RKM Motorsport - Tuned Tuners - May '13

I did not realize that was "light hearted". I feel as if you came in simply to completely blast the setup (read your post again and you'll probably see what I mean) rather than give any true feedback. Rome is not exactly the most friendly track when it comes to cars that are loose on entry (hence my bit about IC10) and that may be part of the problem.. Reducing rear brake bias ought to calm it down quite a bit as well but I feel going stronger on the decel value of the diff would hurt mid-corner abilities. Suspension is (as mentioned) set the way I find to work best on the full blown race cars. If you need something more docile (and likely quicker as well), I suggest the Xanavi NISMO Z I did for last month's tuner challenge; it shares quite a bit in terms of setup style with the NSX (high spring/damper, low anti-roll) but is far less twitchy and easier to drive, perhaps even a bit quicker than the NSX thanks to the better power delivery and seemingly stronger brakes. I'll probably release it once I get someone to take a few pictures, until then it can be found here.

Thanks Rotary. I have that car and you are right, it is quite capable at Rome. I recently purchased the Nissan 350Z LM Concept and find it to be the best car so far that suits me at Rome. I was just trying to get that little bit more and thought one of the NSX's would do it. I am thinking it is just a little too twitchy and skittish of a car to be consistent at Rome. I can get decent laps in it, but not much consistency.
 
908KillerWhale_Big.jpg


Killer whale this is. You'd think the factory peugeot squad could take a few lessons from this quick little P1 car. The Orecca win at Sebring was no fluke. They've been taking tips straight off from this beast.

At first glance you'd say why choose this car over the factory peugeot. That car is properly quick. Well the fact of the matter is this car is identical to the factory peugeot and it will please your eyes better than the Peugeot Sport Total 908 ever could.(Bonus points for endurances races).

The mighty V12 in the back of this 908 has been refined. Gone is the brutish torque that sends the rear end skating in 1-3rd gear. In place is a regeared transmission thats puts down the power at all the right moments waiting to pounce in 4th gear.

Putting your foot down and keeping it down is no problem with the copious amounts of downforce. Feel free to take some off for the famous Circuit de la Sarthe if you dare. The corners is where this 908 gets it done over the previous generations Group C and early LMP cars. You'll find your self outbraking opponents or just flatout motoring passed on the next straight. At places like daytona you wont find the engine being bogged down by the high banks of daytona with the amount of torque on tap.

You can do all this and still save time and money at the pump. Easy on it's tires and sipping fuel like a tame lion this is a true enduro racer.

My one issue would be the seemingly stiff springs that are used on this car. It would surely making for a bumpy ride down the mulsanne or somewhere like trial mountain
 
REVIEW: GranTurismo S

I can't say exactly why but this is about the sexiest Italian car I can think of; certainly better than anything I can name with a prancing pony on the hood and much more style than carbon fiber and big wings. The body lines are graceful and elegant but the face on the car says "you don't want to pick a fight." In stock trim there is some to like and some to dislike. The brakes feel and work nicely but don't really give a good impression of slowing the car, which is strange to get used to. The tail is on the loose side and will frequently step out on heavy throttle. If you can keep the angle down it isn't a problem for the most part but go too far and it becomes difficult to recover. Coming through the corners feels slow overall. Even taking a corner at similar speed to a similar car the feeling is that the Maserati is not as fast. The car is still pretty quick regardless, turning a 2'14.281" best lap.

With the listed parts this car is a wild child! Standard brake balance does this car no favors with its new found speed. Cornering was a nightmare. First, it doesn't want to turn in and you have to coax it to bite, then even a touch of throttle will send the tail out and faster than stock leaving you a blink to be able to catch it before you spin and choke on tire smoke. Keep it calm through the turns, however, and it rewards you with blazing speeds. The lap of 2'01.105" can attest to the difference there.

The tune works magic on the rear, holding it down through what it had no hope of keeping before. When it does step out, the slide has much more control with a comparatively huge window to catch and correct. The brakes have gotten better but I still feel like they could stand to be just a touch firmer overall to move the braking point up a little further. For me the car is still a tad too beastly to get a properly fast time down. I did find that coming in a bit wider and apexing just a little later helps significantly, lowering the chance of fighting a slide and giving me more of a straight run through the exit. I knew all this testing would teach me something! Not enough for top honors but the GTS cracks in at 1'59.587", just a fraction behind the Stradista for third on the board.

