Trying out Ryoma's cars

[Ryoma]

Yes the 412i is a (fast) cruising machine for four people. It's really a GT car and not a sportcar nor a supercars.

[Duplode]

My pick for today is the Lamborghini Diablo VT! (forum topic):

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: No (bug-free)
• Flat track top speed: 206 mph
• Real top speed: 218 mph
• 0-60 mph: 4.3 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 11.70 s (References: F40 - 10.75 s; GTO - 12.10 s; Vette - 12.25 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:25.50
• First impressions: The Diablo VT is in an interesting point of design space. A notch above the GTO and the Vette in both acceleration and grip, it can be a good option if you are looking for a supercar that is not too much of a handful to drive. (Note: the car I'm reporting on here is the Diablo VT. The "standard" Diablo has Acura-like powergear, and so it is probably not a sensible option for the ZakStunts set.)

[Ryoma]

The Diablo has 4 différent dashboard...if you choose it  careful to choose your favorite one.

[Duplode]

The Diablo has 4 différent dashboard...if you choose it  careful to choose your favorite one.

Yup -- in my tests, I chose the dia4 version, though of course dia3 would also be fine if popular preference is so inclined.



My pick for today is the Dodge Challenger R/T Hardtop (1970)! (forum topic):

• Gears: 4
• Powergear: No (unreachable)
• Flat track top speed: 164 mph
• Real top speed: 200 mph
• 0-60 mph: 4.8 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 12.25 s (References: GTO - 12.10 s; Vette - 12.25 s; Skyline - 12.45 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:33.35
• First impressions: While the prospect of taming an old school American V8 might be a bit alarming, the Challenger is a finely balanced car. Not the most user-friendly option, perhaps, but it turns out to be pretty enjoyable to drive. A perfectly good fit for the Acura/Skyline tier of sports cars.

[Ryoma]

For this one I only did the dashboard, ctg did the shape and res. Careful, the link is for the Diablo. The real link : http://forum.stunts.hu/index.php?topic=3737.0

[Duplode]

For this one I only did the dashboard, ctg did the shape and res. Careful, the link is for the Diablo. The real link : http://forum.stunts.hu/index.php?topic=3737.0

Link fixed; thanks!

A couple meta notes:

• I'm inclined to post a few more reports this weekend and then have a break, so that y'all have some time before the season starts to review the results, check if you agree with my opinions, or report on cars I might have overlooked.
• I have updated the Default test lap times for the 456 GT, the Cizeta and the Shamal early in this thread, as I felt I had not driven their laps to the same standard as the later ones.

Let's kick off the weekend with the Jaguar XJ220! (forum topic)

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: No
• Flat track top speed: 209 mph
• Real top speed: 230 mph
• 0-60 mph: 4.15 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 11.25 s (References: Jaguar - 10.20 s; ZR1 GT3 - 10.70 s; GTO - 12.10 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:23.75
• First impressions: Well into supercar territory. the XJ220 is a challenging car which is a fitting match for the Cizeta, though the XJ220 has noticeably more real top speed. It stands somewhere in between the playful Diablo VT and the terrifying McLaren F1.

(Technical note: the XJ220 is particularly vulnerable to the ghost car track preview glitch. See this post and the surrounding thread for workarounds and related discussion.)

[Duplode]

My pick for tonight is the Ferrari 512TR! (forum topic):

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: No (bug-free)
• Flat track top speed: 194 mph
• Real top speed: 215 mph
• 0-60 mph: 5.05 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 12.15 s (References: GTO - 12.10 s; Vette - 12.25 s; Countach - 12.40 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:30.35
• First impressions: A pretty fast sports car with a temper reminiscent of the GTO. The 512TR is a good bet if you are looking for an alternative to the GTO/Vette/Countach tier that doesn't have powergear or anti-powergear. (By the way, out of the three Testarossas I chose the one featured in the original NFS, to go along the "dia4" Diablo VT.)

[Duplode]

Today I'll look at Lancia sports prototypes! First, the Lancia LC1 (forum thread):

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: No (bug-free)
• Flat track top speed: 204 mph
• Real top speed: 205 mph
• 0-60 mph: 2.05 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 8.85 s (References: MP4/4 - 8.05 s; Indy - 8.95 s; P962 - 10.00 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:13.40
• First impressions: A Group 6 prototype from the early 80's, the LC1 has better lower-gear acceleration than the IMSA cars, but loses to them in top speed and grip. It might be able to compete with the IMSA tier, at least on slower tracks.

Next, the Lancia LC2 (forum thread):

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: Anti
• Flat track top speed: 236 mph
• Real top speed: 236 mph
• 0-60 mph: 1.45 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 7.50 s (References: Skoda - 6.65; MP4/4 - 8.05 s; Indy - 8.95 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:04.05
• First impressions: The LC2 is a mighty race car, with extraordinary out-of-the-blocks acceleration -- it beats even the MP4/4 in a drag race! While the fact it has grip at IMSA rather than open-wheel levels limits its performance somewhat, it also means it doesn't have the highly sensitive handling that makes the MP4/4 such a tricky car to drive. Its anti-powergear, though an additional complication, is milder than that of e.g. the Countach, and only kicks in above 190 mph. Out of the older cars, I'd say the LC2 feels closest to the Speedgate, but without all of the weirdness, which IMO is a very nice option to have!

[Duplode]

My pick for tonight is one of the latest releases by Ryoma, the Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona! (forum topic):

• Gears: 5
• Powergear: No (unreachable)
• Flat track top speed: 182 mph
• Real top speed: 203 mph
• 0-60 mph: 5.55 s
• Time to hill at Default (auto gears): 12.75 s (References: Skyline - 12.45 s; Acura - 12.70 s; Audi - 12.95 s)
• Default test lap (NoRH, classic line): 1:33.90
• First impressions: The Daytona is a late 60's grand tourer with straight line performance similar to that of the Acura. It could be a good counterpart to the Dodge Challenger: they are sports cars from the same era reasonably close in terms of performance which differ in a number of interesting details.

As mentioned yesterday, I'll now take a break from the daily reports, and leave some room for you to comment, re-test, or add extra cars to the thread (I'll edit links to your reports into the first post here). This has been a pretty fun experiment to carry out, and it has already revealed plenty of great options for the upcoming season. I should thank Daniel3D, who helped me to narrow down my choices of what to feature here, and of course Ryoma, who provides us with so many cars to enjoy and race! 

[Ryoma]

Note that I made a typo mistake about the displacement of 4,4L and not 5L.

Thanks Duplode for your work

[KyLiE]

Thanks Duplode, I've enjoyed reading your reports.  Your work on this is greatly appreciated!

[Duplode]

Thanks KyLiE! Now looking forward to racing a number of these anytime soon 

[Ryoma]

Maybe some Ferrari on Fiorano track ?

[KyLiE]

Maybe some Ferrari on Fiorano track ?

Sure!  The track for the next race on Race For Kicks has already been chosen, but we can do that for the race in March.  Once you are happy with the track, send me a PM so we can organise it.

[Cas]

Agreed!  It'll be very nice to have your car and your track in R4K!