afterall, the name is International Street Car Challenge. All that I ask, is that before a challenge is posted, that it be cleared by either myself or Azuremen via pm or on AIM/MSN. This is simply as a precaution so that there doesn’t become too much going on at one single time in a thread. I would also ask that challenges not be made with the ‘top running’ cars within each class.

We will normally run the competition from Saturday to Friday. For subsequent weeks, a separate thread will be created explaining the venue, and any rule changes for that week. It will be a GT3 competition for now, until people have had sufficient time to build a garage, and collect enough credits to participate in such a challenge with GT4.

Next, lets define the rules:

Driving Rules:
A minimum of 2 tires must remain on either the track surface or curbs. No corner cutting. No cheating. Save best lap replays incase any discrepancies arise in regards to your times so we can check analyzer times, or see the replay if you have the means of recording it.

Tuning/Settings Rules:
Sports tires are to be used, all other mods are open - provided they fit the budget. The cost of the car will be included in the budget. The tires and oil changes are provided free.
ie) a $30000 car will leave $40000 for tuning in a $70000 budget, the tires can be bought after the $70000 is depleted.
All car makes and models are open to each class, provided they can be afforded by the set budget, and are legal within the pwr restriction.
No hybrids are to be permitted, and the vehicles must be available for purchase on the dealer screen (no prize vehicles - sorry).
Drivers aids, TCS and ASM, are both to be set to 0.

Any cars that go below the pwr limit when broken-in and given an oil change (even if you claim your car was above the limit when you did that lap) will be disqualified. To rephrase, we will assume your car has been given an oil change, and has been run to the point that it is fully broken in. This just makes the series easier to regulate. Any cars that exceed their allocated budget by any dollar amount, or breaks any other rule(s) outlined above will also be disqualified (obviously). We are going to use an honor system to make submitting your data easier. Don’t get caught cheating, you wouldn’t want to be the one to ruin it for everyone else.

An issue questioned was 'is the tranny trick allowed?'
The answer is YES, and for two reasons.
Reason 1: its a well known and exploited bug, not using it would be silly
Reason 2: its impossible for us to police if we choose to disallow it
If you're not sure what I'm referring to, I'm not going to indulge you here, but I'm certain the Search button would be happy to

We believe this formula as we have described it is relatively balanced, and should make a wide variety of cars competitive within the same class. That said, should the need arise to penalize a certain car, we will not hesitate to do so.

Submitting Times:
Challenges will be posted on Saturday's, and times will be due at midnight, Pacific Time the following Friday, unless it is posted otherwise. Please refrain from posting final lap times in the event threads, but feel free to discuss T-times and tuning options openly.

Please PM your final entry to either Azuremen or TankSpanker. Since we’re using an honor system, the only requirements will be as follows: class(es) entered, car, pwr, T-times and laptime.

Luxy has been kind enough to create a leader board for us Here. Thanks Luxy. 👍
We will be updating it occasionally throughout the week with posted T-times, and with laptimes after the deadline, etc

If we do feel there has been some error in your submission, we may require further information, such as a list of modifications, and/or analyzer times, etc. But for now we’ll keep it easy.

Best of luck to everyone, from Azuremen and Tankspanker! 👍

Appendix A:
If anyone is interested, here are some quick formulas to help with the tuning. Its not necessary, and the math is very easy, but here it is anyways. To figure out where you may tune an unbroken-in car after performing an oil change, do the following:

final hp = mass(kg) / desired pwr
initial hp = final hp / 1.03 <--cars get a 3% power gain when broken-in
always round the hp figures down to ensure that you remain above the pwr limit

ex)
Miata LS in the STB class
final hp: 1070kg / 4.5pwr = 237.7778hp ~ 237hp rounded down
initial hp: 237hp / 1.03 = 230.0971hp ~ 230hp rounded down

so, by tuning a Miata LS to an initial hp value of 230hp (after oil change of course) you will remain above the 4.5 pwr limit after break-in. At break-in, it will be at 237hp giving a pwr of 4.515 (from mass/power)

Appendix B: ISCC Official PWR and Budget Calculator Updated for Week 3
I took the time to put this spreadsheet together.
It will assist in keeping track of your total car expenses, and remaining budget.
It also has a built in PWR calculator - which rounds all hp values down to keep them legal withing the PWR regulations.
It should prove handy, provided your PS2 is setup near your computer. I plan on using it, just to simplify things. It should reduce the amount of calculator button punching and random scribbling on paper I've been doing to record my settings.

02/19/2005 - Budget and PWR Penalty fields have been added as penalties and some temporary class changes were introduced in week 3.

I will update this spreadsheet as necessary for GT4 when we make the move there,

note - requires Microsoft Excel

Gee..so confusing..I can't do math though

Just look at how much you spend and your PWR... all that math is make sure you don't go over... but just keep an eye of it.

