Laguna Seca 200 Miles Companion & Competition

Thanks for the report GTsail290. 👍 So just the one pitstop for everyone now - that makes quite a difference to the race!

I have updated the OP with your stats plus noting any runs post the v2.08 update. I will slowly fill in the pitstops as and when I can.

Its time to see how another front-wheel drive car handles the Laguna Seca race with the new V2.08 tire model.

I check my garage and see a black Honda Civic Type R (EP) '01 that's just waiting for some further track time. My Honda Civic already has some 17,154 miles on the odometer so its off to the GT Auto boys for a chassis maintenance and the engine overhaul. I already have three black Honda Civic's so I paint my Civic a nice Bermuda Blue Pearl.

I have my crack pit-crew adjust the suspension on my Honda Civic (ie. I ask Dotini for a tune:tup, so after some extensive wrenching by Dotini my Honda Civic has the following spec's:

Horsepower: 230
Weight: 1230 (added 112 kg of ballast after stage 1 Wgt Reduct)
PP value: 422
Tires: SH (used throughout the race)
P.Limiter: 94.5%
No skid

So its off to the Laguna Seca track!

Lineup # 13 is still my favorite, so the usual AI suspects are on the grid:
----------------------
1) Camaro Z28 Coupe '97
2) Plymouth Superbird '70
3) Cuda 440 Six Pack '71
4) Charger 440 R/T '70
5) Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88
6) Mustang V8 GT Coupe Prem '07
7) GTsail in the Honda Civic Type R
8) Chevelle SS 454 '70
9) Camaro SS '00
10) Corvette Convertible C3 '69
11) Charger SuperBee 426 Hemi '71
12) Cougar XR-7 '67

The flag drops and we're off!

Off the starting line, I coast for a bit to let the field stream past, so I follow the 11th place Dodge Charger Super Bee Hemi into turn # 1/2. During lap # 1, I drive thru the field and end lap # 1 in 7th place, some 10.8 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.58.984 lap.

On lap # 2, I pass the 6th place Cuda 440 Six Pack and the 5th place Chevy Chevelle SS 454, and end the lap 11.4 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.45.580 lap.

On lap # 3, I pass the 4th place Plymouth Superbird and end the lap 11.9 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 coupe after a 1.44.661 lap.

On lap # 7, I set an early lap record of 1.43.358 and end the lap 10.8 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe.

At the end of lap # 9, I pass the 3rd place Dodge Charger 440 R/T going thru turn # 11, and end the lap 10.9 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe.

After 15 laps, I'm still in 3rd place, some 10.5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.44.184 lap.

At the beginning of lap # 18, the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe starts to catch the back-markers.

Going thru the corkscrew on lap # 19, I pass the 12th place Ford Mustang V8 GT Coupe. I also pass the 11th place Cuda 440 Six Pack as we accelerate out of turn # 11 and head up the S/F straight.

Now that we have driven thru our first group of back-markers, I see that I'm still 10.6 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe as we being lap # 20.

On lap # 22, the 2nd place Camaro IROC-Z Concep catches the front-running Camaro Z28 Coupe, so the two Camaro's battle it out for the next 8 laps.

I'm pushing my Honda Civic hard in an effort to catch them both, but I'm not making much headway, so I stay about 10.5 to 11.5 seconds behind them during these last 8 laps. By the end of this period, my lap times are starting fo fall off since my front tires are getting a bit worn-out.

During lap # 30, the two front-runners have caught another 4-car pack of back-markers. I contemplate making my first pit-stop, but decide to run a few more laps since I'm still running laps in the mid 1min and 45.5second times. At the end of lap # 30, I'm still 10.5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.45.713 lap. My front tires are missing about half of their tire bars.

On lap # 32, I catch and pass the 10th place Dodge Charger Super Bee Hemi as we go thru turn # 11. I end lap # 32 only 6.5 seconds behind the race leading Camro Z28 Coupe, who has been slowed down while passing the 4 back-markers that I mentioned. Lap # 32 took me 1.45.907, so I think that its almost time for my first pit-stop. I think I will go to lap # 35.

After passing the Dodge Charger Super Bee at the end of lap # 32, he pulls back even with me as we brake for the first hairpin on lap # 33. I have to battle him for the position, but since I have the inside line I maintain my position and head off towards turn # 3 just in front of him.

On lap # 34, I catch and pass the 8th place Cougar XR-7 going thru turn # 10. I also pass the 7th place Plymouth Superbird as we go thru turn # 11 before heading up the S/F straight. Lap # 34 took me 1.46.542, so I've decided that its time to pit.

At the first checkpoint on lap # 35, I see that I'm still 6.5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe. The 2nd place Camaro IROC-Z Concept is about 3 seconds behind the leading Camaro, and is about 3 seconds in front of me. At the end of lap # 35, I enter the pits and ask for a new set of SH tires and for 15 liters of fuel. I had used about 45 liters of fuel during my first 35 laps.

When I exit the pits and begin lap # 36, I see that I have fallen back into 4th place because the Corvette Convertible C3 '69 drove past while I was in the pits. At the first checkpoint on lap # 36, I see that I'm 33.5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe.

On lap # 38, I catch and re-pass the 10th place Dodge Charger Super Bee Hemi, who had un-lapped himself during my pit-stop.

On lap # 39, I pass both the 9th place Chevy Chevelle SS and the 8th place Plymouth Superbird, which puts them both a lap down.

On lap # 40, I catch and pass the Ford Mustang V8 GT Coupe and put him 2 laps down. At the end of the lap I see that I am 19 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe, who has begun to slow on his worn tires. My lap was a decent 1.43.996 lap. My fresh tires have certainly made a difference, plus the front-running Camaro's are always battling with the back-markers at this point in the race.

On lap # 41, I pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack again, so he goes 2 laps down to my Honda Civic.

On lap # 43, I pass the 7th place Cougar XR-7. At the end of lap # 43, I'm only 11 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after another decent 1.43.990 lap.

On lap # 44, I pass the 6th place Chevy Camaro SS '00.

At the end of lap # 45, I'm only 6 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe, so the three front-runners are within sight of my 4th place Honda Civic.

I'm right on the rear-bumper of the 3rd place Corvette Convertible C3 as we exit turn # 11 and head up the S/F hill/straight at the end of lap # 46. I'm also only 3 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe.

On lap # 47, I pass the 3rd place Corvette Convertible on the entrance to the corkscrew. I also pass the 2nd place Camaro IROC-Z Concept on the exit from the corkscrew. All four of us, easily pass a back-marker who is in the pits at the end of the lap.