Calling it just the "GranTurismo S" doesn't really do it justice. If I were handing out suggestions I would say go with "Vader". It has the look and the attitude to carry the name well. In future I can see it making a good run for the top spot but I am not sure it will quite make it there, though the Stradista definitely has a target on its tailpipe.
 
Max for the RS is 394 (altho this will increase when run in) but its faster anyway ;)

As soon as PSN is sorted i'm sending the RS to Roj so its just a case of wating for that to come back up :grumpy:

Just had an RS pop up in the UCD. Can't wait for you guys to come out with your tune :drool:
 
REVIEW: RE Amemiya RX-7

Some say that his garage in Chiba is a Mecca for haters of pistons and that 35+ years of tuning experience has made him a "Rotary God". All we know is Isami Amemiya has unleashed a hellish rotary-powered vision upon the world.

Brand new out of the box you look at this car and think "I'm going to be spending a lot of time looking down the track out my side windows." The stickers, huge wing and flamboyant body kit make it look like something that belongs shredding tires in D1 or FormulaD. Not necessarily true. This car belies its exterior appearance and can stick a corner like you won't believe. Tuned by the best in the rotary business this is no stock FD, as the lap time will indicate. It is very well balanced on power, through corners and on the brakes. Will you still find yourself sliding through a turn? Yes, however power oversteer really only shows up on lower speed corners and is quickly contained. Initial stock lap comes in at 2'04.199".

With the parts list purchased and installed you find little change. The rear is a little more eager to come around but all the control remains as does just about everything else. Coming off a pre-tuned car the lap of 2'01.137" is unspectacular in time difference, but not unexpected.

If you are a fan of RKM and their tunes this is a moment of truth. Roj has put into our heads that his version of Amemiya's vision can rival his legendary NSX-R. So, let's find out. As before with the parts tune the general character of the car is untouched; the balance and control remain intact. However, the steering is now more responsive, perhaps close to being as mentally plugged in as RJ's EvoX. The rear has come back in line; very stable and a feeling of infinite control upon stepping out, eerily similar to the NSX-R. So a few laps then. Right off the bat I came in a hair off 2' flat. Pushing a little harder was easy and that barrier was broken quickly. The sticking point of the lap for me was the final turn. I was coming off the s-curves fast enough that I had to either lift or tap the brakes to get through just right. I had many a good lap taken down by stuffing it into the wall or getting just far enough onto the grass over the rumbles that the rear came unglued. I posted my best time on lap eight. Putting on my best Jeremy Clarkson.. it did it in...one minute..........fifty........eight point eight two! That's right, 1'58.820"! The big, bad, blue rotary-powered devil has taken top slot on the board at Grand Valley Speedway!

But wait! There is the NSX-R scowling in the pit lane. To be fair the champ got the opportunity to defend the crown it has kept for so long. Like a demon it bites and claws at the tarmac hoping to regain its glory as king. Two minutes.....1'59.9"....1'59.7".....1'59.5". And that was all it could muster. After 15 laps the champ concedes defeat and hands over the crown, but not without promising to keep this new rivalry going anywhere, anytime.

And so the RX-7 revels in new found glory and fame. However, this well balanced machine is already gearing up to take on the NSX-R again. Another track, another time, another fight to the wire.
 
What tyres are you using for the NSX-R and RX7?

Both are exact specs as what Roj has posted and run on Sport Softs (S3). Also, I have finally taken TCS completely off and run only ABS1 and the driving line.
 
I’ve been pretty bored on GT5 recently. So I came up with a bit of a challenge to test RKM cars. Put the best RKM cars up against the best of their ‘real world’ tuned counterparts. Why do this? Just to kill some time and also to see how good the cars tuned by real world tuners will fair against a car tuned by a bunch of ‘average’ guys. This took a lot of time to type up, so please be respectful and avoid a repeat of the GTR ‘It wasn’t fair at all’ thing.