Cristiano

Gee..so confusing..I can't do math though

Click to expand...

I'll try to help you out here (After all, my friends call me Wizard for some reason )

To figure out what initial horsepower your car needs to have to be in a certan class, you first need two values: the weight of the car (as listed in the specs - when you buy it - or whatever weight it has after you modded it) and the PWR of the class you want to be in.

So, for example, say you want to compete in the STS Class, then your PWR will be 2.0.

Say your car weighs 1000 Kg after you modded it, then the maximum final horsepower that your vehicle can have to fit in the class (and therefore not be disqualified) will be 500 HP.

Now, since after you break in a car and change the oil (which should also be mentioned in the rules) your horsepower is going to change, you have to figure out what is the maximum horsepower you can tune it to, such that it will still remain within the class afterwards.

Hence, you take that 500HP and divide it by 1.03 which yields 485.4

Also, since when you buy a vehicle, it has a dirty oil modifier, you should take 485.4 and divide it by 1.05, which yields 462.3

So, when you are looking for a vehicle that weighs 1000 Kg (in the case of this example) your ultimate horsepower (to be within the STS Class) - (before the car is broken in and before the oil is changed) will have to be 462 HP.

Once you change the oil, the car will go to 485.1 HP (5% increase modifier) and once it's broken in, the car will go to 499.653 (3% increase modifier).
Hence remaining perfectly within the 2.0 PWR requirement for the STS Class.

Hope this helps.

EDIT: I can tell you all that in Italian in a PM, if that is going to help you any better... Just let me know

The Wizard.

So say my car weigh 670 kgs and i leave it at that, and i want to do STA..i cant have much horsepower, right? Look like there have been too many open classes for me in the past

Yeah, it can't The horsepower for that car (initially, when you buy it, on the screen, before you change the oil, and before you break it in) will have to be 206 HP at the most (or you will have to tune it to that much, at the most - before changing the oil and before breaking it in).

Then you change the oil, and it becomes 216.3 HP

Then you break it in, and it becomes 222.789 HP which is less than 670/3 (223.33 HP) so you are perfectly within the class.

Again, hope it helps.

When in doubt, look at the Power Weight Ratio on the Specs screen and see if it stays above 3.0. If it does, then you are fine (for the STA Class).

The Wizard.

edit: deleted, was a complete repost of theWizard's preceding post. Almost word for word infact. And yes, achieved the same result.

ok, so we have two examples now posted in this thread of how to tune for classes, (three if you follow the math through on the above post by the Wizard)
i hope everyone else can do the rest for themself, so we can save the discussion for other topics

its only 2 lines of math, and its just simple division and rounding
really not that tough if you try it
no trig, no algebra, and none of that dreaded calculus or differential equations that have been the cause of 3years filled with many sleepless nights for me

btw, thanks Wizard

Ahh, power/weight ration is displayed in the stats? And here I was thinking i'd have to come up with it myself *smacks head*

TankSpanker

btw, thanks Wizard

Click to expand...

No problem 👍 I enjoyed doing what I do better - Talking math (check my last PM, and you will know what I am talking about)

Cristiano

Ahh, power/weight ration is displayed in the stats? And here I was thinking i'd have to come up with it myself *smacks head*

Click to expand...

LOL! Yeah, power to weight ratio is listed in your Specs screen. But it is also given by your Class. So, if you want to be in STB Class, your PWR (power to weight ratio) has to be 4.5 or higher. If you want to be in STA Class, PWR needs to be 3.0 or higher. If you want to be in STS Class, PWR needs to be 2.0 or higher. PWR of 1.999 is NOT going to be acceptable for STS, and it's going to have you disqualified. So be careful. Don't get your car close to 2.0xx, without having it 'broken in' or 'oil changed' yet... as that might set you to 1.9xx or below - hence disqualifying you - just some advice

The Wizard.

im starting to hate this whole budget thing. i dont think they match the PWR ratios.

i can get no where near STB PWR with the allowed budget. i hope budget doesn't turn this into a one-car show.

meh. oh well.

STA - T1: 0'23:340

Omnis

im starting to hate this whole budget thing. i dont think they match the PWR ratios.

i can get no where near STB PWR with the allowed budget. i hope budget doesn't turn this into a one-car show.

meh. oh well.

STA - T1: 0'23:340

Click to expand...

please put T-times in this weeks challenge thread if you choose to post them, and not here in the rules thread.

Also, the budget is supposed to make you have to consider various tuning options. Some of the pricier cars may be able to hit the PWR, but would have to sacrifice some driveline or suspension parts, etc. Or conversely, you might choose to upgrade the suspension and drivetrain first, and then take aim at the PWR and possibly come up short, etc - you will have to decide what the right path is for you and your car, and what parts you can and can't go without.