On lap # 48, I pass the Camaro Z28 Coupe going thru the corkscrew, so the race lead is mine!!!

At the end of the lap, we all pass another back-marker who has taken to the pits.

Right away, I start to gap the field, so by the end of lap # 50 I have an 8 second lead over the 2nd place Camaro Z28 Coupe after a decent 1.44.052 lap. The Camaro IROC-Z Concept pits at the end of lap # 50, so he falls back down to 4th place.

At the end of lap # 52, the 2nd place Camaro Z28 Coupe and the 3rd place Corvette Convertible C3 both pit, so by the end of lap # 53 my lead has ballooned up to 1 minute and 8 seconds.

After all the Chevy pit-stops, the IROC-Z Camaro Concept has taken over 2nd place in the race, so I guess his pit crew is slightly faster than the Camaro Z28's pit-crew (post race note, I checked the replay after the race, and both Camaro's took on less than a full fuel load, so I'm not sure why the Camaro's switched places during the pit-stops other than the speed of pit crews).

After 55 laps, my lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro is down to 63 seconds. The IROC-Z Camaro has started to run some fast laps on his fresh SS tires. My lap # 55 took me 1.44.744, so it was still quite decent, and my tires still look fine.

On lap # 60, I pass the 12th place Ford Mustang V8 GT again as he comes out of the pits after his only pit stop. The Ford Mustang is now four laps down to my Honda Civic (it doesn't feel like a fair competition!). At the end of lap # 60, I see that I have a 55 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro after a 1.45.159 lap.

After 65 laps, I see that I have a 45 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro after a 1.45.631 lap. I'm starting to consider my final pit-stop, since my tires are starting to feel a little greasy.

At the end of lap # 68, I only have a 39 second lead over the IROC-Z Camaro after a 1.46.290 lap, so I think that its finally time for my final pit-stop, so at the end of the lap, I dive into the pits for another set of SH tires and 15 liters of fuel.

At the first checkpoint on lap # 69, I see that my lead over the IROC-Z Camaro has shrunk to 9 seconds.

Its nice being back on fresh tires, so on lap # 70, I run a 1.44.248 lap and end the lap with an 8.5 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro. The 3rd place Camaro Z28 Coupe has faded back a bit, so the race is just a 2-car battle at this point.

After 75 laps, I still have a 9 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro after another decent 1.44.187 lap.

On lap # 80, I pass both the Plymouth Superbird and the Chevy Chevelle SS again, and end the lap with a 13 second lead over the IROC-Z Camaro after a 1.44.605 lap.

On lap # 83, I pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack and put him 5 laps down.

Near the end of lap # 84, I pass the Ford Mustang V8 GT and put him 5 laps down as well. At the end of lap # 84, I have a 17 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro who has started to fade a little.

On lap # 88, I throw down a 1.44.192 lap and end the lap with a 22 second lead over the 2nd place IROC-Z Camaro.

After 90 laps, I take the win with a 24.7 second margin over the Camaro IROC-Z Concept.

Total race time was 2 hours, 38 minutes, and 37.002 seconds.

Finishing order:
---------------
1) GTsail in the Honda Civic
2) Camaro IROC-Z----------24.7 seconds behind, pits on lap # 50 (BL 1.42.6)
3) Camaro Z28 Coupe-------47.9 secs behind, pits on lap # 52 (BL 1.43.4)
4) Corvette Convertible------49.1 secs behind, pits on lap # 52 (BL 1.42.3)
5) Charger 440 R/T----------1 lap down, pitted on lap # 47 (BL 1.44.1)
6) Cougar XR-7--------------1 lap down, pitted on lap # 50 (BL 1.43.6)
7) Camaro SS '00------------2 laps down, pitted on lap # 54 (BL 1.45.3)
8) Charger Super Bee 426----3 laps down, pitted on lap # 44 (BL 1.45.9)
9) Chevelle SS 454-----------3 laps down, pitted on lap # 45 (BL 1.46.1)
10) SuperBird '70------------3 laps down, pitted on lap # 47 (BL 1.46.2)
11) Mustang V8 GT Coupe---5 laps down, pitted on lap # 55 (BL 1.48.8)
12) Cuda 440 Six Pack-------5 laps down, pitted on lap # 65 (BL 1.49.1)

Post race notes:
----------------
A pretty decent race. My Honda Civic as tuned by Dotini handles really well! Following Dotini's suggestions, I modified the LSD to 12/50/5, the brake balance to 4/5, and I had the anti-roll bars at 3/3. Its interesting that I couldn't catch the 2 front-running Camaro's during my first stint. They were just too fast to catch initially. However, after the second pit stop, once their tires started to go off a bit, my Honda Civic was more than a match for them, so I was able to pull away during the last 10 laps. After the race my Honda Civic had 219HP and a PPV of 415, so it wasn't that my HP was increasing during the race. I guess that the AI just got a bit tired towards the end of the race.


See you on the track!
GTsail

I got interested in this particular C&C thanks to the fact that I hadn't done the Laguna Seca one in A-spec. I looked at the leaderboard and saw that the lowest for SS tires was at 384PP, which I knew I had no chance with.

My car of choice was the MX-5 1600 NR-A, clocking in at 420PP, running SS tires for run 1, but as I saw I was doing times around 1.40 I switched for SH tires.

Specs:
420PP
183BHP
886KG
SH tires

About the car:
This particular car is the one I plan to use in a Touge League LotS, meaning it has to run SH tires with a 6-speed 'box. It's really quick through corners, but fell short on the straights after 125km/h compared to others. Meaning I had to fight through with corner speed and strategies.

Starting Grid:
Buick GNX '87
Chevrolet Corvette Z06 (C5) '00
Chevrolet Camaro SS '69
Shelby GT350R '65
Dodge Viper GTS '99
Dodge Viper GTS '02
MX-5 1600 NR-A '04 -----------------me----------------------
Taurus SHO '98
Chevrolet Corvette Stingray L46 350 (C3) '69
SRT4 '03
Corvette Z06 (C5) '04
Cougar XR-7 '67

This was a new one for me, since I didn't see one on the grid list on the first page. I knew that the premium C5 would come to haunt me, but seeing it so low on the grid calmed me down.

Lap 1 - 1.50.972

A good start, managed to get past the Viper's in the first turn, and the Shelby, Camaro and GNX by the end of split two. From here started a fierce attempt to catch the standard C5 Corvette. Down by 3.5 seconds.

Laps 2-9 - Avg. 1.42

I started to catch up to the C5, but slowly, about 0.1-0.5 seconds per lap, but by lap 7 the gap has come to a halt at about 1.3 seconds, with no showing of moving. Might stay second for a long time...

