Getting Green, Collecting Cars

[PaganiC12]

Hello there, I am new to GT Planet. I started this thread to help people tune and tweak their favorite cars, however, this thread is not going to go over "the quickest way to make money" because there are plenty of those threads looming around.

So, let us start with The Beginning.

Getting a car from the Used Car Showroom, even if you can afford more, is probably your best bet. A Lancer Evolution will suit a newcomer very well, because it is cheap, easy to drive, fast, good handling, and versatile. It can be entered in 4WD, Turbo, Japanese, and 90's races. To ensure you are getting the most out of your car make sure to change the oil (changing the oil before putting any miles on your vehicle will give you a HP boost), take it to the car wash, and getting small, but key, modifications.

Tuning your car with after market parts is a large part of the game, and the best mods to start with are: Tires, Weight Reduction, and an ECU. What car you have depends on what mods you should get, for example, if you have a horsepower monster, you would want tires, suspension, and brakes to make it a balanced beast. On the other hand, if you have a Civic Hatchback you are going to want to invest on mods that will improve your acceleration.

And, I say "acceleration" and not "horsepower" for a very good reason. Horsepower, in my mind at least, is not very important. It is overhyped and Power:Weight is much more relevant in GT4. Getting back to tuning, you can drop the weight of your car and help everything - acceleration, braking, turning, grip, gas milage; everything! - and in some cases, weight reduction is a better investment than more power. If you are driving a very heavy American car, more horsepower will not help anything. A 350HP V8 is a very brutal engine, but it is burdened by 2 ton shell. Dropping weight and getting tires will improve everything - including Quarter Mile times.

Lastly, I will share a piece of advice my brother gave me, "Do not waste your time getting second best." He was not talking about winning, or losing, or anything like that. My brother was talking about purchasing upgrades. Basically, do not get "Semi-Race Suspension" just because you cannot afford "Race." What you should do, instead, is redo a race or two and get the money to buy "Race Suspension."

 

[Parnelli Bone]

I agree with you about everything except the suspension part. You really only need a full race suspension for the best GT4 has to offer. In most racing with pedestrian (non-racing) cars, you can use a semi-racing, sports, or even a stock suspension, depending on what you're trying to do.

Also, cars that are already light won't typically won't need weight reductions, in my opinion. I find that in some cases, less weight=less stability, too, which is bad for lightweight cars that get affected easily by bumps...makes them get squirrelly...affects their steering badly, etc.

 

[cestcertaindira]

I agree with you about everything except the suspension part. You really only need a full race suspension for the best GT4 has to offer. In most racing with pedestrian (non-racing) cars, you can use a semi-racing, sports, or even a stock suspension, depending on what you're trying to do.

Also, cars that are already light won't typically won't need weight reductions, in my opinion. I find that in some cases, less weight=less stability, too, which is bad for lightweight cars that get affected easily by bumps...makes them get squirrelly...affects their steering badly, etc.

+1 on the suspension mods. I've found that most of the older Japanese cars from the '80s handle well enough with either stock or sports configurations. Anything more is just overkill (and lowers total A-spec points...)

I also tend to think that a "full tune" really isn't necessary - I've won races (and I am the epitomisation of Captain Slow) with cars that had nothing more than their ECU, exhaust and weight reductions done against others with equal or more power...

 

[Parnelli Bone]

+1 on the suspension mods. I've found that most of the older Japanese cars from the '80s handle well enough with either stock or sports configurations. Anything more is just overkill (and lowers total A-spec points...)

I also tend to think that a "full tune" really isn't necessary - I've won races (and I am the epitomisation of Captain Slow) with cars that had nothing more than their ECU, exhaust and weight reductions done against others with equal or more power...

Mmm hmm. 👍

 

[PaganiC12]

I see what you guys are saying, but, personally, I like good handling cars that are set to oversteer slightly rather than understeer. They allow me to set better lap times and do better in a race. Another big factor in modding your car is looking at the race/races you are going to enter and what the regulations are. If you are doing a race that only allows Sport Tires, getting Racing slicks will waste your time. Additionally, some races have horsepower, year, and weight restrictions.

A side note, if you are going to B-Spec you want to make sure your car is noticeably faster than the competition because Bob isn't The Stig, but he isn't too bad, either.

 

[Open Addict]

+1 on the suspension mods. I've found that most of the older Japanese cars from the '80s handle well enough with either stock or sports configurations. Anything more is just overkill (and lowers total A-spec points...)