This is not meant to be a 'go out and buy everything' challenge. The budget's intended design was to force entrants to make certain comprimises.

And the PWR's are very attainable with the provided budgets if that is what you choose to focus your tuning efforts on - provided that the car you picked can be tuned to that level of performance. It creates pretty level competition between various platforms and the various drivetrains in each category, trust me. We did quite a bit of testing with this.

And in regards to the one-car-show comment, recall that we did say if the need arises to penalize a certain car to level the field, we won't hesitate to do so.

Many many many cars can reach the PWR requirements under their prescribed budgets. Its whether you want to have a suspension while doing that

Tell us which car you are having trouble with Omnis... I'll look into it a bit

Azuremen

Its whether you want to have a suspension while doing that

Click to expand...

So true. I had to try a lot of different combinations in order to find a vehicle that would allow me plenty of horses, a fully customizable transmission and a fully customizable suspension

Don't give up, people! The fun of this Challenge is to come up with your own strategy/car/settings... 👍

I know it's hard/time consuming to test a lot of vehicles, but nothing comes free! Work hard, and you will see the results

The Wizard.

That, and after this week, you can keep using those cars. Just initial setup will take a bit I imagine.

Exactly. Another good point 👍

I made the same comment in the 'Week 1' thread. It's definitely going to be time consuming at first (I spent 4 or 5 hours between last night and today, just trying different vehicles/different combinations). But then, once you found the vehicle that works for you, you can keep using it for entering other Weeks (provided it's not a special week, with a given vehicle/limitations/or similar).

The Wizard.

TheWizard

Exactly. Another good point 👍

I made the same comment in the 'Week 1' thread. It's definitely going to be time consuming at first (I spent 4 or 5 hours between last night and today, just trying different vehicles/different combinations). But then, once you found the vehicle that works for you, you can keep using it for entering other Weeks (provided it's not a special week, with a given vehicle/limitations/or similar).

The Wizard.

Click to expand...

well, until we make the move to GT4 at least - so realistically only 3 maybe 4 weeks (assuming that Feb 22nd date isnt another load of BS)

then its a whole new can of beans

a word of warning tough - certain tracks do have certain tendencies to lend themselves more to one type of car than another. It wouldnt be a bad idea to at least consider a few options from week to week

I have added a PWR and budget calculating spreadsheet to the first post of this thread. I hope its helpful to those having difficulties with those two aspects of this competition.
Microsoft Excel is required.

TankSpanker

I have added a PWR and budget calculating spreadsheet to the first post of this thread. I hope its helpful to those having difficulties with those two aspects of this competition.
Microsoft Excel is required.

Click to expand...

Excellent job on the spreasheet TS. That'll be a great help!

Great job on the spreadsheet, TankSpanker 👍

I know what you mean, when you said

It should reduce the amount of calculator button punching and random scribbling on paper I've been doing to record my settings.

Click to expand...

I have pages and pages of random scribbling, and I am wearing my calculator out
Thanks, it will be of great help... at least I will be saving my engineering paper, now

The Wizard.

i can see all this talk of switching to gt4 in feb 22, we you US b*st**ds might get GT4 then but us Aussies and other PAL buggers dont get it until march 9th. Then you have to let a few weeks at least for people to unlock some cars and get a decent bit through the game to have tracks/cars and money to compete. I dont think its wise to just switch straight away. if anything you may have to postpone for a few weeks until people have established game saves.

TankSpanker

Any cars that go below the pwr limit when broken-in (even if you claim your car was above the limit when you did that lap) will be disqualified.

Click to expand...

Looking through some car options, I've got a question about this rule. I was looking at running the Corvette Grandspot in STB. Stock, before an oil change, it has a PWR of 4.5xx. Now if I never change the oil, the power shouldn't increase at all, and the car would never go below 4.5 even when broken in.

Assuming I never change the oil, is the car eligible for STB?

Luxy

Looking through some car options, I've got a question about this rule. I was looking at running the Corvette Grandspot in STB. Stock, before an oil change, it has a PWR of 4.5xx. Now if I never change the oil, the power shouldn't increase at all, and the car would never go below 4.5 even when broken in.

Assuming I never change the oil, is the car eligible for STB?

Click to expand...

hrm, let me just go edit....there we go
no, the idea was that we were going to assume all cars had been given an oil change, and were broken in to make things easier to regulate. I appologize for the oversight in the rules, and thank you for pointing it out.

TankSpanker

Any cars that go below the pwr limit when broken-in and given an oil change (even if you claim your car was above the limit when you did that lap) will be disqualified. To rephrase, we will assume your car has been given an oil change, and has been run to the point that it is fully broken in.

Click to expand...

Ok, that's cool. Just thought I'd check before I wasted time running it