Laps 10-19 - Avg. 1.41

...or not, as the C5 makes a mistake at the last corner, allowing me to close the gap enough to pass at the Andretti hairpin! I began my getaway, increasing the gap slowly with every lap. In the meantime, the premium C5 and the Stingray are quietly sneaking closer to us...

Laps 20-35 - Avg. 1.42

Nothing big happening, except for lapping the lower half of the grid. The premium C5 has passed the standard one and is now 23 seconds behind me.

Laps 36-46 - Avg. 1.44

My speed has begun to drop, meaning I couldn't increase the gap anymore.
The tires are now wearing excessively and I go into the pits with a 25 second lead. I expect to come out 5th or 6th.

Laps 47-80 - Avg. 1.43

I exit the pits 4th, right between the Stingray and the '02 Viper. The premium C5 is now about 30 or 35 seconds ahead of me. As I get surprisingly tired, my lap times also start to fall, and the C5 starts to go ahead. Luckily he pits at lap 61 and I get to first place, with the next car being the Stingray.

Laps 81-90 - Avg. 1.44

Nothing eventual, expect for passing lapped racers. The C5 is now closing fast on me, and I finish lap 90 with 9 seconds ahead of him.

Conclusion:

Well, it turned out a good race. Though the NB Roadster was slow on the straights, it beat the muscle cars easily in the corners. I was able to win only thanks to the '04 Z06 starting from the back of the grid.
I wonder if the race grids are different between U.S. and European versions, because I tried 4 times and I got none of the grids listed.

Edited out the mistakes also

HenryT

.....My car of choice was the MX-5 1600 NR-A, clocking in at 420PP, running SS tires for run 1, but as I saw I was doing times around 1.40 I switched for SH tires.

Nothing eventual, expect for passing lapped racers. The C5 is now closing fast on me, and I finish lap 90 with 9 seconds ahead of him.

Click to expand...

Nice race!

Welcome to Laguna Seca!

HenryT

.....I wonder if the race grids are different between U.S. and European versions, because I tried 4 times and I got none of the grids listed.

Click to expand...

The race grids that axletramp mentions in post # 1 are after a console restart. Did you restart your game console before looking for the lineups?

Respectfully,
GTsail

Oh, I didn't. I just went out of the race and right back in. That must be it.

Nice runs guys and well done HenryT for taking on the rabbits. SS tyres are definitely holding up better here post v2.08. 👍

Speaking of which, I conducted an experimental run last night in the same Elise '99 (405PP / SS tyres) that I used on my recent GV300 run where I didn't need to pit. I managed an easy win against the easier grid #13 without needing to pit. Average lap times at the start were 1:41.xxx and my final lap was a 1:46.xxx... after 90 laps! I'll post my full report later and update the tables shortly.

Uhh...... I was on SH tires. It's in the post.

Err, yeah *cough* I knew that. Updated.

Just finished the race for the first time with a "regular" car. Bought a brand new BMW 135i Coupé '07 and changed oil (459pp, CS tires). I raced against lineup #2, cockpit view, 50% viewing angle and no aids.

I started off easy and just kept my distance to the lead cars and passed the slower cars. Caught the lead Viper on lap 16 and stayed right behind. I didn't bother trying to pass because he would just roar by on the straight, and I didn't want to play dirty and block. By lap 37 his pace had slowed a little and when he came up on a pack of 3 lapped cars I snuck by in the confusion and put in some fast laps to build a gap. Pit in on lap 45 with a 15s lead for new tires and 50l of fuel.

Came out of the pits 28s down, but the Viper pit a few laps later and came back 40s behind me as he had to take on much more fuel. For a couple of laps I was running in 3rd until the rest of the field made their stops. By then the Viper was gaining on me and closed the gap to 30s, but in the last 10 his tires wore down enough for me to extend my lead. I crossed the line with the Viper 45s behind.

My finishing time was 2h37m02s, best lap 1'42.351, Viper '99 best lap 1'41.731.

yanaran

Just finished the race for the first time with a "regular" car. Bought a brand new BMW 135i Coupé '07 and changed oil (459pp, CS tires).....
My finishing time was 2h37m02s, best lap 1'42.351, Viper '99 best lap 1'41.731.

Click to expand...

Nice run yanaran!


You are our first entrant on CS tires!

I recently tried a CS run with the Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88, but had to abort after dizziness set in from excessive 360's!

Respectfully,
GTsail

What car should I try for my next Laguna Seca run?

Hmmmm... I look at the AI and see that they sometimes do quite well with the Chevy Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88, so I decide to give it a try. I put my IROC-Z Camaro on some CS tires and go for a spin..... and boy, do I go for a spin! After three laps and more 360's than my old Pioneer turntable, I throw in the towel and head back to the gararge.

Well the AI also do pretty well with the Chevy Camaro Z28 Coupe '97, so I check my garage for a matching steed and then have my fabled pit-crew give it a shake down. Then its back to Laguna Seca for another race. A bit more horsepower and still on CS tires I start a battle against lineup # 1. After 15 laps, its clear that I just don't have the pace to hang with the front-running rabbits since I'm 25 seconds down and don't seem to be making any kind of inroads on the race leaders. I have to abandon again.

I then happen to read yanaran's post just above, and see that he had good luck with a BMW.

A light goes on:idea:

Its off to the New Car Dealerships for a BMW 135i Coupe '07. I get one thats painted AlpinweiB.

I have my crack pit-crew adjust the suspension on my BMW 135i Coupe, so after some extensive wrenching my BMW Coupe has the following spec's:

Horsepower: 269
Weight: 1570 (added 10 kg of ballast)
PP value: 440
Tires: SH (used throughout the race)
P.Limiter: 90.3%
No skid

So its off to the Laguna Seca track!

Lineup # 1 has the following AI suspects:
-------------------------------------
1) Pontiac GTO 5.7 Coupe
2) Ford Mustang GT '05
3) Chrysler Prowler '02
4) Buick GNX '87
5) Challenger R/T '70
6) Mustang SVT Cobra R
7) GTsail in the BMW 135i
8) Camaro SS '10
9) Corvette Z06 C5 '04
10) Corvette Z06 C5 '00
11) Cuda 440 Six Pack
12) Camaro SS '69

The flag drops and we're off!

Coming off the start line, I coast for a bit to let the field stream past, so I follow the 11th place Cuda 440 Six Pack into the Andretti hairpin. I pass the Cuda Six Pack going thru the hairpin. Up next is the 10th place Camaro SS '69, who I pass going thru turn # 5. At the end of the lap I'm 7.4 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.58.314 lap. Unlike yanaran, who ran his race on CS tires, I'm on SH tires, so my BMW 135i handles like a dream (quite unlike the two Camaro's that I just tried that I mention above).