I also tend to think that a "full tune" really isn't necessary - I've won races (and I am the epitomisation of Captain Slow) with cars that had nothing more than their ECU, exhaust and weight reductions done against others with equal or more power...

Power (turbo/NA Tune/ Chips/ etc), Oil Change, Weight Modifications, Wings, Tyres and the Competition line-up you choose, are the things that affect A-spec points.

Suspension, Nitros, Drivetrain, Brakes, Roll Cage and Stiffness do not affect A-spec points.

You can really do what ever you like with the car as it is your game, and what ever makes you happy with your purchase, is up to you.
However saying that A lot of the time you do not need to do anything to your car.
(just look at the Stock car race comparison/challenge to see what I mean )

 

[Parnelli Bone]

I see what you guys are saying, but, personally, I like good handling cars that are set to oversteer slightly rather than understeer. They allow me to set better lap times and do better in a race. Another big factor in modding your car is looking at the race/races you are going to enter and what the regulations are. If you are doing a race that only allows Sport Tires, getting Racing slicks will waste your time. Additionally, some races have horsepower, year, and weight restrictions.

A side note, if you are going to B-Spec you want to make sure your car is noticeably faster than the competition because Bob isn't The Stig, but he isn't too bad, either.

Yeah, thank god you can't enter all the easy races with racing tires anymore like you could in earlier GTs. S3 tires offer some advantage over the Ai (which is typically on S2s) but it's not like the old days where cheaters would enter a race on super-soft slicks, and the Ai was all on normal tires.

I also like cars that are set for more oversteer, too, if possible. But if you're entering a race in which all the competition is using stock suspensions (or whatever the Ai uses) and you've got full-customized everything...what's happening is there is now a situation in which you've got tons of advantages the Ai hasn't got. If this were a real-life race, regulations and restrictions would have you remove such extreme parts (which are really only necessary for extreme situations) or you'd be banned or whatever.

It's been proven here online that the Ai in most racing below I-A license level is not using customized parts.

B-specing with Bob demands extra power over the Ai only if Bob is starting from 6th place, or if Bob is low on skills, hasn't had much experience with driving, and can't overtake the Ai in corners well. Once Bob has lots of experience, he does start to drive corners better...late-brakes properly, etc. He's still never as skilled as we should be, tho.

(just look at the Stock car race comparison/challenge to see what I mean )

Wow, I've never seen this thread! +Rep.

 

[Skygrasper550]

Yeah, thank god you can't enter all the easy races with racing tires anymore like you could in earlier GTs. S3 tires offer some advantage over the Ai (which is typically on S2s) but it's not like the old days where cheaters would enter a race on super-soft slicks, and the Ai was all on normal tires.

I like doing that on GT2,

It's been proven here online that the Ai in most racing below I-A license level is not using customized parts.

most, but not all. I once entered a race with an upgraded Honda NSX-R '92, additional power, produces around 340hp, and has its weight reduced.., forgot what the race and the license requirement of that race was, but I know for sure it was below I-A .., on the straight, I can't believe my NSX's speed is matched by a Lotus Elise!!

One very good example is the Opel Speedster Trophy/Cup.., below I-A (I-B to be exact) but AI..,

Wow, i've never seen this thread! +Rep.

you've never checked it out?? that thread has been always popping up in the last few months..,

 

[Parnelli Bone]

most, but not all. I once entered a race with an upgraded Honda NSX-R '92, additional power, produces around 340hp, and has its weight reduced.., forgot what the race and the license requirement of that race was, but I know for sure it was below I-A .., on the straight, I can't believe my NSX's speed is matched by a Lotus Elise!!

One very good example is the Opel Speedster Trophy/Cup.., below I-A (I-B to be exact) but AI..,

Mmm hmmm...there are a few exceptions...for sure.

you've never checked it out?? that thread has been always popping up in the last few months..,

I haven't spent much time in those forums, lol. That's why you never see my name over there...I basically make my own system of rules, which takes lots of time in and of itself, and I don't have much time to follow other's rules.

 

[PaganiC12]

most, but not all. I once entered a race with an upgraded Honda NSX-R '92, additional power, produces around 340hp, and has its weight reduced.., forgot what the race and the license requirement of that race was, but I know for sure it was below I-A .., on the straight, I can't believe my NSX's speed is matched by a Lotus Elise!!

Is this A-Spec or B-Spec? If it is B-Spec there could be multiple reasons, for example, what number your speed is, if you have overtake on, and your Bob's skill level.

