Purple Devil Z
This car is cursed to be compared with the Red Devil Z, an unfortunate fate for any car falling short of perfection. The Red Devil Z, let's remind ourselves, was lauded for its limitless controllablity, pace, and confoundingly accesible driftability. Its purple stablemate, however, goes about its business in a rather different way...
It originally began as a Midnight Blue Nissan 240Z, in the manga
Wangan Midnight. It was the fastest car on the high-speed Wangan, thanks to its huge power in lightweight body, but had a most bothersome habit of killing its various owners, then mysteriously coming back to life again (car, not drivers). Akio Asakura, the driver of the Devil Z for the duration of the manga, finds himself posessed by its instinctive thrill of escaping death over and over again, but the Devil Z would betray him if he drove with any less than complete concentration and respect. It was an incredible car, that required an equally incredible driver.
The Purple Devil Z, though it has only half the power of its blue ancestor, has a soulmate in the genuine Devil Z. Driving it through Trial Mountain, it exudes the same aura of terror as a Formula Gran Turismo. Everything is happening so much more quickly than expected, just the slightest mistake can and will frisbee the whole affair into the nearest guardrail. This anxiousness breeds focus, and begins to train the driver to operate such a scary machine.
The Power/Weight ratio of approximately 333hp/tonne means that acceleration is in no short supply, but the 1971 engineering of the car is betrayed by the ever-present threat of wheelspin. Here, the sense that the car is pushing the very limits of possiblity is most present. But the car does still train the driver, and the wheelspin magically vanishes after a moment or two as it subliminally imparts fine throttle control into its pilot.
So, it'll be doing approximately Mach 6 when it reaches a corner, which leads to the only unambiguous shortcoming: the brakes. They are *just a hair* too weak for the car's motion, and any distraction will ultimately result in an entirely missed apex for the subsequent turn. Stability under braking is generally perfect, though extremely strenuous braking situations should still be approached with relative caution.
The cornering itself is nearly the polar opposite of the Red Devil Z's; The suspension feels at the limit of stiffness, and being able to choose between grip and drift is a luxury which usually can't be afforded. It reveals a controllable chassis behaviour as it enters the bend with lift-understeer, then, as the driver progressively threads in the throttle (or dies), the aft edges out just slightly, in an angle classifiable as neither grip nor drift, it exits the corner with a light wiggle of the tail. Drift, too, is also entirely possible, but it is a treacherous venture, not for the weak of heart. Inversely, grip is possible as well, but is a rare, difficult thing to achieve. Rotary Junkie mentioned that the car will "meet you halfway," and his insight was impressive. The car can be incredible, but only when driven equally incredibly.
Where the 280ZX is a soft, forgiving car that lets you choose freely between drift and grip, the 240ZG is a hard, urgent, unforgiving brute that lets you choose neither grip nor drift. Unified only by their base cars' similarities and their unique transmission ideologies, the two cars are completely brilliant in two completely different ways. Yes, only the 240ZG is a true Devil Z, being incredible yet willing to betray, but it's best not to think of them as Devils. Just think of them as lovely tuned Zs, of different flavours and different intensities.
The relationship a driver builds with the Red Devil Z is one of caring and reassurance, the car being comforting, urging you to push harder, faster, and being kind when you exceed the limit. The relationship between the Purple Devil Z and its driver is one of mutual respect. The driver knows that the car is nothing to be trifled with, and the car respects the driver enough to saddle him or her with huge responsibility and duty.
Both Devils are incredible tunes, and incredible cars, and both earn the identical
98.5/100 rating. The question is, what do you want of a Devil Z: Effortless Obedience, or Limitless Challenge?