RKM vs Nismo
Don’t be expecting a R34 vs R34 Black Edition shootout though. I’ve yet to see one in the UCD and might not have the cash to get one anyways. Still, the cars I’ve lined up aren’t exactly cheap or underpowered. So, let’s get going.
Tested on TGTT
1st round- Fairlady Z Z-tune vs 370Z GT Academy

Fairlady Z Z-tune

Power: 404hp
Weight: 1250kg
PP: 520
Laptime: 1:14.687

Thoughts: This car has two personalities. On one hand, it’s a track-prepped monster which feels like a road legal version of the ‘Annihilator‘ TT-R. But on the other hand, it’s a bit of a tricky b******, woolly to drive and has excessively sensitive steering which will suddenly stop responding when it can’t be bothered to turn. Now, that would have been fine if it was consistently like that (i.e Sharp race car responses on turn in and a tricky b****** on exit), but it isn’t. It’s pretty hard to judge which personality this car is using to take a corner. I turned into a tight, slow section of corners like the hammerhead on the first lap and it remained planted, like the TT-R. But on my second go at the exact corner with the exact line and brake points, and it suddenly became an Enzo, i.e understeery and lairy. This constant change in character is also visible on the tyres. On the lap when it drove like the TT-R, it felt like it was on racing tyres, but on the lap when it was a complete pig to drive, it felt like it had comfort softs on. It’s a weird car, this. The stats suggest that this should be a hell of a track car, and it is. That laptime is very close to the NSX’s laptime, and I’m sure it could beat it. Once. Then it’ll spend the next few laps dumping you on the grass or in a cloud of tyre smoke facing the wrong way.


370Z GT Academy

Power: 473hp
Weight: 1165kg
PP: 561
Laptime: 1:13.884

Thoughts: Well, what haven’t I said about this car that needs saying? Umm……nothing. This car is one of those cars that can beat things with a lot more power. I know, I’ve tried. It walked right by a Ferrari F430 like it was standing still. It’s the opposite of the Z-tune, easy to drive, no weird character changes, very fast and a lot of fun. Mix those characteristics in with the 473hp and the wing, and you have a car that’s both fast and forgiving. And that’s all I can say, after at least three reviews of this car, I’ve finally run out of things to say about this car. Well, actually, one more complement. This car is in the same league as the NSX-R and the RE RX7. And that’s as high as praise as a 400-500hp car can get.


Round one winner: RKM

Extra notes: Ok, that result was unsurprising. But before you start all of you’re ‘It wasn’t fair on the Nismo!!!’ or ‘Why didn’t you use RJ’s Lord Z, it’s based on the same car and has similar specs to make it fair!!’ rants and crap, let me make one thing clear. These shootouts will be done using the best car of the range. So if RKM didn’t do the 370Z, I’d have used the Midnight Z, and if they didn’t do that, I’d use the Lord Z. Only the best car will be used here. Still, the Nismo kept up surprisingly well, on most sections being only 0.2 to 0.4 seconds behind. Considering the car’s extra weight and less power, that small difference is actually very good. I was expecting to be at least 0.5 to a full second behind. Imagine what it could do with more power. Now banish that thought from your head, it’ll never happen. I’ll never give it more power. Not until a more powerful Z comes along.


2nd round- 270R vs S15 Spec V

270R
(to level the playing field, the 270R will have 400hp and all weight modifications made)
Power: 400hp (271hp stock)
Weight: 1066kg (1240kg stock)
PP: 511
Laptime:1:18.627

Thoughts: Well, it’s like a drift car for the road. The diff seems to be asleep, the tyres are just too narrow to effectively put the power to the road and when it does slide, chances are, you’d spin trying to catch it. It’s not a driver-friendly car this. It doesn’t like fools driving it, and doesn’t like being driven sideways either. But if you can get it to grip, it’s quite good at give its opponents a bloody spanking. That recorded lap was done after 3 laps of spinning in a cloud of smoke, so I drove rather conservatively to preserve the tyres and to cross the line facing the right way. I’m sure if I’d been braver and been more aggressive, that time would be slashed down by at least a second. But as it is now, the prospect of throwing it into a corner with the risk of spinning out is just too great and daunting. It’ll have to do.

