~Japanese Auto Celebration Shootout~

[ugabugaz]

Snake's RX-7 both times up..Who shall I test next, hmm.

Edit: Onboy done.

Only the LFAs left...Agh...WHY so many LFAils

Edit 2: krenkme done

Edit 3: Motor City done - Just CSL left.

 

[VTiRoj]

Well you need to at least get a 1:38.500 so I can name you a Knight of the Coconut!

Besides which we've already got one Champion of the Order of the Mountain who's gotten under 1:35 using the Sports Soft tires.

Oh. I did 1:38.0 but then I exited before taking any pictures because I thought 1:35 was the target.

 

[ryangt]

That's helpful.

Especially when it's an AWD. "Exit understeer" means one thing but it helps me "fix" it exactly none.

what do you want from me... i have to give feed back on 49 cars -_-

did a bit more testing it gets a bit sideways in 2nd, my driving set up doesnt allow me to **** at 7k rpm or 6k (forgot which for this tune) with out having to to look take my eyes of the track and drive safely (thats not the tunes fault more mine) yes the exit understeer is a symptom of the awd but it stuck out to me so its why i put it down. I am just a driver i know jack **** about tuning honestly, it exit understeers so i marketed it down idk if you can fix it fully.

 

[ugabugaz]

All but 1 car left..Sheephead kinda slipped through the cracks..Just his car left and I'm done, blagh..Lovely tune CSL

 

[Onboy123]

Snake's RX-7 both times up..Who shall I test next, hmm.

Edit: Onboy done.

Only the LFAs left...Agh...WHY so many LFAils

Edit 2: krenkme done

Edit 3: Motor City done - Just CSL left.

No nice review for the Impreza? or are you only comparing the LFAs?

 

[ugabugaz]

No nice review for the Impreza? or are you only comparing the LFAs?

I'll do the reviews once I get all the times done for every car

The short on your car is that it just lacks power. Great handling, very surprising in fact, but it just doesn't have the power for Suzuka.

 

[XDesperado67]

Is it just me or is there a serious lack of testers and results for the 520PP category?

 

[ryangt]

yea there was a major lack of testers for the 520 category....

 

[Onboy123]

I'll do the reviews once I get all the times done for every car

The short on your car is that it just lacks power. Great handling, very surprising in fact, but it just doesn't have the power for Suzuka.

I see. Also, I think you might have got two Tsukubas on the lap times.


Ah yes, the downfall of entering a car with 400hp in a fight with cars sporting 500hp. Thinking back, I think I did bring a knife to this gun fight. Fairing quite well though. Should have started fresh rather than using my 535PP base car, but what the hell.

 

[ugabugaz]

I see. Also, I think you might have got two Tsukubas on the lap times.


Ah yes, the downfall of entering a car with 400hp in a fight with cars sporting 500hp. Thinking back, I think I did bring a knife to this gun fight. Fairing quite well though. Should have started fresh rather than using my 535PP base car, but what the hell.

Corrected that little error. Sheep's Suzuka done, Just Tsukuba and then reviews.

Edit: Sheep's done!

I dunno if I'll do car reviews now or a bit later (tomorrow). Vehicular overload yo'.

Edit 2: As far as my Driver's Picks...I know one of them..Unsure about the second. Really I'd give Fluffy Bunny #2 but in the interest of fairness I won't. It's all up to a car that's just as good as Fluffy or another one that surprised me.

 

[DigitalBaka]

DigitalBaka – PSN: DigitalBaka
Padawan – Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STI '02

Tsukuba: 1:02.014
Comments: Very fast, although a bit difficult to extract the best out of it in 5 laps.

Suzuka: 2:21.344
Comments: It’s fast, but there’s a sense that it doesn’t want to be as fast as the other Impreza’s. It tries to fight you for no reason.

Feedback: After investigating the settings to see why this Impreza seems to fight the driver more than the other GD Impreza’s, it seems the front LSD is the culprit. It’s set so open that it might as well not be there, which is very bad for a 4WD car and kills handling a bit. So aside from the front LSD needing a lot of tightening up, fast car.