On lap # 2, I stay on the rear-bumper of the 9th place 2000 Corvette C5 and end the lap 8.5 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.48.711 lap.

On lap # 3, I again stay stuck to the rear-bumper of the 9th place 2000 Corvette C5 and end the lap 10.1 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.48.341 lap. I should of passed the 2000 Corvette during the lap, but since its early in the race I was giving the Corvette a chance to pass some other cars first (even though he didn't during this race, he does pass other cars during the early stages of other races that I've run, so I was just being gentlemenly).

On lap # 4, I pass the 9th place 2000 Corvette C5, the 8th place Challenger R/T and the 7th place Ford Mustang SVT Cobra R, so I end the lap 8.8 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.45.064 lap (I got impatient!).

On lap # 5, I pass the 6th place Buick GNX and end the lap 7.5 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.46.099 lap.

On lap # 6, I pass the 5th place Ford Mustang GT and end the lap 7.4 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 7, I set an early lap record of 1.42.749 and end the lap 6.2 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 8, I pass the 4th place Pontiac GTO 5.7 Coupe going thru turn # 5 and end the lap 5.8 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after a decent 1.43.792 lap.

At the end of lap # 10, after a new lap record of 1.42.683, I see that I'm only 2.5 seconds behind a 3-car pack that is being lead by the Chrysler Prowler.

At the end of lap # 14, I catch and pass the 3rd place 2004 Corvette C5 as we go thru turn # 11, so I end the lap 2.4 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after a 1.43.681 lap.

By the end of lap # 15, I'm only 1.4 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after a 1.43.508 lap.

During the next two laps, I stay as close to the rear-bumper of the 2nd place Camaro SS '10 as I can.

And then on lap # 18, I pass the 2nd place Camaro SS '10 going thru turn # 11 and end the lap 0.708 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after a 1.45.211 lap.

Now that I've climbed thru the field and reached 2nd place, I intend to maintain my position for as long as possible and block the Camaro SS '10 and the 2004 Corvette C5 who are just behind me.

On lap # 21, the race leading Chrysler Prowler is very slow going thru turn # 6, so I get a run on him and actually pull ahead of him as we go up the hill towards the corkscrew. I don't want to take the lead of the race, so I stand hard on my brakes and let the Prowler take the race lead as we head thru the corkscrew. The 3rd place Camaro SS '10 was just behind us going into the corkscrew, but he must have taken a bad line thru the turn, because he gets passed by the 2004 Corvette C5. At the end of the lap, I'm still in 2nd place 0.729 seconds behind the Chrysler Prowler after a 1.48.234 lap (very slow since I really put out the anchor to let the Prowler keep the race lead).

As we begin lap # 22, the race leading Chrysler Prowler catches the first back-marker, which is the Cuda 440 Six Pack. We all pass the Cuda Six Pack during lap # 22.
Lap # 22 takes 1.46.539
Lap # 23 takes 1.46.248
Lap # 24 takes 1.45.291

Following the Chrysler Prowler for a few laps has hopefully allowed me to extend the lives of my tires since I'm driving a full 2 seconds slower than what might be possible if I really pushed my BMW 135i Coupe. My current plan is to pit only once during the race, so I'm trying to save my tires.
Lap # 25 takes 1.46.190
Lap # 26 takes 1.45.745
Lap # 27 takes 1.46.589
Lap # 28 takes 1.45.671

Behind me on lap # 28, the Camaro SS '10 and the 2004 Corvette C5 switch places again, so the Camaro SS '10 fills my mirrors from time to time.
Lap # 29 takes 1.46.574
Lap # 30 takes 1.46.101

On lap # 31, the race leading Chrysler Prowler drives thru turn # 6 very slowly again, so this time I pass him going into the corkscrew and take over the race lead. I accelerate away from the Prowler after the corkscrew, so by the end of lap # 31, I have a 2.4 second lead after a 1.44.805 lap.

After 8 slow laps behind the Chrysler Prowler, I finally decided to leave him behind.

By the end of lap # 33, I have pulled out to a 7.6 second lead over the 2nd place Chrysler Prowler after a decent 1.43.595 lap. The Prowler has continued on at the same pace as before, which is nicely holding up the 3rd place Camaro SS '10 and the 4th place 2004 Corvette C5.

By the end of lap # 35, I have a 15 second lead over the Chrysler Prowler after a 1.43.174 lap. My tires are still fine and the Prowler is still doing an excellent job of slowing down the field.

Race clock says 1 hour, 2 minutes, so its time for a break.....

On lap # 36, I pass the Buick GNX and the Ford Mustang GT and put them both a lap down.

On lap # 38, I pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack again and put him 2 laps down.

At the end of lap # 39, I see that I have a 28 second lead over the 2nd place Chrysler Prowler after a 1.43.208 lap. The Prowler is doing an amazing job of slowing down the two rabbits! My pit-crew must have promised him a post-race beverage of choice!

On lap # 42, I pass the 9th place Camaro SS '69, the 8th place Ford Mustang SVT Cobra and the 7th place Pontiac GTO 5.7 Coupe, since they are traveling together in a 3-car pack.

As I begin lap # 45, I get the news that I have a 45 second lead over the Camaro SS '10, who has taken over 2nd place in the race. The 2004 Corvette C5 is still being shown in 4th place, so the Prowler is still blocking like mad.👍

I check my tires and see that I've used about one-third of their tire bars, so I'm in good shape in regard to my tires. I decide to run them to lap # 50, since my last lap was a still decent 1.43.432 lap.

As I begin lap # 47, I see that my lead has grown to 47 seconds over the Camaro SS '10 after a 1.43.901 lap. I also notice that the 2004 Corvette C5 has finally gotten past the double-wide Chrysler Prowler. The Prowler was being driven by H. Mercado, who somehow must have been making the Prowler at least 10-feet wide to have done such a stupendous job of blocking the rabbits!👍

During lap # 50, I check my tires and they still have more than half of their life remaining on their tire bars. I'm sure that I could run the entire race without changing them. However, my fuel won't stretch that far. I only have about 22-23 liters of fuel remaining, so I go ahead and pit at the end of the lap for another set of SH tires and 50 liters of fuel.

There's actually, already another car in the pits when I pull in. The other car finishes his pit-stop before me by about 5 seconds, so I should be able to determine who his is when I track him down on the track.

At the first checkpoint on lap # 51, I see that my lead over the 2nd place 2004 Corvette C5 has shrunk to 8.8 seconds. The Chrysler Prowler has taken over 3rd place and the Camaro SS '10 has fallen down the grid into 5th place (which must mean that he has just entered the pits himself).