S15 Spec V

Power:407hp
Weight:1051kg
PP:517
Laptime: 1:17.449

Thoughts: This is actually not that much better than the 270R, it’s not as lairy, has more grip, but has a feeling of uncertainty to it, which is bad on any car, but for a car with drifting and racing intents, it’s quite a terrifying prospect. Then problem is that you’re not too sure of where the car wants to go next or whether it’ll stop if things go wrong as the brakes don’t seem to give much feedback either. On my first lap, I was braking into the Hammerhead and it felt like it was just going to charge straight pass the turns, smash through the cones and hit the tyre wall on the other side. But managed to slow down quick enough for the turn with a slightly scared driver at the wheel. And then it crashed there the next lap, following my exact description of how the brakes felt the last lap, even though there was the feeling that I was going to stop in time for the turn coming from the brakes this time round. This is something I wasn’t expecting as I’d been running this tune on my RM’ed S15 (this one isn’t, I had to buy another for this test, hence why I’m too poor to buy both R34’s) for a long time, and it felt fine. I guess the RM wings and aero aids hid this tune’s flaws, still, this is a very quick car nonetheless. But I was expecting more, after all, I think this is, if I’m not mistaken, the car that has had the most revised setup of all the tunes.


Round two winner: RKM

Final scores:
RKM-2
Nismo-0

RKM Wins!
 
What tracks do you guys @ RKM test and set your cars up to?

Ive been testing the NSX-R @ GVS, while i had to adjust some settings i got it down to 1.56.8XX. Nice settings but the tail end was a bit to twichy for me so i adjusted the LSD mainly.

I then treid the RE RX7 but couldnt get near the time of the NSX. About 1.5 seconds off. Again to twitchy at the rear end. Ill have another go soon as i reckon i can get closer.
 
I do all my testing at Trial Mountain. At this point I'm getting kinda tired of the track (especially after all those dang hatchbacks) but keeping on one track gives me a nice leaderboard for all my tunes, RKM and other... I actually tuned one myself this weekend with the network being down :)
 
Race Car Rundown
Thanks for the rundown! Really good to see how much of an improvement some of these tunes are. Even if the lap differences arent huge, the feel of the car changes a lot, so they're all pretty easy to drive lap after lap. I just wish the XR8 had a racing Commodore to spar with. :P
REVIEW: GranTurismo S

Calling it just the "GranTurismo S" doesn't really do it justice. If I were handing out suggestions I would say go with "Vader". It has the look and the attitude to carry the name well. In future I can see it making a good run for the top spot but I am not sure it will quite make it there, though the Stradista definitely has a target on its tailpipe.
DarthTurismo S? :lol: Thanks for the review! Yeah the GranTurismo really suprised me with it's potential when I first got the thing. I made do with someone else's tune of it for a while, before tackling it myself and really doing the car great justice. I think if the engine had more to give, it would definately be a Scuderia killer. :D
REVIEW: RE Amemiya RX-7
I knew the RE would be the one. The NSX takes some tracks by force but the others, the RE takes the win. Thanks for the review! It was difficult trying to make an RX-7 follow the NSX's crazy lines, but once it did, that's when it became clear. :D It really is the most epic rivalry we have going here. :sly:
What tyres are you using for the NSX-R and RX7?
Sports soft.
RKM Wins!
Thanks for the shootouts! The S15 is the most troublesome car I've tuned. It's never satisfied with it's current settings, always finding new problems to give me. :ouch: That said, the NSX has had more tweaks done to it, but I didnt always release it immediately after. ;)

The 370Z is up there with the NSX and RX-7, but it doesnt have the capability to overtake them. It's easier to drive though, so I reckon in a long distance race, it could be close.

With that said, poor Nismo. If I was a football fan I'd do that chant they do when their team wins 2-0. :sly:
What tracks do you guys @ RKM test and set your cars up to?

Ive been testing the NSX-R @ GVS, while i had to adjust some settings i got it down to 1.56.8XX. Nice settings but the tail end was a bit to twichy for me so i adjusted the LSD mainly.

I then treid the RE RX7 but couldnt get near the time of the NSX. About 1.5 seconds off. Again to twitchy at the rear end. Ill have another go soon as i reckon i can get closer.
Trial Mountain is our main test track. We test at other tracks so our tunes are good anywhere, not just at Trial.