Thanks for the comments, Roj. I set the adjustable LSD to more or less the stock settings and spent way too much time trying to tweak the suspension that I kinda forgot the LSD. It is usually the first thing I adjust but not this time for some reason. Anyhow, I will definitely look at that and then play with a transmission before I say I am happy with it. Again, thanks for the efforts.

 

[ryangt]

Ok we just had a small problem that was brought to my attention, Grado had taken his 490 car down, so i quickly did a rebuild of it to the best i could (the hp on my car is not the same, i tried to get it as close as possible to hp while still being at 490 pp) I have sent him a msg asking him to put his car back up for testers. For now i will be hosting his tune for testers

 

[Onboy123]

So……looking at the results, I think I'm right in saying that me and Desperado have come ahead of the clueless ones? Get tuning, Krenkme.

Also, I think we should have some kind of penalty system for people who don't submit the tests on time. Thank god jollygreen got the 490PP class done and dusted, or else my fantastic 1st place in his test would have been for nothing.

So……who's doing the tallying up and stuff for the final scores? I have a good feeling about 490PP.

 

[ryangt]

that would be me look for it monday or tuesday after i get all results spreaking of which

Testers there is just 25 hours left to get your times in to be counted.

 

[krenkme]

So……looking at the results, I think I'm right in saying that me and Desperado have come ahead of the clueless ones? Get tuning, Krenkme.

I know what Desperado wanted, but what about you and ACSR? Good times by the way 👍

*flips over table, and walks away*

 

[Onboy123]

I know what Desperado wanted, but what about you and ACSR? Good times by the way 👍

*flips over table, and walks away*

I want you to flip that table over the right way, and then wait while I think of a car for you to do…

…the Escudo!

 

[krenkme]

I want you to flip that table over the right way, and then wait while I think of a car for you to do…

…the Escudo!

For curves, or a straight line . I have a track tune that just needs to be dusted off.

490PP Testing

krenkme - PSN: krenkme
家族のタンク – Mitsubishi Airtrek Turbo-R ‘02

Tsukuba: 1:02.834
Comments: A constant battle with understeer. The brakes worked, but late braking wasn’t an option.

Suzuka: 2:22.771
Comments: Had a lot of trouble with turn one, probably because of the brakes being pushed to their limits.

Feedback: I feel mean for saying this, but there is a lot of room for improvement with this car. The brakes aren’t very effective even when set to extremes, but this isn’t krenkme’s fault, it’s the car’s. There’s plenty of power but the car is too heavy to use it as an advantage, less weight and less power would actually make this car a good bit faster overall. The LSD isn’t doing its job very well and should be set very tight and the car occasionally feels like murdering me with uncontrollable oversteer, perhaps because I called it fat.

Don't feel mean, I enjoy the feed back. I think once this shootout is over this car may needs to go on a diet, and losen up the LSD .

you called it fat

Tuner: Krenkme
Make/Model: Mitsubishi Airtrek Turbo-R '02 (490pp)
Circuit/Time: Tsukuba: 1:04.377
Circuit/Time: Suzuka: 2:24.905

Tuner: Krenkme
Make/Model: Toyota Tacoma X-Runner '04 (520pp)
Circuit/Time: Tsukuba: 1:01.719
Circuit/time: Suzuka: 2:19.809

Tuner: Krenkme
Make/Model: Lexus LFA '10 (550pp)
Circuit/Time: Tsukuba: 0:57.719
Circuit/Time: Suzuka: 2:11.266

Thanks for taking the time to test all my entries, very good times 👍

TUNER: Krenkme
MAKE&MODEL: Mitsubishi Airtrek Turbo-R '02
CIRCUIT:Tsukuba TIME: 1:03.052
CIRCUIT:Suzuka TIME: 2:22.162

Understeer is what kills this car in the tight stuff

TUNER: krenkme
MAKE&MODEL: Toyota Tacoma X-Runner '04
CIRCUIT:Tsukuba TIME: 1.00.953
CIRCUIT:Suzuka TIME: 2:19.032

TUNER: krenkme
MAKE&MODEL: Lexus LFA '10
CIRCUIT:Tsukuba TIME: 0:57.700
CIRCUIT:Suzuka TIME: 2:08.841

Great times for all my cars (come on, 2 second slower at Suzuka then Hermanvongerman )

krenkme LFA (blue)
Tsukuba: 57.442 (+1.1)
Suzuka: 2:11.573 (+2.6)