If you are in A-Spec mode this should not happen, but it seems like that Elise is tuned and is carrying more speed around the bends and catching you on the straights.

Just tune more! Hahaha

 

[PF]

This is an edited version of a PM exchange between me and my mate Nuro:

NURO

I've actually got 159 cars already, and done a year, got my hands on the Mazda 787, Nissan R92 CP and R390 GT1 Black Beauties because mostly I race around Capri Easy to test every car I own (its got great power corners, high speed braking, slalom and a long straight) and keep a very good eye on the weekly cycle, because Capri Easy is a 3 day race with prize, do this twice, sell a RSC Raid, check the used cars, if you don't buy anything, sell another Raid, race twice, check used cars, etc. I got around it in my R92 CP, fully suped, in 1'41s, though I'm sure I've gone under 1'40s before. If you can get a car around this track as close to 2'00 as possible it's a well rounded car, in my opinon....


PF
Nice work getting the 160 cars already. You have hit on the perfect strategy for tuning while getting credits. HOWEVER you should only use Capri for the early tuning stages; the straight isn't long enough for real speed and the number of tight corners will bias your gears toward lower speeds. Grand Valley Speedway is considered by most to be the best test track because it has basically every type of corner and a decent straight.

Awesome strategy re the used cars, I'll remember that one. Consider making a list to keep next to the PS2, eg Nov 1=week 45; No8=46; No15=47 etc so you can see at the top of the screen when the garages update.

Buying all the 6.2 milers is a good idea. Look out for the Pug T16 (2 times per 100wks) and the Lancia Delta (3 or so). Also, you can use the list of used car sales I sent to plan which cars to buy over the next few weeks. If you add this to the abovementioned list you'll end up with:
Oc25=44; AM Vantage, R34 6.2mi, Fiat 500
No1=45; Civic 6.2mi, Fiat 500
No8=46; **** all
No15=47; Fiat 500

...etc. That's how I made up my garage and just a few minutes looking through the list saves you a heap of time.

Also, LOOK OUT FOR WEEK 67. It has about a dozen 6.2mi cars in the same week, so you should choose what to buy beforehand and don't miss any days.

I'd suggest you get another set of Black Beauties when they come around to leave in stock condition. Most important is the 787B, which is a ****ing weapon in 200pt races. Don't do oilchange, but consider doing body refresh.

Yet more advice, partly related to the above. Capri is best for getting credits/minute of racing, but sometimes, eg week 97, you'll need to get 5mil or more in a couple of weeks. Take virtually any car to the El CCapitan Enduro, B-spec it at 3x speed, and you'll get about 1mil cr per 2 game days. If you remember to reset the speed after pitstops it will take about 40 min.

 

[Skygrasper550]

Is this A-Spec or B-Spec? If it is B-Spec there could be multiple reasons, for example, what number your speed is, if you have overtake on, and your Bob's skill level.

If you are in A-Spec mode this should not happen, but it seems like that Elise is tuned and is carrying more speed around the bends and catching you on the straights.

that happened to me in A-Spec.., 👍 actually I was catching up on the Elise, i was behind it. Every corner I get closer to that car., but when I got on the straight, WTH?! I was forced to draft, behind a Lotus Elise. I'm not sure if anyone can draft properly behind such a small car, lol..,

Just tune more! Hahaha

But that would be overkill.

 

[PaganiC12]

But that would be overkill.

Explain this word. I have a SL65 AMG with 1100 pounds-feet of torque and a 1200hp race car.

Overkill is a myth; an urban legend created by someone who cannot handle power.

 

[FLK]

+1 on the suspension mods. I've found that most of the older Japanese cars from the '80s handle well enough with either stock or sports configurations. Anything more is just overkill (and lowers total A-spec points...)

I also tend to think that a "full tune" really isn't necessary - I've won races (and I am the epitomisation of Captain Slow) with cars that had nothing more than their ECU, exhaust and weight reductions done against others with equal or more power...

Buying a Limited Slip Differential of some form can often make a substantial improvement on RWD and FWD cars especially. It's a fairly cheap modification early on in the game, which can help to improve traction in corners alongside suspension mods.

 

[PaganiC12]

I just finished the Nurburgring 24h Endurance.

Total Laps: 221 Laps
Total Time: 24:05'16.582

 

[Open Addict]

I just finished the Nurburgring 24h Endurance.

Total Laps: 221 Laps
Total Time: 24:05'16.582

Was this all A-spec or mostly B-spec. If it was the latter, I would not brag too much.