I think it's because I like the LSD to swing the car around but with minimal wheelspin, so it feels a little twitchy to someone with a different driving style. The RX-7 is just slidey by nature anyway. :)

You!

I really said to myself: Finally they did tune a GT-R.. but then Desaster!
Please, I'm begging you! TUNE A GT-R!

:lol:

I think RJ has a GT-R tune in his little box of fun, from a previous request, but it'll never actually get published here. PM him and he might give you them.
 
:lol:

I think RJ has a GT-R tune in his little box of fun, from a previous request, but it'll never actually get published here. PM him and he might give you them.

You lie. I've got an R35 somewhere on my save but the tune was nothing worth noting... And the one I did on request for uMadson? didn't get the settings written down because it was an R35. And boring because of it.
 
it is beatiful, i will do my MASERATI something like this, thank you
Yeah, I love how the Maserati GranTurismo looks. :D
You lie. I've got an R35 somewhere on my save but the tune was nothing worth noting... And the one I did on request for uMadson? didn't get the settings written down because it was an R35. And boring because of it.

My bad then. :P
 
RKM Motorsport’s Audi R8 V10

AudiR8V10.jpg

AudiR8V10_Big.jpg


Based on: Audi R8 5.2 FSI Quattro ’09
Obtained: Brand new model at Audi

Drivetrain: 4WD
Horsepower: 749 BHP (@ 29.7 miles)
Torque:---- 76 kgfm
Weight:---- 1313 kg
PP:-------- 621

PARTS
GT Auto

PDI P525 Wheels
Type A Wing

Tuning Shop
Chassis Weight Reduction Stage 3
Rigidity Improvement
Window Weight Reduction
Carbon Bonnet (Body Colour)
Engine Tuning Stage 3
Sports ECU
Sports Intake Manifold
Racing Air Filter
Titanium Racing Exhaust
Sports Exhaust Manifold
Catalytic Converter: Sports
Mid RPM Range Turbo Kit
Fully Customisable Transmission
Twin Plate Clutch
Semi Racing Flywheel
Carbon Propeller Shaft
Torque Distributing Centre Differential
Fully Customisable LSD
Fully Customisable Suspension Kit
Racing Soft Tyres

SETUP

Body/Chassis
Aerodynamics

Downforce: 10/30

Ballast
Amount:-- 0
Position: 0

Engine
Power Limiter

Power Level: 100.0%

Transmission
Transmission

(Set Max Speed, then each individual ratio.)
1st:-- 3.495
2nd:-- 2.340
3rd:-- 1.708
4th:-- 1.344
5th:-- 1.082
6th:-- 0.889
Final: 3.666
Max Speed: 230 MPH

Drivetrain
Differential

Initial: 10/10
Accel:-- 25/30
Braking: 5/5

Drivetrain
Torque Distribution: 35/65

Suspension
Suspension

Ride Height: -20/-20
Spring Rate: 9.0/10.5
Extension:-- 6/7
Compression: 5/6
Anti-Roll:-- 3/4
Camber:----- 1.5/1.0
Toe:-------- –0.15/0.10

Brakes
Brake Balance Controller

Brake Balance: 5/6

Intended Driving Options
Transmission: Manual (MT)
ABS: 1
Everything else: OFF

Tuner Comments:
YassirNosir was so pleased with the C63 AMG we did for him, he sent us an Audi R8 V10 to tune as well. He sent us a 749bhp beast, which was already really fast, but it was too Audi-ish for us. For a car that has an engine from Lamborghini, this just didn’t make us as happy as an actual Gallardo would. So we brought out the bull in this Audi.

The end result is an R8 that’ll tear the skin off of any Ferrari, including the Enzo. Endless amounts of grip, road hugging suspension and heavy downforce make this R8 feel like a race car. Although be warned, like a bull, if you’re not up to the challenge that is taming this car, you’ll be kicked off in seconds.


28th Feb 2011 - Transmission & ballast/power settings.

