Rivalry Showdown

[VeDub6785]

Rivalry Showdown

This test will put two cars up against each other. These two cars are direct competition for each other in price & performance . Because of the possible close performance of the cars an extra test has been added for this camparo. 2 Laps at Suzuka Circuit (b-spec level 3) . Lets the games begin.


‘04 Mazda MX-5 Miata 1800RS VS ‘02 Toyota MR2 Spyder

I would pick the MR2. I normally buy a miata sometime during my game but after this comparison i will b picking up an MR2. The Toyota win the 400m,1000m and Suzuka race, as well as being cheaper. Not but much but early in the game $2,000 is a pretty big deal.


‘03 Mazda RX-8 Type S VS ‘03 Nissan 350Z

The Z wins in every performance test here. On paper these cars as much more evenly matched. But in the tests the 350Z runs away with it. This is really a tough choice that i think comes down to cash available. The Mazda is $4500 cheeper. Is that enough to offset the performance of the Nissan, idk. Either car would make a great addition to a racers garage.


‘00 Chevy Corvette Z06 VS ‘03 Dodge Viper SRT-10

The Viper embarrasses the Corvette. I know allot of you chevy guys might not like it but look at the numbers. The Viper is MUCH fast right out of the box. BUT, the vette is $30,000 cheaper. BUT The Nissan in the last test has comparable number to the Vette and the Nissan is $20,000 cheaper then the Chevy. Both the Z06 adn the Viper are fast cars but after this test i say save a little and get the Viper. If you only have the money for the Vette, get the Nissan and use the extra to upgrade it.


‘05 Ford Mustang GT VS ‘00 Chevy Camaro SS

The Mustang was a let down. The Camaro wasnt very impressive either when compared to the RX-8 or 350Z. If you need an american car to win one fo those races spend your money on the Mazda or Nissan and use that car to win a few races then buy a Corvette or Viper.



SS

 

[TeamWilliams F1]

nice....liked it alot....very good info

 

[niky]

Just asking, are these B-Spec times? I know you talked about using B-Spec last time to eliminate bias.

I agree that the MR2 is heavily underestimated and is a lot better stock-vs-stock than the Miata. It's underpowered, though, as the Trial Mountain time shows (those straights seem hours long on small cars like these).

Camaro vs. Mustang isn't strictly fair. The Camaro handles like a boat, but it is a LOT faster in a straight line (hence good laptimes). This should be Mustang vs. GTO, as that's a closer match in terms of cornering ability and straightline speed. I love the Camaro, though.

The Nissan vs. Mazda is also a mismatch, as the 350Z is a heavy muscle-car while the RX8 is a relative lightweight. Despite the supposedly better power-weight ratio, the Mazda is nowhere near as powerful as the 350Z. PD may quote manufacturer numbers, but their modelling reflects real-life testing (thus the Mazda has much less power in testing).

Finally, the Z06 vs. the Viper. Not fair in terms of hp, and in terms of lap times, this is why I prefer hands-on testing, as B-Spec can drive the Viper closer to human lap times than it does most other cars. Though it is definitely faster than the Corvette, drive them back-to-back and the Corvette just "feels" better. And the lap times will be a bit closer.

 

[Tornado]

Camaro vs. Mustang isn't strictly fair. The Camaro handles like a boat, but it is a LOT faster in a straight line (hence good laptimes). This should be Mustang vs. GTO, as that's a closer match in terms of cornering ability and straightline speed. I love the Camaro, though.

Alternatively, SVT Cobra R vs. Camaro SS. Or Mustang GT vs. Camaro Z-28. Or Pontiac GTO vs. Camaro Z-28.

The Nissan vs. Mazda is also a mismatch, as the 350Z is a heavy muscle-car while the RX8 is a relative lightweight. Despite the supposedly better power-weight ratio, the Mazda is nowhere near as powerful as the 350Z. PD may quote manufacturer numbers, but their modelling reflects real-life testing (thus the Mazda has much less power in testing).

I disagree, however, with this statement. What else is there for the 350Z to race against? The RX-8 is too slow, but light. The RX-7 is too fast. The S2000 is too slow. What could it race? Maybe the aforementioned Camaro SS. Their times are pretty close. Ah, what am I rambling on about. Never mind.