During lap # 52, I catch and pass the 6th place Dodge Challenger R/T (who was the car in the pits with me), so it took over a lap to catch him.

On lap # 54, I see that the 2004 Corvette C5 has pitted, which allows the 2000 Corvette C5 to take over 2nd place in the race, even if he is a full 37 seconds behind me.

On lap # 55, I set a new lap record of 1.42.598 and see that I've stretched my lead out to 41 seconds over the 2000 Corvette C5.

On lap # 56, I immediately set another lap record of 1.42.078 and end the lap with a 62 second lead over the Camaro SS '10, who has taken over 2nd place in the race since the 2000 Corvette C5 has finally pitted.

The 5th place 2000 Corvette C5 exits the pits a few seconds in front of me as I begin lap # 57. I chase the 2000 Corvette C5 during lap # 57, but can't get past him until turn # 3 on lap # 58.

After lap # 60, I see that I have a 56 second lead over the 2nd place Camaro SS '10, who's driving a bit faster than me on his fresh tires. Time for a break.....

On lap # 62, I catch and pass my "team-mate", the 4th place Chrysler Prowler going thru turn # 3. I give him a friendly salute!

By the end of lap # 63, I see that my lead over the 2nd place Camaro SS '10 has shrunk to 50 seconds after a decent 1.43.014 lap.

By the end of lap # 66, I see that my lead over the Camaro SS '10 has shrunk to 45 seconds after a 1.42.490 lap. On lap # 66, I also pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack again (three laps down?).

By the end of lap # 70, I see that my lead over the Camaro SS '10 has shrunk to 43 seconds after a 1.42.230 lap.

On lap # 72, I pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack again (who must have recently pitted) so he goes 4 laps down I think.

On lap # 73, I set a new lap record of 1.41.974, and end the lap with a 42 second lead over the Camaro SS '10.

By the end of lap # 78, I see that I have increased my lead over the Camaro SS '10 to 44 seconds after a 1.42.143 lap, so I'm guessing that the Camaro's tires have lost their maximum grip, so the Camaro SS is unlikely to gain any further time on me.

On lap # 85, I catch and pass the Cuda 440 Six Pack again and put him another lap down (he must be a rookie driver who's just driving the Laguna Seca track for the first time). At the end of the lap, I have a 47 second lead over the 2nd place Camaro SS '10 after a still decent 1.42.961 lap.

On lap # 89, I blow the Andretti hairpin and lose about 3 seconds before I've straightened out my BMW 135i.

After 90 laps, I win another trophy, and beat the Camaro SS '10 by about 45 seconds. Total race time was 2 hours 37 minutes and 8 seconds.

Finishing Order:
--------------------
1) GTsail in the BMW 135i
2) Camaro SS '10-----------45 secs back (pits on lap 50)(BL 1.40.5)
3) 2004 Corvette-----------47 secs back (pits on lap 53)(BL 1.40.2)
4) 2000 Corvette-----------1 lap down (pits on lap 55)(BL 1.42.6)
5) Chrysler Prowler----------1 lap down (pits on lap 51)(BL 1.43.9)
6) Challenger R/T------------1 lap down (pits on lap 49)(BL 1.42.5)
7) Camaro SS '69------------2 laps down (pits on lap 48)(BL 1.43.9)
8) Mustang SVT Cobra-------2 laps down (pits on lap 52)(BL 1.44.9)
9) Pontiac GTO--------------3 laps down (pits on lap 51)(BL 1.45.9)
10) Buick GNX---------------3 laps down (pits on lap 51))BL 1.46.4)
11) Mustang GT-------------4 laps down (pits on lap 52)(BL 1.46.1)
12) Cuda Six Pack-----------6 laps down (pits on lap 65)(BL 1.49.6)

Post race notes:
----------------
The BMW 135i Coupe is very nice to drive! The race ended up being too easy since my team-mate, the Prowler stacked up the field for at least 20 laps in the middle of the race. I suspect that this wouldn't happen every time against this same lineup. Its interesting how much longer my tires last with the new V2.08 tire model. My BMW 135i Coupe is gentle enough on its tires to have run the entire race without changing them. This is not true for most of the AI, though. When I checked my replay of the race, most AI had about 8-10% left on their tire bars when they pitted on the laps that I mention above. Most AI were also pitting with around 5-8 liters of fuel left (some had actually turned the fuel gauge red!). The Cuda 440 Six Pack, though was an exception. He's driving so carefully that he still had quite a bit of tire left when he pitted on his 65th lap, so he might have been able to run the entire race on one set of tires.

Catch you later....
GTsail

For my next race, I decide on another German car, but this time sourced from the RUF dealerships.

Checking my garage I see that I still have my RUF 3400S '00 that's put on some mileage at the "Valley". I seem to remember an enjoyable drive, so I have my fabled pit-crew extracate the RUF from the back of my garage.

After some extensive wrenching by my fabled pit-crew, my black RUF 3400S '00 has the following spec's for my run at Laguna Seca:

Horsepower: 270
Weight: 1340 (added 40kg of ballast)
PP value: 453
P.Limiter: 88.2%
Tires: CS (used throughtout the race)
No skid

I then take my RUF to the Laguna Seca track and try my luck against a new lineup as follows: Alternative lineup # 3:
------------------------------------
1) Camaro Z28 Coupe '97
2) Mustang SVT Cobra R '00
3) Pontiac GTO 5.7 Coupe '04
4) Tempest Le Mans GTO '64
5) Corvette Stingray L46 350 C3 '69
6) Mustang ST '05
7) GTsail in the RUF 3400S
8) Corvette Grand Sport C4 '96
9) Cougar XR-7 '67
10) Chrysler Prowler '02
11) Camaro SS '69
12) Shelby GT350R '65

The flag drops and we're off!

I coast for a bit coming off the starting line to let the field stream past, so I follow the Camaro SS '69 into the Andrette hairpin. I pass the 11th place Camaro SS '69 going thru turn # 5. Up next is the 10th place Chrysler Prowler, who I pass going thru the corkscrew for the first time. I then pass the 9th place Shelby GT350R going thru turn # 10. And finally, I pass the 8th place Cougar XR-7 going thru turn # 11. I end the lap 10 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.58.159 lap.

On lap # 2, I pass the 7th place Ford Mustang GT going thru turn # 6. At the end of the lap, I'm still 10.7 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.45.661 lap.

On lap # 3, I pass the 6th place Pontiac GTO 5.7 just before turn # 3. At the end of the lap, I'm 11.1 seconds behind the race leader after a 1.44.493 lap.