I am here to review this car. In the few races I've done with it, it is a MONSTER. It is nearly as fast as my tuned Mclaren F1, and doesn't understeer as much. It is very drifty, which is a huge plus if you can control it, and a huge minus if you cannot. I will be testing this car in the Schwarzwald League B in the Extreme tier, and the race will be Nurburgring Nordschleife. The cars that the R8 is up against are not very powerful, but we will see if they prevail over the power sliding monster. It is a basic, 1 lap track. And, off we go...

You can see the R8 have an advantage, even going into corner 1. It has already passed 2 cars. The beast had a small overslide, but nothing too major. After recovering from the slide and getting out of the grass, the R8 quickly powers into 1st place before even the first minor straight. After a while, the R8 overturns by a longshot, and goes rolling through the grass. After a few spins, it settles down, and luckily was far enough ahead that only 2 cars passed it. The R8 quickly recovered it's speed, and was closing in on the leader by the time it passed by the first sand pit. Even though I had done this race many a time before, I was taking care of the throttle and braking at many turns so that I would not spin out. The R8 quickly passed the leader and lengthened its lead to nearly 5 seconds very quickly. Along the first ridge, the R8 had a slight oversteer, but not too much as to spin it out.

I should have mentioned this before, but, THIS CAR IS NOT FOR BEGINNING DRIVERS!!! It is very difficult to control, but if you can, it is one of the best cars in the game. I'm not exactly the best driver ever, but I can hold my own in an extreme or endurance race. Anyway, back to the 'Ring.

The R8 is in the lead by a good margin, and that only increases. On even the smallest of straights, it constantly reaches 100-150 mph. It has a few turning mishaps, but nothing to slow it down dramatically. Still being careful with the throttle, it heads into the more mellow section of the 'Ring. It maintains its lead heading into the first banked turn (Possibly only banked turn), and comes out of it unscathed. Its lead has slightly shortened, but it is sure to pull it out in the straight. It heads into a corner and pulls a wicked powerslide, which only helps its lead. It continues its prowess until just before the straight, where it has a monster roll, and is quickly put into 7th. Although the future is bleak for the R8, it pulls it out on the straight and quickly pulls ahead of the first place TT, even without drafting. After the straight, it has a slight oversteer, and is almost passed by the TT, but pulls it out. In the end, it was 1.750 seconds ahead of the TT, and 16.900 seconds ahead of the last place car.

In the end, the R8 is a great car. Very quick, good pickup, and decent handling. As I said before, it is very drifty, which is a plus for some, a minus for others. It is a hell of a car, and can be difficult to control at times, and easy at others. No matter what, it is a blast to drive, and it doesn't look half bad either. If your looking for a good car for a straight, but don't have much to spend, and you want something that can also compete in a turning race (Not a standard Veyron), then this is one of your best bets. It is very useful in the German car races also. If your looking for something fast and that you can just smash the throttle on, I would get a Mazda Furai or a Ferrari 458. All around, this is a great car that can either be a great asset or a terrible curse. It is not for beginner drivers, and you must be very careful with the throttle and analog stick/steering wheel. I would strongly recommend buying this, but only if you can tame it.

Final Scores:

Speed: 15/15
Handling: 8.5/10
Acceleration: 18/20
Fun Factor: 4.5/5

TOTAL SCORE: 46/50 Awesome!
 
REVIEW: RX-7 R400

Well, what else would you expect from a guy that calls himself Rotary Junkie? The third generation RX-7, known also by its FD3S or simply FD chassis code, is a very popular car the world over and has been featured in innumerable street car racing games since the early- to mid-90s. Drift, grip, VIP, show car...the FD can be any and has been all due to its timeless lines, incredible chassis and strong engine. The Spirit R, the last special edition of which the Type A is considered the purest form, is touted as the ultimate RX-7 and the pinnacle of rotary performance. So how will this version go?

Driving it straight off the lot it is easy to see why the car is so popular. The car is well balanced and has an easy feel going about its business. The brakes are great; they slow the car quickly but minus the jerky feel you sometimes get with firm braking. The tail end rotates out slowly and can be easily held or brought back without much fuss. It is said Mazda took the best parts and ideas of all the third gen models and put them into the Spirit R. And it certainly shows in the driving feel. Straight off the lot I was able to run a lap of 2'14.237".