 

[Kent]

It is interesting that I saw this... I have been playing with the same ideas of "Rivalry" on my own time.
Came up with a challenge for it too (if you haven't already noticed )

Regarding these specific tests...
I can't say much about the Miata/MR2.

The RX8 .vs. 350Z caught my eye because I had considered doing the challenge in my ring rivals race.
However, after looking into it I found the biggest flaw in the match-up... The 350Z's counterpart.

The "Fairlady Z Version ST" is the better choice. 👍
The Fairlady comes with something like 280hp and so would be a much more suitable match than the 350hp American market Z.

Finally, the Z06 .vs. Viper.
This was one of the more interesting parts of this write-up.
I found that it represented the game's take on these cars well but I also found that account for "feelings" from the driver was a great idea.

Even though it isn't exactly scientific, I was happy to see the author acknowledge over-all feelings about the car since those can be just as important as lap times.

Good job with the comparo, maybe take a look at some of the suggestions and get back to us, that's up to you.
In any case, well done. 👍

 

[R_Riders]

Intresting write up there, before I go on, a question, what tires were all the cars on?

 

[VeDub6785]

thanks for all the comments guys. Ill repy to some of them here.

the rx-8 was a dissapointment. i love the car. if i was spending my money (for real now) i woudl get the rx over the z. but the RX8 is only 10kg lighter in the game and loses its advantage i think.

I totaly forgot about the GTO lol. that deff woulda been a better match for the Mustang.

The Z06 vs Viper just seemed right.

All of the cars where raced with the tires they came with.

I know that the times arnt the edge of the cars performance but i needed to keep the playing field even and when i started doing tests i noticed on level 5 and sometimes 4 it was hard to get a clean lap out of b-spec (going off track). Also, personaly i hate the 350z, so if i would drive the laps i would prob not push as hard as i would with the mazda. so b-spec also takes away my bias towards a certain car. Maybe i will run a lap on each track my self and put that next to the b-spec times. thanks for the comments guys. looks for some mroe tests coming up.

ss

 

[Kent]

I still think you should look into doing the Fairlady Z Type ST simply for the sake of evening out what you can.

Still your deal here so I'm not gonna go beyond a simple suggestion.

In any case, let all of us know how your next batch of tests come out. 👍

 

[Eric.]

I still think you should look into doing the Fairlady Z Type ST simply for the sake of evening out what you can.

Still your deal here so I'm not gonna go beyond a simple suggestion.

In any case, let all of us know how your next batch of tests come out. 👍

The G35/Skyline Coupe would probably be good too.

Kent, is the 350Z here really 350hp? Nissan.com says 300 and I'm pretty sure the game says around the same.

Your story was great, Kent. Was flooding not a problem there? Everybody was saying most of your town was underwater.

 

[Kent]

Well I just looked into it and the 350Z is listed with 283hp.
The Fairlady is listed with 276.

I knew the Fairlady was around there but for some reason I thought the 350 had more power.
However, I have a sneaky suspicion that the 350Z will go over 300 after an oil change.

No big deal.
I guess this just means that the difference wasn't that great after all.
Of course, I still think the Fairlady would be a better match for the RX8, but with these new findings I don't think it really makes that much of a difference. 👍

Oh and btw, flooding in my immediate area wasn't a problem (and I mean that in the sense of "my neighborhood").
Down the road about 1 mile though.

Everything was alright though.
Thanks again for your concern.

 

[Tornado]

The G35/Skyline Coupe would probably be good too.

Kent, is the 350Z here really 350hp? Nissan.com says 300 and I'm pretty sure the game says around the same.

The 350Z has 300 now. When it launched and for a year afterwards it only had 280. Don't forget, either, that Nissan always said that the old 300ZX Twin Turbo had 300 but it was never listed as more than 280 in the game.

 

[ving]

thanks for the "rivalry"
nice...

I'd still pick the stang over the comaro just cause its a stang

 

[saimike]

my personal favourite is:

EVO vs WRX STI

the classic match up on streets, profession races and in the game. when you pick cars from the same year, it pretty much boils down to the driver.