Comments: As soon as I jumped in the drivers seat at Tsukuba, I fell in love with how this car drives. A great tune for jumping into and feeling at home in immediately. It felt so fast, I thought it was going to smash my previous Japanese Celebration 550PP lap record. However, the stopwatch begged to differ, since the lap times were only marginally faster than the HSC. Eventually I realised much of its pace is from straight-line grunt, mid-corner speeds are a bit low and braking distanes are long compared with the ferocity at which it hurls itself out of a corner. At Suzuka, I found myself struggling with entry understeer, the poor performance under brakes makes me wonder if all that ballast in the front bumper is actually a good thing. I will be very interested to see how other testers times compare between this car and the HSC. I suspect this could be much faster for expert drivers, but novices like myself find them producing roughly the same lap times.

Still, it's great fun. Kudos for designing gears which work great at both tracks. The sharp turn-in and wonderful throttle steerability are more important than any readings from a G-force data logger.

Thanks alot. I was trying to build an easy car to drive, yet quick. It seems I need to rething tuning such fat cars

8) krenkme - Old Man's LFA- Only the safest understeer
Tsukuba: 56.887
Suzuka: 2:07.304

Old mans LFA Thanks for the time and running the car




Thanks to every one involved in this shootout, I hope all the testers enjoyed my cars (you called it fat ) And a big THANK YOU to ryangt for making this shootout. It has been a blast

 

[VTiRoj]

Thanks for the comments, Roj. I set the adjustable LSD to more or less the stock settings and spent way too much time trying to tweak the suspension that I kinda forgot the LSD. It is usually the first thing I adjust but not this time for some reason. Anyhow, I will definitely look at that and then play with a transmission before I say I am happy with it. Again, thanks for the efforts.

It handles well enough as it is, so fixing that LSD will give it such an edge. 👍

Don't feel mean, I enjoy the feed back. I think once this shootout is over this car may needs to go on a diet, and losen up the LSD .

you called it fat

A diet of what? Cake? I kid, I kid.

 

[Onboy123]

For curves, or a straight line . I have a track tune that just needs to be dusted off.

You know which I mean.

 

[ryangt]

ok... please no more driving... no more please... all feed back is done and can be found here sorry for the short feedback on a lot of the cars.. its just 49 cars... + having to drive most of them again = brain dead not wanting to write or do anything... testers you have 5 hours 39 minutes till times are due.

Drivers pick

490
1) jollygreen
2) VTiRoj

520
1) Motor City Hami
2) nomis3613

550
1) ACSR421
2) CSLACR

 

[ryangt]

testers you have 1 hours from this post to get your times in.

 

[luv2drive]

Here are my results. Wow this was a lot of cars! Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to finish this before my flight to Chicago today, so I'm only posting my times now to meet the deadline. I will update the post later with comments. For some cars, especially in the 520 division, I only had times written down and not comments. I'd like to go back later this week and drive each one again quickly to remind myself of the car before posting comments if you don't mind leaving your tunes up on share this week

Results - 490pp

Onboy123 / Subaru Impreza WRX STi ’02 – 1:02.627 / 2:20.832

Nice to drive, good handling, obviously a good tune because I was fast in it, but for some reason I didn't find it overly exciting even though I generally like the Impreza for it's great cornering.

CSLACR / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) ’02 - 1:02.521 / 2:20.958

On the other hand I love the RX-7. Great balance and handling. One of my favorites

Theo777 / Mazda RX-8 Type S ’07 – 1:02.354 / 2:21.031

Also a blast to drive, great control and handling. Was hard to choose between this and the RX-7 but I give this tune the edge for enjoyability. Nothing bad to say about this car. Great tune.

VTiRoj / Toyota 86 GT ’12 – 1:02.893 / 2:21.518

A fun drive, great acceleration, but not as much grip as the Impreza. Be careful not to be to aggressive coming out of the corners or the oversteer will end your day.