Strangely, the parts list takes the car in a different direction than most. Rather than having a wild rear end and fighting to keep control around corners, it has a tendency to lean toward understeer. There is definitely some wheel spin to be had out back but it is easily quelled. The brakes now are a little too soft, however this is normal with every car that has left the brakes alone but had an increase in speed. Lap time comes in at 2'02.063".

The tune helps quite a bit but maybe not enough. The steering is sharper and it feels nice, however the tendency toward understeer on power is still present. The braking also has a better feel but again, a little on the soft side for my taste. Even so, the car is still fast and puts the power into the pavement instead of up in smoke. I never had much of an issue with the rear coming out even on the tighter, slower corners. I think the brakes are a sticking point on this tune. I feel like I am having to brake sooner than I would like and lose some time on entry. The 2'01.174" time is not bad at all but I did expect it to be faster. Given some time I think it will get under the 2'00.5xx" mark. I will definitely be running this car more and will see if I can find a way around the track better than I have so far. I do love my RX-7s and would like to see this get closer to the NSX-R on this track.
 
Thanks for the rundown! Really good to see how much of an improvement some of these tunes are. Even if the lap differences arent huge, the feel of the car changes a lot, so they're all pretty easy to drive lap after lap. I just wish the XR8 had a racing Commodore to spar with. :P

Yeah, that may be the Falcon's greatest weakness... it doesn't fit in with any defined class. Would be nice to have a rival in the game :)
 
Ok, RKM vs a real life tuning company
Round 2

RKM vs Spoon
Tested on TGTT
1st round- S2000 Race Car vs RKM S2000

Spoon S2000 Race Car

Power:372hp
Weight:1050kg
PP:525
Laptime: 1:16.474

Thoughts: Well, it’s a race car on sports softs. What do you think it’s going to drive like? Huge oversteer, massive understeer, wheelspin in 3rd gear, an utter pig to drive. The Spoon S2000 race car is none of the above. This car, even on sports tyres, is just so easy to drive. And fast too, with 372hp under the bonnet and weighing just 1050kg, this car rips up the straights and soars through the corners with no real drama at all. And that’s its problem. It’s a race car designed for racing, not to entertain its driver. Which is why this can’t play. It will slide, the back will let go if you push it, but it’s just too undramatic. Take the engine as an example, it may only have 372hp, but it comes in at 11,300 rpm!! That should have been quite a combination of power and a shrieking engine, but then the whole thing is spoilt by the damn exhaust, which turns a raw, screaming engine note into a soulless drone that gets irritating after a couple of laps. And the same applies to the chassis. On paper, 1050kg in a car this small is great, couple that to the fact that it’s a racing car on sports rubber, and the end result should have been fantastic. A lightweight, mini supercar with racing in its blood. But when you drive it, you realise that it isn’t really that. What it is, is a race prepped S2000 with more power and less weight. It’s still as soulless as the original S2000. And with a lap of 1:16.474, it’s not that fast either. Shame, it had all the right ingredients to be something brilliant, a racing car fast S2000 with Lotus Elise handling and fun, but then it let logics take over, and spoilt it.

RKM S2000

Power:308hp
Weight:1060kg
PP:485
Laptime:1:17.459

Thoughts: Given that this car is the starting point of the S2000 Race Car, you’d be forgiven for thinking that most of what was said above applies here. And you’d be right. The car is still as competent at corners and on straights, albeit slightly slower than the race car, and is still just as lacking in fun as the race car. Add in the fact that it’s slower than the race car and you should be able to guess which car I’d pick. The S2000 race car, of course! Well, you’re wrong. I’d have the RKM S2000. And for one reason. The expectations I held for the S2000 race car were quite high, and it just fell short. While my expectations of the RKM S2000 weren’t as high seeing as I had already tested this car, and it surpassed my expectations easily. Why? It sounds better, can be tuned to take a lot more power (I’ve had 434hp from this thing, didn’t even break a sweat when cornering), is more exciting with more power, and it can take part in more events since it’s a road car. So although the Spoon is the faster car, the RKM S2000 is more adaptable. Which means it’s more usable and therefore a better all rounder. But this test isn’t about looking for the most all round car, it’s about looking for the fastest. And the Spoon is faster, so that wins today.

