While my reviews might include any kind of comment or feedback I feel could be useful, I judged my Driver’s Choice points solely on the criteria provided:
Outstanding – With this tune I will be spending a considerable amount of time with my team… in the winner’s circle (1 bonus point).
Driveable – With my superior driving talents I should be able to win some/lose some with this tune (1/2 a bonus point).
Holy Crap – If I were forced to race this car I would fear for my life. I could crash and burst into flames at any moment (no bonus).
For me this meant I did not take into account what I felt the car’s overall potential was, how close the tune was to that potential, possible tire wear issues etc. My only concerns were speed, grip and drivability, which are the three things I can evaluate that are likely to get me to the winner’s circle (1 point), podiums or good finishes (1/2) or which I felt had a great probability to force me into a major error under pressure or were too slow to compete (0)
ACSR421 - Ford GT LM Spec II Test Car – 1:39.447 - First car I drove which in hindsight could be a mistake because every car after it was compared directly to this tune, which was just about perfect for me. Huge amount of grip front and rear throughout all corners. Predictable, safe and able to be pushed to the limit with little fear of failure. Slight issue with getting the power down out of the first chicane but easily manageable.
Driver’s Choice – 1
XDesperado67 - BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 – 1:40.607 - After ACSR’s Ford GT this car felt absolutely sluggish and unresponsive but was very safe and predictable once you adapted to the tune. Able to run decently fast and consistent laps with little chance of getting into trouble so long as you didn’t push the car beyond it’s limits because you couldn’t just fling it about to get it headed in the right direction, it wasn’t responsive enough. Would do well in a longer endurance race type of setting where consistency and steady pacing are more important.
Driver’s Choice – ½
CSLACR - Corvette C5-R (C5) '00 – 1:41.130 – Another pretty much perfect tune. Probably the best at getting the power down out of the chicanes along with Rido’s Lexus. Completely predictable everywhere on the track. Great grip throughout all corners. May have benefitted from a little less downforce and a little more power in terms of lap times. Would have really shined on a twistier course. A little slower than the fastest cars but so easy to drive it deserves maximum DC points.
Driver’s Choice – 1
MotorCtyHamilton - Ford GT LM Spec II Test Car – 1:39.202 – Not quite as responsive as ACSR’s Ford GT but exceptional nonetheless. Slight issue getting the power down out of the chicanes, common to many of the cars. Hard to find any real fault with this tune either.
Driver’s Choice – 1
Ealirendur - Mazda RX-7 LM Race Car – 1:40.658 - I’m fairly certain that with a little work on the LSD (little too strong for my tastes in both Accel and Initial) and a bit of suspension adjustment that this car could have been in the high 1:39’s and been much more user friendly. Although I was able to adapt to some degree, you had to be careful with the throttle at several key points in the lap or you’d lose the back end. Turn in was a little too sharp for the rear grip this car had, so I think you also could have swapped some front downforce for rear downforce and made the car much more balanced. Was hard to get consistent, repeatable laps and unfortunately it’s not a car I would enjoy driving in a longer race. In a weaker field of cars this might have been ok but with such a strong fleld the DC points have to take the hit unfortunately.
Driver’s Choice – 0
Ridox2JZGTE (PSN: GTP_Orido) - Lexas IS-F RM – 1:42.065 - Having test driven this car for a series a few months ago, I honestly wasn’t expecting much. I was pleasantly surprised, once I adapted to the lower grip just how well it handled and how smooth it was around the track. However, the high brake balance was a major flaw causing the front tires to go red with any prolonged, heavy braking. Lucky for me I’ve been driving without ABS for a couple of months now so adapting by using only partial pressure and listening for tire squeal was relatively easy, but I suspect DS3 users or even wheel users not used to that, might have a problem. The LSD Accel was a little low as well, causing the inside tire to go red in Parabolica for quite a while but the flipside of that was that it was stable when getting the power down to the ground. By default I have to give this tune a 0 for driver’s choice not because I think I would crash and burn in it because it was quite safe, but because I don’t think I can meet the criteria for the first two choices. Sorry Rido.
Driver’s Choice - 0
Onboy123 - Chevrolet Camaro LM Race Car – 1:40.438 – Exceptional handling, balance, grip, drivability and just about everything else. Best braking of any car tested.
Driver’s Choice – 1
C-ZETA - Citroën GT by Citroën Race Car – 1:39.784 – Very fast car with a potential to be on par with the fastest cars of the group but suffered slightly for me by being a little unstable under hard acceleration when the car was exiting the chicanes or off balance. A weaker LSD Accel and Initial setting would probably do wonders for this car and inspire a lot more confidence and lower lap times. As is though, it’s still a very good car and would probably do well in a race scenario.
Driver’s Choice – ½
krenkme - BMW M3 GTR Race Car '01 – 1:41.034 – The car handled well enough with good front and rear lateral grip, turn in was good. My biggest problem with the car was that I had trouble getting the power down. Out of the chicanes was tough but any time the car was under heavy lateral g’s the back end wanted to break loose under hard acceleration. Not unusual in this HP range with the downforce on the tune, unfortunately it must be compared to other cars in the competition that resolved the problem quite effectively. Car would probably have benefitted sacrificing some of the HP for downforce.
Driver’s Choice – ½
ugabugaz - Pagani Zonda LM Race Car – 1:40.165 – Another car I struggled in getting the power down. Turn in and overall grip were good but I felt the LSD was a little strong for my tastes in that I spent much of my time worrying about whether I was going to spin, rather than focusing on being fast. Although it’s not part of my rating, I did check the tuning notes and found nothing about where to shift. In tuning the street version of the car which has a similar power band, I’ve noticed dramatic improvements in lap times by short shifting to avoid the redline where the power drops off huge. I’d guess that would be worth 6-7/10ths at this track, maybe more.
Driver’s Choice – ½
Johnnypenso - Dodge Viper GTS-R Team Oreca Race Car – 1:39.131 – Exceptionally fast, well balanced, easy to get the power down just about anywhere. A little slow to respond in the chicanes but relatively safe and predictable. Fastest of the bunch but just barely.
Driver’s Choice - 1