On lap # 4, I pass both the 5th place Corvette Grand Sport C4 and the 4th place Corvette Stingray L46 350 C3, and end the lap 12.9 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.45.456 lap.

On lap # 5, I easily pass the 3rd place Tempest Le Mans GTO going thru turn # 5, and end the lap 12.3 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.44.124 lap.

I set a new lap record of 1.43.963 on lap # 7, and end the lap 13.5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe.

At the end of lap # 9, I see that I'm 15 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.44.476 lap.

At the end of lap # 12, I see that I'm 17 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.43.595 lap.

At the end of lap # 15, I catch and pass the 2nd place Mustang SVT Cobra going thru turn # 11, and I end the lap 20 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe. The 4th place Corvette Stingray L46 350 has been following me closely, so he's right behind us as we begin lap # 16.

For some unknown reason, the Mustang SVT Cobra doesn't like that I just passed him, so he dumps me into the sand on the outside of the Andretti hairpin, which allows both he and the Corvette Stingray L46 350 to get past me. I give chase and after a good run out of the corkscrew, I re-pass the 3rd place Corvette Stingray L46 350 as we go thru turn # 10. I end lap # 16, still in 3rd place, some 23 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a miserable 1.47.028 lap.

On lap # 17, I catch and re-pass the Mustang SVT Cobra again as we go thru the corkscrew, so I end the lap in 2nd place, some 24 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.44.525 lap.

Over the next couple of laps, I drive away from the 3rd place Mustang SVT Cobra, so he can't spin me out again.

By the end of lap # 20, I see that I'm only 21.4 second behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a decent 1.43.706 lap, and I've put about 5 seconds between my RUF and the 3rd place Mustang SVT Cobra who is still just ahead of the 4th place Corvette Stingray L46 350.

After 25 laps, I see that I'm now 23 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 coupe after a somewhat slow 1.45.197 lap.

On lap # 29, the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe catches a back-marker, which slows him down somewhat, so at the end of the lap, I see that I'm only 18.4 seconds behind him after a decent 1.44.170 lap. After 30 laps its time for a break.....

On lap # 32, I catch the first back-marker myself and see that it is the 12th place Mustang GT '05. I've gained a bit on the race leading Camaro Z28 coupe, so I end the lap only 15 seconds behind him after a 1.45.239 lap.

As I begin lap # 36, I can see that the race leading Camaro Z28 coupe has caught a 5-car pack of back-markers. He's got a 13 second lead over me after my last 1.44.811 lap. Lets see how much help the back-markers will be in helping me to catch the race leading Camaro Z28.

When I begin lap # 39, I see that I'm only 5 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.45.073 lap. The back-markers are doing an admirable job of slowing down the Camaro.👍 Looking back, I see that the Mustang SVT Cobra is still in 3rd place, with the Corvette Stingray L46 350 in 4th place. They are both at least 20 seconds behind me, so they are no longer any threat to me. At the end of lap # 39, I catch and pass the first of the back-markers going thru turn # 11, and see that its the Pontiac GTO 5.7 Coupe.

At the end of lap # 40, I catch and pass the 2nd of the back-markers and see that it is the Chrysler Prowler. I'm now only 4 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.47.553 lap.

On lap # 41, I catch and pass both the Shelby GT350R and the 8th place Tempest Le Mans GTO. These last two cars were the last of the back-markers, so now there aren't any cars between my RUF and the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe, who is only 3.2 seconds ahead of me after a 1.45.982 lap.

By the end of lap # 44, I'm only 1 second behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.46.287 lap. My tires are no longer fresh (so my lap times have begun to suffer), but they still have about 60% of their tire bars left. I've used about 65 liters of fuel, so I decide that its about time to pit, if I can do it from the race lead, so I'm going to try to pass the Camaro Z28 Coupe during lap # 45.

On lap # 45, I slide past the race leading Camaro Z28 as we go thru turn # 10, so I'm the race leader, when I enter the pits at the end of the lap. I ask for another set of CS tires and for 50 liters of fuel.

As soon as I pit the Camaro Z28 coupe drives past and re-takes 1st place in the race. Three other back-markers also pass me by while I'm in the pits. Time for a break.....

At the first checkpoint on lap # 46, I see that I've fallen 48 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after my 2.30.212 lap. I've only fallen back into 2nd place in the race, so the 3rd place Mustang SVT Cobra must be in the 4-car pack that's about 5 seconds behind me.

By the end of lap # 47, I see that I'm only 44 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.44.704 lap.

By the end of lap # 49, I see that I'm only 36 seconds behind the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe after a decent 1.43.900 lap. The Camaro Z28 seems to be losing a ton of time on his worn tires.

As I round turn # 11 on lap # 50, I see two cars in the pits, so I suspect that most of the AI will pit during the next few laps.

Just as I begin lap # 51, I pass the 8th place Chrysler Prowler who seems to be moving very slowly on worn tires. I then pass the 7th place Shelby GT350R going thru turn # 3, and the 6th place Tempest Le Mans GTO going thru turn # 5.

As I begin lap # 53, I pass the race leading Camaro Z28 Coupe who has taken to the pits.

At the first checkpoint on lap # 53, I see that I have a 28 second lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe. I also happen to notice that the Corvette Grand Sport has climbed up into 3rd place in the race since he hasn't pitted yet. At the end of the lap, I see that I have a 33 second lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.43.802 lap.

As I begin lap # 55, I see that the Corvette Grand Sport has finally taken his pit-stop because he exits the pits about 4 seconds ahead of me as I go around the Andretti hairpin.

On lap # 57, I pass the 5th place Corvette Grand Sport as we go thru the Andretti hairpin, and I end the lap 36 seconds ahead of the 2nd place Camaro Z28 Coupe.

On lap # 58, I pass the 4th place Mustang SVT Cobra as we go thru turn # 4.

By the end of lap # 60, I see that I have a 38 second lead over the Camaro Z28 after a 1.43.787 lap.

At the end of lap # 65, I see that my lead over the Camaro Z28 coupe has gone down to 37 seconds after a 1.43.817 lap. I guess we are both running approximately the same lap times. I lost one second over the last five laps.

After 70 laps, my lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe is down to 33 seconds after a 1.44.487 lap. The 2nd place Camaro is starting to run me down.

Driving thru turn # 9 on lap # 73, I lose the back-end of my RUF and slide off into the grass. This allows the 4th place Corvette Grand Sport to drive past me (he had been filling my mirrors during the last few laps, so he immediately pounced when I took my trip to the beach). After a 1.51.891 lap, my lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe is down to 22 seconds. Yikes!