1st round winner-Spoon

Ok, that was, I admit, a bit of a bias test. In a ‘road car vs race car’ shootout like that, the race car is always going to win, no matter how good the road car is. Still, the RKM car kept up surprisingly well, but it just lost out because of the slight power disadvantages.

2nd round- Spoon Integra Type R DC2 vs RKM Integra Type R

Spoon Integra Type R DC2

Power:287hp
Weight:1080kg
PP:453
Laptime:1:21.530

Thoughts: Best words to describe it is ‘wild, loud, uncontrolled but a little bit crap’. This is fun, until you see the surface change direction. And then the fun changes to wild understeer which will send you head first into a tree. It’s not desperately fast either, the car can’t seem to put its power onto the road without making a big fuss. It will always try to spin its wheels and bury itself into the nearest wall. Another thing, this is not an easy car to drive. I just got back from lunch and tried to drive this, and despite my best efforts, it kept understeering onto the grass or turning into a tripod i.e lift its inner rear wheel up when cornering. This car requires you to be awake, the only FF that needs an alert driver. Shame that the laptime that resulted from all that concentration isn’t that shocking.

RKM Integra Type R

Power:302hp
weight:999kg
PP:488
Laptime:1:18.643

Thoughts: Big difference, this car is a lot less understeery than the DC2, the car is more planted through the turns, there’s no 3 wheeled action here, it doesn’t try to bury itself into tyre walls and can cope with the power easier. It might not rev as high nor sound as good as the DC2, but it’s miles better to drive and miles faster as well. The difference between this and the DC2 is as big as the difference between a Kei car and a X1. Ok, that may be quite an exaggeration, but you get what I mean, this car is so different to its predecessor that I’m starting to wonder if I was a little bit drunk when I thought of comparing the two of them. Still, the comparisons are done and the results are unsurprising, to say the least.

2nd round winner- RKM


RKM-1
Spoon-1

A tie…hmmmm, I don’t think I can really accept that, there has to be one winner. So, one last round to see which tuner tunes the fastest honda in GT5.

3rd round-Spoon CR-Z vs CR-Z Type R/ Spoon Civic Type R vs Civic VTi-R

But that’s for later. Now, I need to grind for more cash.
 
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any chance of doing the GT-R '07? no one seems to have published one. on here or the web.

Well, in case you didn't know, neither of them like the GTR very much, so unless you request one, there isn't any real chance of them doing one. Anyway, forgive me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't a GTR Spec V tune work on it? They're pretty much the same car underneath right?
 
Well, in case you didn't know, neither of them like the GTR very much, so unless you request one, there isn't any real chance of them doing one. Anyway, forgive me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't a GTR Spec V tune work on it? They're pretty much the same car underneath right?

I suppose, I've just posted my own tune for it now, waiting for feedback
 
TOTAL SCORE: 46/50 Awesome!
Yeah, the R8 likes it's powerslides. :P Glad you found the positive side to the Lambo R8. :lol: I think sometimes I went to overboard with unleashing the bull within. :D But yeah, thanks for the review! It's funny seeing the R8 constantly wipe out, then regain 1st in just a few seconds. It really is a monster of a car. :sly:
Yeah, that may be the Falcon's greatest weakness... it doesn't fit in with any defined class. Would be nice to have a rival in the game :)
Yeah and it's not like you can just tune a Commodore up to spec either, it lacks the downforce. :ouch:
Ok, RKM vs a real life tuning company
Round 2
A tie! Blast. :P Only a second slower though in the S2000 and looking at the PP, it wont take much to overtake the race car. :P The Integra race was already won it seems. :lol: The CR-Z battle has been done before and it's pretty close between them, so looking forward to that the most. :D
any chance of doing the GT-R '07? no one seems to have published one. on here or the web.

Like Onboy said, no way unless you request one properly.
 
Well, since the CR-Z battle was done, I was hoping to replace it with a Spoon Civic Type R vs Civic VTi-R battle, but I've been grinding back and forth for almost 4 hours now and have yet to come across one!!!!!! So if anyone's reading this and has a Spoon Civic, please please please I can have it? I'd give you a '00 tom's supra or a Jaguar XJ220 for it (once PSN is back up again, obviously).
 
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