Hermanvongerman / Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi ’10 – 1:02.111 / 2:21.899

Great handling. I felt I should have been able to go faster in this car. The acceleration could have been better, so maybe this was the issue with the times.

praiano63 / Toyota 86 GT '12 - 1:02.354 / 2:21.698

Always great tunes from praiano. Not as fast this time around. Same slight oversteer issue as the other 86 GT

ACSR421 / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) ’02 – 1:02.575 / 2:21.677

Had a "tighter" and "heavier" feel than the other RX entries. Very comfortable drive, but maybe these issues with the suspension were the cause for the slower times in my hands.

DaDog / Subaru Impreza WRX STi spec C type RA ’05 – 1:02.607 / 2:21.978

Very smooth, tight, and well-balanced. Could have used more speed in the straights. This extra speed combined with its great grip would have made it formidable at Suzuka.

Rotary Junkie / Subaru Impreza WRX STi – 1:02.805 / 2:22.386

Tight handling as usual for the Imprezas. Slight understeer impact corner exit speed and thus lap times.

Jackthalad / Toyota 86 GT ’12 – 1:03.153 / 2:21.510

Nothing wrong with the car. Great grip and handling. Just a bit slower than the other 86 GTs. Perhaps a transmission tuning issue

Motor City Hami / Toyota 86 GT '12 - 1:02.808 / 2:21.888

<to be added>

XDesperado67 / Toyota Caldina GT-FOUR '02 - 1:02.531 / 2:22.397

<to be added>

DigitalBaka / Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX Sti ’02 – 1:02.711 / 2:22.313

Great handling as usual for Imprezas, but a bit slower.

SolidSnake7735 / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) ’02 - 1:03.351 / 2:22.629

Nothing wrong with the handling, but the car felt sluggish. I think closer gear ratios would have helped this and improved lap times.

Ugabugaz / Mitsubishi Lancer II GSR ’94 – 1:03.790 / 2:24.427

This car was a bit too "drifty" for my style. This plus marked understeer were a detriment to lap times

Krenkme / Mitsubishi Airtrek Turbo-R '02 - 1:03.988 / 2:24.324

Handling was fine but about what I expected for a minivan on these tight courses

sheephead99 / Nissan Silvia Spec-R Aero - 1:04.208 / 2:24.858

I generally like this car but it's been in a couple shootouts and just seems slower than the others.

Jollygreen / Toyota MR2 1600 G-Limited ’86 – 1:04.899 / 2:25.333

This car had a strange combination of understeer on entry and oversteer on exit. But once I got used to these handling characteristics, it was actually very fun to drive, even though it was slower than the other entries

MrGrado / Nissan Fairlady Z 300ZX TT (Z32) '89 – 1:04.873 / 2:25.634

Similar to the MR2 this car also had understeer on entry and oversteer on exit which were a barrier to faster times


Drivers Choice 490pp

1) Theo777 / RX-8
2) CSLACR / RX-7

Really loved the Mazdas in this class.

------------------------------------------------------------

Results - 520pp

(I only have some brief comments so far on this section. I'm going to go back this weekend and give each car another lap to get some better feedback)

VTiRoj / Subaru Impreza WRX STi '07 - 0:59.375 / 2:14.494

Motor City Hami / Honda NSX Type R '02 - 0:59.725 / 2:14.946

This car is a blast to drive!

praiano63 / Nissan GT-R M.Spec Nur R34 '02 - 0:59:425 / 2:15.385

Rotary Junkie / Subaru Impreza WRX STi Spec C '04 - 0:59.966 / 2:15.606

CSLACR / Lexus IS-F - 0:59.987 / 2:15.758

nomis3613 / Nissan Fairlady Z (Z34) '08 - 1:00.114 / 2:15.830

XDesperado67 / Toyota Caldina GT-FOUR '02 - 0:59.657 / 2:16.058

ACSR421 / Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VI GSR T.M. SCP '99 - 0:59.889 / 02:16.030

Understeer

Cykosis1973 / Mitsubishi CZ-3 Tarmac '01 - 0:59.844 / 2:16.378

SolidSnake7735 / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD3S) '02 - 1:00.234 / 2:16.135

sheephead99 / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD) '02 - 0:59.987 / 2:16.879

ugabugaz / Toyota 86 GT '12 - 1:00.523 / 2:16.547

Similar oversteer/understeer issue as the 490pp entry

jollygreen / Nissan Fairlady Z (Z34) '08 - 1:00.212 / 2:16.934

Need to brake extra early!