At the end of lap # 78, I see that my lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe is still 22 seconds after a 1.45.380 lap. I'm beginning to have a hard time running fast laps because my tires have lost their edge. The 4th place Corvette Grand Sport has left me behind once he got past me, so he's about 7-8 seconds up the track ahead of me.

After 85 laps, my lead over the Camaro Z28 Coupe is only 21 seconds after a 1.44.930 lap.

At the end of lap # 87, I slide out wide going thru turn # 11 and lose about 2 seconds searching for sea shells, and end the lap only 19 seconds ahead of the Camaro Z28 Coupe after a 1.47.946 lap.

Lap # 90 takes me 1.46.463, which gives me a 20 second win over the Camaro Z28 Coupe after 2 hours, 39 minutes and 2.657 seconds.

Finishing Order:
---------------------
1) GTsail in the RUF
2) Camaro Z28 Coupe------20.573 seconds back (pits on lap 52)(BL 1.43.4)
3) Corvette Stingray-------1min,42.162 secs back (pits on lap 47)(BL 1.43.8)
4) Corvette Grand Sport----1min,43.018 secs back (pits on lap 53)(BL 1.43.4)
5) Mustang SVT Cobra------------1 lap down (pits on lap # 51)(BL 1.44.3)
6) Cougar XR-7-------------------1 lap down (pits on lap # 49)(BL 1.44.3)
7) Camaro SS '69-----------------1 lap down (pits on lap # 49)(BL 1.44.1)
8) Chrysler Prowler---------------1 lap down (pits on lap # 52)(BL 1.43.4)
9) Shelby GT350R----------------2 laps down (pits on lap # 57)(BL 1.44.9)
10) Tempest Le Mans-------------2 laps down (pits on lap # 50)(BL 1.45.7)
11) Pontiac GTO 5.7--------------2 laps down (pits on lap # 51)(BL 1.46.1)
12) Mustang GT '05---------------3 laps down (pits on lap # 52)(BL 1.46.8)

Post race notes:
----------------
A very nice race! My RUF does quite well on the CS tires. It could use a little more suspension tuning since as my tires wore out, I would frequently lose the back-end and have to throttle back to regain control. A little bit more LSD or something would have helped.

Enjoy the racing!
GTsail

Lovely run on comfort tyres GTsail290. 👍

So, better late than never, I've finally finished my report on last week's run.

Following my recent GV300 run with the Elise '96 on sports soft tyres where I didn't need to pit, I decided to have an experimental run at Laguna Seca and see how far I could go before pitting. From other post v2.08 update runs in this thread I could see that the AI pitted much later and only once. So why not the same for me. I had changed the oil on the Elise which had put it's PP level up to 414 so I took off the sports manifold and cat leaving the race exhaust only, which brought her back down to 405PP. All else is stock apart from the ballast.



Car: Lotus Elise '96
HP: 132
PP: 405
Weight: 835Kg
Mods: Racing exhaust.
Power Level: 100%
Top Speed Setting: Stock.
Tyres: SS
All aids off. ABS 1. DFGT wheel.

Set Up
Suspension and trans all stock.
Brake Balance: 7/5
Weight Adjustment: Ballast 80Kg @ position -50 (46/54 split)

Grid #13:
1. Camaro Z28 Coupe '97
2. Superbird '70
3. Cuda 440 Six Pack '71
4. Charger 440 R/T '70
5. Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88
6. Mustang V8 GT Coupe Premium '07
7. Me
8. Chevelle SS 454 '70
9. Camaro SS '00
10. Corvette Convertible (C3) '69
11. Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi '71
12. Cougar XR-7 '67

Lap times as follows (time at end of lap):

Lap 1: 1:52.241- Dropped one place at the start but made up two by staying out of trouble at the first turn. By the Corkscrew I was up to 4th and then 3rd by jinking past the Superbird at the second-to-last turn. Finished the lap in 3rd, -4.2 seconds down on the leading Z28 and second place Charger 440. The AI are much faster than me on the straights but woeful against the little Elise in the braking zones.
Lap 2: 1:43.781 - Charger 440 gets away on the straights but I grind him down through the turns and take him through the Corkscrew. Finish lap -4 secs down on the Z28.
Lap 3: 1:42.642 - Slowly close on the Z28 and end lap -2 secs down. Z28 is pulling mid 1:44.xxxs. I'm making all my time up from the Corkscrew onwards.
Lap 4: 1:42.643 - Metronomic lap times! I catch the leader at the last turn but he powers away from me on the straight. -1.3 secs.
Lap 5: 1:42.844 - Pass the Z28 and take the lead. He tries to retake me on the start/finish straight but he just hasn't got the brakes to pull it off. +0.5 secs.

Laps 6-10: Just keep it clean and hit my fastest lap so far of 1:41.390 on lap 9. Finish lap 10 +12 secs with me pulling mid 1:41.xxxs and the second place Z28 in the 1:44.xxx zone (best so far of 1:43.843)

Laps 11-20: More of the same except I out braked myself into turn 1 on lap 13 and ran onto the sand losing me about 4 seconds. Z28 is hanging on in there and I'm only dropping him by about 0.5-0.75 secs a lap. Lap the Mustang and Cuda 440 without incident on lap 15. Experience has told me to be careful lapping cars here, so I bided my time to make clean passes and lost about 3 seconds in the process. Hit a 1:41.236 on lap 18. Ended lap 20 +27 secs ahead and now pulling almost 2 secs a lap over the Z28 who's pace has dropped off a little.

Laps 21-30: I slowly catch and pass a group of four back markers (Camaro SS '00, Charger Super Bee, Chevelle SS 454 and Superbird '70) on lap 23. My lap times are still good in the low 1:42.xxxs, 3 seconds a lap faster than anyone else a this point. Lapped the Cougar on lap 27. Ended lap 30 +51 secs ahead.

Laps 31-40: This is a lonely phase of the race. There's a big gap to the 5th place Charger 440 so I just keep plugging away. Lap times now in the mid 1:42.xxxs so my tyres have gone out of their optimum grip window. I catch the Charger 440 on lap 36 but make a complete hash of lapping him and end up smacking the left wall on the run up to the Corkscrew (don't ask!). He gets way…. for a lap. I nail him on lap 38 and finish lap 40 +1:24.181 ahead and catching the final group containing 2nd back to 4th place.

Laps 41-45: Still chasing the final group but my lap times are now in the low to mid 1:43.xxxs. Normally I would think about pitting on lap 45 (half way) to maximise my grip and lap times. But my tyres are still 70% front and 80% rear so I don't pit just to see how far I can get or even have thoughts of finishing without pitting - why not, I'm so far ahead!