Theo777 / Mitsubishi AIRTREK Turbo R '02 - 1:00.846 / 2:18.635

Surprising!

Hermanvongerman / Tacoma X-Runner '04 - 1:01.429 / 2:18.162

krenkme / Tacoma X-Runner '04 - 1:01.586 / 2:18.491


Drivers Choice 520pp

1) Motor City Hami / NSX
2) VTiRoj / Impreza

I'm a sucker for the NSX and this was a great tune, and I'm really becoming an Impreza fan of late

----------------------------------------------------------------

Results - 550pp

Rotary Junkie / Subaru Impreza Sedan WRX STi ’10 – 0:56.420 / 2:07.786

This car ate up Tsukuba for me! I generally hate that track but somehow I was able to slide through the nasty corners much better with this car. Great tune! Perfect balance and handling, so easy to drive and very fast!

VTiRoj / Honda NSX Type R '02– 0:57.425, 2:07.989

This is a wonderful car. Love the look too BTW. I always love the NSX, and this is a great tune. Nothing bad to say about it.

CSLACR / Toyota LFA ’10 – 0:56.970 / 2:08.314

I fell in love with the LFA during this shootout. Hadn't really driven them much before. This was my favorite of the 3 LFA tunes, even if it was a little difficult to keep in a straight line at times. Very fast! I think with time I could record a better lap with this tune for sure. It was quite different than the other LFA tunes, and I really enjoyed the longer gearings, especially on Tsukuba.

Ugabugaz / Toyota LFA ’10 – 0:56.899 / 2:08.551

This car was actually loads of fun to drive once I got used to the oversteer. I think that's just a style thing. Great throttle control. I would have preferred longer gears at Tsukuba to avoid excessive shifting. But a nice tune and very fast.

ACSR421 / Acura HSC Concept ’04 – 0:57.109 / 2:08.350

Great car to drive. Very smooth and responsive. I'm always an Acura fan!

Praiano63 / Honda HSC ’03 - 0:57.240 / 2:08.857

Great tune as usual. Like this car. (Honda/Acura again). I think I could have gone faster if I would have had the time to go back and run this car again as had been my intention.

Motor City Hami / Toyota LFA '10 - 0:57.607 / 2:09.365

Great balance, grip, and gearing. A very nice tune also. I'm not sure why I wasn't quite as fast in this LFA as a couple of the others.

Onboy123 / Subaru Impreza WRX STI Spec C ’04 – 57.465 / 2:10.111

Super fun to drive, great gearing, awesome grip. Not quite fast enough though.

Krenkme / Toyota LFA ’10 – 0:57.670 / 2:09.871

I actually really liked this tune. Great responsiveness and suits my style well in general. A little "slippery" and I wish 2nd was a bit longer but that's a minor point.

sheephead99 / Nissan GT-R VSpec II Nur (R34) - 0:57.930 / 2:10.524

(I'm not sure why I can't find my notes for this car. I'll try and post some later after running the car again)

SolidSnake7735 / Mazda RX-7 Spirit R Type A (FD3S) ’02 – 57.608 / 2:10.642

Very smooth to drive, and very well balanced. Love the responsiveness of the throttle - lots of control. Ultimately slower than the other cars. Perhaps the RX-7 just doesn't have enough power for this class.

Hermanvongerman / Impreza WRX STI Wagon ’99 – 0:58.061 / 2:11.386

This car was easy enough to drive, and typical good Impreza handling. But it was a little slower, and for my not overly exciting.

XDesperado67 / Toyota Caldina GT-FOUR '02 – 0:59.190 / 2:12.065

Great gearing at Tsukuba! I personally found the brakes too be a little weak, and it had a little too much understeer for my taste. (Running MT definitely helps with the brake issue)


Drivers Choice 550pp

1) CSLACR / LFA
2) Rotary Junkie/ Impreza

This one was the hardest to decide. I really could have gone either way with 1st/2nd, and I really enjoyed a lot of cars in this category. If I could give a tie for 2nd place it would go to VTiRoj's NSX, but I had to give the edge to the better time, and I was a little faster in RJ's Impreza

---------------------------------------------------------------

Enjoyed the shootout again... looking forward to the next one

 

[Onboy123]

WOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! 1st AGAIN (for Suzuka, anyway&#8230;I think)!!!!!!! SCOOBIE DOOBY DOO, I LOVE YOU!!!!!

Great drive mate.

 

[nomis3613]

Ryan, sorry to be a hassle, but I just realised that I had forgotten to post my updated lap times. After comparing my results with other testers, I went back and re-did a couple that looked out of place. Here are the updated results, which I think are a better judgement of the cars tested. No worries at all if you prefer to use the results which were actually submitted on time (they are still in my previous post), let me know which ones will be used and I'll delete the others to avoid confusion.

550PP Results
All cars were tested for 5 laps, using DS3 controller.

XDesperado67 Caldina
Tsukuba: 58.515 (+2.1)
Suzuka: 2:12.731 (+4.6)

Comments: Quite understeery in all stages of cornering, this really hurt it at Tsukuba's final sweeper. I felt the gearing didn't suit Tsukuba either, it bogged down out of corners in 2nd, 1st was quicker (made possible by excellent traction) and better for balance but the extra gearchange (into 2nd) hurt it in the race to the next corner. At Suzuka, the understeer was less noticeable.

Very easy to produce consistent laptimes and a great car for novice drivers, but it didn't float my boat sorry.

krenkme LFA (blue)
Tsukuba: 57.442 (+1.1)
Suzuka: 2:11.573 (+3.5)

Comments: As soon as I jumped in the drivers seat at Tsukuba, I fell in love with how this car drives. A great tune for jumping into and feeling at home in immediately. It felt so fast, I thought it was going to smash my previous Japanese Celebration 550PP lap record. However, the stopwatch begged to differ, since the lap times were only marginally faster than the HSC. Eventually I realised much of its pace is from straight-line grunt, mid-corner speeds are a bit low and braking distanes are long compared with the ferocity at which it hurls itself out of a corner. At Suzuka, I found myself struggling with entry understeer, the poor performance under brakes makes me wonder if all that ballast in the front bumper is actually a good thing. I will be very interested to see how other testers times compare between this car and the HSC. I suspect this could be much faster for expert drivers, but novices like myself find them producing roughly the same lap times.

Still, it's great fun. Kudos for designing gears which work great at both tracks. The sharp turn-in and wonderful throttle steerability are more important than any readings from a G-force data logger.

VTiRoj NSX
Tsukuba: 57.490 (+1.1)
Suzuka: 2:10.090 (+2.0)

Comments: Extremely quick, but also very demanding on the driver. Needs an aggressive driving style, yet also with precision and subtlety. Pushing hard reveals a tendancy of the rear sliding deep in the braking zone, which on one hand makes the handling more adjustable but on the other hand sometimes time is wasted tidying it up. Similar story with the throttle on the way out, the throttle-steerability is wonderful but it's a fine line before you push it too far and end up facing backwards. I'm sure better drivers will get much quicker times, personally I found it an achievement just to put together a single lap without any lawnmowing!

Kudos for designing gears which work great at both tracks. A ferocious tune, that will both challenge and delight expert drivers.

Hermanvongerman STi (green)
Tsukuba: 57.776 (+1.4)
Suzauka: 2:13.311 (+5.2)

Comments: Holy entry oversteer, Batman! Is one of the kids playing with the handbrake?! Likewise on the way out, with a bit of planning it can pull off some impressive driftu. But is any of this fast? Ummm...no. The body moves around on the suspension a lot during cornering, often causing unpredictable handling. Also, beneath the pedal-induced sidewaysness, the balance is quite understeery, in fact the power oversteer isn't that useful since once the rear regains grip, you've suddenly got a fair bit of understeer to deal with. Around Suzuka, it actually feels like an old-school muscle car due to the poor braking, wallowy suspension and power oversteer. Despite a similar lap time to the Skyline, the two cars couldn't feel any more different: the Skyline's enthusiasm urges the driver to achieve cornering greatness, while the STi needs to be manhandled just to make it to the exit in one piece. Kudos for designing gears which work great at both tracks.

The lime green paint is easily seen through tyre smoke, and for this purpose the car is a hoot!

CSLACR LFA (orange)
Tsukaba: 57.131 (+0.8)
Suzuka: 2:10.256 (+2.1)

Comments: Fast and nicely balanced. Sports Soft tyres are no match for this engine out of slower corners, so it's hard to know whether to try to sniff out traction in 1st or just grunt it out in 2nd. Kudos for designing gearing that works well at both tracks. Just some minor nitpicking- a bit more exit front grip would be nice, and for me this was a hard car to feel the limit of (not sure why). But by all objective standards it's a great handling car, so well done.

ACSR421 HSC '04 (green wheels)
Tsukuba: 57.122 (+0.7)
Suzuka: 2:08.117 (1st)

Comments: Very fast, yet at Tsukuba it was twitchy on the limit, so it is a difficult car to drive at full pace. As a DS3 user, I wonder if this tune was built using a wheel? It seems ultra sensitive to steering inputs and I suspect the LSD is setup to provide maximum adjustability for the pedal-using driver, however with the (less accurate) DS3 stick it is easy to overcook the throttle and have the rear start to come around. The agility does make for excellent lap times: slam down the throttle, ride out the wheelspin and watch the opposition disappear into the rear view mirror.

Meanwhile at Suzuka the pace is just as phenomenal but a lot less tempermental too. The driver needs to keep in mind that there is a lot of "super LSD" going on (so don't get scared when the rear continues to arc) and body movement is a bit loose (so take care when throwing the weight around). But keep these in mind and it all makes sense at Suzuka. Much more stable handling, yet still very adjustable. Without the bumps, traction out of slow corners is much better and it flows between corners wonderfully. Kudos for designing gear ratios which work great at both tracks. Summary: Unruly fast at Tsukuba, sublime and fast at Suzuka.

Praiano63 HSC '03 (grey)
Tsukuba: 56.913 (+0.5)
Suzuka: 2:08.993 (+0.9)

Comments: Lacks traction when turning, so the driver nedds to wait until lock is removed before applying full throttle. Actually, I think the Suzuka gearing would also be better for Tsukuba, the shorter gearing isn't much help because it's traction-limited anyway. Otherwise, a great tune- very controllable, nice balance and excellent cornering speeds.

Motor City Hami LFA (green)
Tsukuba: 57.076 (+0.7)
Suzuka: 2:09.562 (+1.4)
Driver's choice: 10 points

Comments: I love it! Nitpicking first: for the first couple of laps, I felt the dive under brakes was "abrupt" (damper settings perhaps?), but soon I got used to it and didn't notice it. Also, it struggles for traction exiting bumpy corners. But back to the gushing praise. Balance is brilliant, adjustability is brilliant, gearing is spot on. This car just fitted me like a glove. Do I really have to give it back?!

sheephead99 R34
Tsukubas: 57.751 (+1.4)
Suzuka: 2:13.263 (+5.1)

Comments: Let's start with the bad stuff first: this car does not like Tsukuba. Actually, I should say "I don't like this car at Tsukuba"! Very nice turn-in, however it turns into understeer for mid-corner and exit. Very easy to run wide on exit, the power understeer means that you often have to wait to get on the throttle and ironically watch the RWD opposition blast away out of slower corners. Feels stiff and upset by bumps in the track. Sorry to sound harsh, but this tune didn't float my boat. Good brakes and actually cornering speeds are quite high, if it weren't for the straight line speed disadvantage, I suspect it would be able to match the slower of the HSC and LFA's times.

Now for the good stuff: it loooooves Suzuka. Feels like there is less understeer, and what remains is actually helpful at a tricky track like Suzuka. I was daydreaming during my out-lap, but on returning to reality on the front straight I realised "hey, I've just put in a really clean lap. No sweat". That is a massive achievement. Kudos for designing gears which work great at both tracks. In turn 1 at Suzuka it gobbles up the blue LFA, with fluid and adjustable cornering. Even more impressive is that it can keep pace with the blue LFA for the first half of the lap, despite the significant straight-line disadvantage. Came very close to getting some driver's choice points based user-friendliness and "efficiency" at Suzuka.

Onboy123 STi (blue)
Tsukuba: 57.213 (+0.8)
Suzuka: 2:11.484 (+3.4)
Driver's choice: 5 points

Comments: This is an STi that would do Bunta Fujiwara proud! Actually, in the way it "teaches the driver" it's actually similar to his son's panda. The only possible "not so gushing" comment is that if you slide the rear on entry, it can take a while for the chassis to regain composure, however this could also be seen as a lesson to the driver about being more disciplined with the weight transfer.

Expecting it to fun, yet limited by its origins as a shopping trolley, I was in for a surpise when the lap times came through. At Tsukuba it is up with the "big boys" of the LFAs and HSCs, which is amazing. The high speed front grip is incredible, the sweeping turns of Suzuka could be taken flat where most other cars needed a small lift. Kudos for designing gearing which works great at both tracks. This car is so well balanced and adjustable, anything is possible. Brilliant.

SolidSnake7735 RX-7
Tsukuba: 57.691 (+1.3)
Suzuka: 2:11.300 (+3.2)

Comments: Wonderfully agile. At Tsukuba, the limiting factor is traction out of the bumpy corners. Occasionally the LSD just spins the outside wheel. The ability to kick the rear out on demand with the throttle is very useful, (not just for showboating! but also) to reposition the car if a braking or turn-in point is missed. Very nicely balanced, nice work.


Ugabugaz LFA (pink)
Tsukuba: 56.687 (+0.3)
Suzuka: 2:09.445 (+1.3)

Comments: Decent balance, with a gentle understeer stance. I don't understand the purpose of the super-short gearing at Tsukuba- 1st and 2nd are only good for creating smoke! The stiff ride seems to reduce traction out of Tsukuba's tight, bumpy corners. On the plus side, at Tsukuba this tune works well for the feet! What I mean by this is it is nicely adjustable using either the throttle or brake.

Over at Suzuka, the "super LSD" oversteer was actually a bit much and unintentionally caused the car to rotate when I just wanted it to power out in a straight line. The smooth circuit suited the stiff suspension a lot better. The good news continues when looking at the Suzuka timing boards...right near the pointy end of the field, congratulations!

Rotary Junkie STi (green)
Tsukuba: 56.374 (1st)
Suzuka: 2:08.962 (+0.8)

Comments: Took me a while to get a feel for the cars rhythm at Tsukuba. Suspension is quite jiggly over bumps and the balance errs towards understeer. Passing the pit board delivered a very pleasant surprise: pole position! Excellent stability under brakes, in fact even when I put a wheel onto the grass, it still pulled up straight.

At Suzuka, the story for this Kia gets even better. Incredibly fast, and the balance to be a lot more neutral here. Kudos for designing gearing which works great at both tracks.

 

[Onboy123]

Nomis, does me getting 5 points for drivers choice mean I'm second to MCH's LFA?

 

[nomis3613]

Nomis, does me getting 5 points for drivers choice mean I'm second to MCH's LFA?

indeed ( )

Anyone here like graphs??
(beware that jollygreen's results are included in the average- since he didn't test all cars, I'm guessing his results won't count for scoring)
490 PP

520 PP

550 PP

 

[Onboy123]

indeed ( )

Anyone here like graphs??
(beware that jollygreen's results are included in the average- since he didn't test all cars, I'm guessing his results won't count for scoring)

Yay!! I should enter Imprezas from now on, they bring me good luck and good times, it seems.

I don't. I say that since he did test all (I think) of the 490PP and 520PP, that those completed categories be counted, only the incomplete ones to be left out.

And no, that has nothing, nothing at all to do with the fact that my 490PP Impreza came first in his tests.

 

[VTiRoj]

I'm happy with 1st, 2nd and 4th. Seems the only way to take down an NSX-R is to use a Kia.

Just noticed there's no 520PP result for RJ's car.

 

[ryangt]

Thank you for all the testers and tuners for joining my first shootout i will be taking the results (even though nomis seems to have done it already) and coming up with winners, look for them tonight. winners will then get to choose their prize cars.

 

[DigitalBaka]

Just noticed there's no 520PP result for RJ's car.

The sad panda ate them...

I like my results considering I wasn't perfectly happy with the "finished" product. If I ever figure out transmission tuning you guys are in so much trouble!

Thanks to ryangt for hosting this and to all who participated. 👍