Laps 46-60: By lap 50 I've lapped everyone up to 2nd place, double-lapped 4 cars and triple-lapped 2. Lap times slip from the odd 1:43.xxx to 1:45.xxx for the odd sloppy one. Chevelle SS 454 and Charger Super Bee pit on lap 50. Charger 440 and Superbird '70 pit on lap 52. Cougar pits on lap 54. Z28 pits from 2nd on lap 56 and the IROC-Z takes over 2nd spot with the Corvette 3rd. They both pit on the following lap. SS '00 pits on lap 59.

Laps 61-70: I keep banging in consistent 1:44.xxxs. All very lonely now, but the Elise is such a pleasure I'm not that fussed.

Laps 71-80: Cuda 440 pits on lap 72. My lap times drop into the 1:45.xxxs and have a howler of a lap on lap 78 and pull a full 360. I blame a lack of concentration. Hitting low 1:46.xxxs by the end of lap 80. Tyres are 25% fronts and 40% rear but still holding up OK - haven't had the drop off yet I experienced at Grand Valley, but there aren't as many slow corners here where you'd notice it more.

Laps 81-90: From lap 82 to 88 my lap times are down to 1:47.xxxs so I decide to hang it out there and see what life I can wring out of these tired tyres. I manage a 1:46.582 on lap 89 and a 1:46.571 on the final lap! Tyres and fuel at the end looked like this:



Finishing time was 2:34:55.750 with a huge margin of almost 2 laps to the Camaro IROC-Z in second and Corvette (C3) in third.

Fastest lap: 1:41.236 on lap 18.

Conclusion:
Way too much car and ridiculous tyre wear rate, but hey, it was fun and just shows how far you can push lightweights with this new tyre model.

GTsail290

Lineup # 13 is still my favorite, so the usual AI suspects are on the grid...

Total race time was 2 hours, 37 minutes and 46.750 seconds.
2) Corvette Convertible-----48 seconds behind, pitted on lap # 51

Click to expand...

So the total time for the principle opposition ('69 Corvette) in preferred grid #13 is 2:38:34.750.

In the effort to find a grid with a greater total time, and therefore easier to beat, I tried an alternate grid #4. Here, principle opposition came from the Chrysler 300C. Total time of my race was 2:37:47.xxx and MoV was 1:12.898, so total time of the 300C was 2:39:05.898, an increase of 31 seconds - half a minute behind where the '69 Corvette might have been.

So if this can be confirmed, we might have a new grid that is both slightly easier to beat and slightly more easily accessible to enter.

Lotus Elise 111S '03
PP 399
Hp 152
Weight 987 kg
PL 85%
No aids except ABS
Sports Medium tires used throughout. Pitted Laps 30 and 60.

Lineup:
Prowler '02
Corvette GS '96
Mustang V8 GT Premium '07
Corvette ZR-1 '90
Superbird '70
Chrysler 300C '05
me
Camaro SS '00
Tempest LeMans GTO '64
Challenger R/T '70
Challenger SRT8 '08
Camaro Z28 Coupe '97

As in racing against the Corvette in grid #13, here the potentially fast 300C gets held up in traffic during his first stint. After pitting on lap 47, he quickly goes ahead of all the other AI and runs at you with consistent laps in the 41's and 42's, easing off into the 46's by lap 90.

Since my car was slightly overkill for this race, I will detune it and try this again!

Respectfully submitted,
Steve

Dotini

...In the effort to find a grid with a greater total time, and therefore easier to beat, I tried an alternate grid #4. Here, principle opposition came from the Chrysler 300C.

Lotus Elise 111S '03
PP 399
Hp 152
Weight 987 kg

Total time of my race was 2:37:47.xxx and MoV was 1:12.898, so total time of the 300C was 2:39:05.898, an increase of 31 seconds - half a minute behind where the '69 Corvette might have been.

Click to expand...

Nicely done Dotini!

Any trouble with all the left turns?

You may have found a better grid if the Chrysler 300C will repeatedly and reliably get held-up by the rest of the AI.

PreV2.08, I was also avoiding the Challenger SRT8 '08 that you ran against, but perhaps he also gets held-up by the back-markers because of the new tire model.

In my race at post # 71 above, both the Camaro SS '10 and the 2004 Corvette C5 got held-up by the Prowler for an in-ordinant number of laps, which was unexpected. So perhaps the AI is slightly less aggressive when passing now that we have the V2.08 tire model.

Respectfully,
GTsail

The purpose of this race was to confirm the behavior and total time of the 300C, and to hopefully win, at least temporarily, the honors for lowest PP for Comfort Soft tires.

Before entering this event, I practiced until I could lap comfortably in the 44's and 45's, with an occasional lap in the 43's - all fair and legal. Additionally, I practiced starting the race a few times until I learned how to not only hold onto my starting position, but actually get as high as 4th by the 2nd corner.

Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 '85
443 PP
HP 257
Weight 1107kg
PL 85.0 %
No aids except ABS
Comfort Soft tires used all laps, Pitstops Laps 30 and 60
Total time: 2:39:12.055
MoV: 6.340

Lineup: (4th Laguna Seca lineup after an entry/exit at the PDC/Madrid event, A-spec Expert Hall.)
Prowler '02
Corvette GS '96
Mustang V8 GT Premium '07
Corvette ZR-1 '90
Superbird '70
Chrysler 300C '05
me
Camaro SS '00
Tempest LeMans GTO '64
Challenger R/T '70
Challenger SRT8 '08
Camaro Z28 Coupe '97

Lap 1: Fumbled my practiced start, but managed to pass the doddering old Superbird and incredibly slow Mustang to end the lap in 5th, right on the bumper of the 300C
Lap 2: Passed the 300C into turn 1. Hooray!
Laps 3-25: Hanging grimly onto 4th, fending off the 300C.
Lap 25: He gets by! Dangit!
Lap 30: Stop for fuel and tires, drop to 8th. 300C in 3rd. Prowler is leading the race, followed by Corvette GS '96.
Lap 37: I'm back into to 4th after passing the slow guys.
Lap 47: 300C in 2nd.
Lap 48: 300c pits, drops to 8th. I'm now in 1st for the first time.
Lap 55: 300C up to 2nd, gap is 1:08.
Lap 60: Pit for fuel and tires.
Lap 61: I'm still leading, and the gap is down to a scant 27 seconds.
Laps 61-90: I'm grimly holding on, and he's charging. He closes to within 5 seconds, but gradually drops back to 6 seconds in arrears by the flag.

Notes: In my previous run against the 300C, his total time was 2:39:05.898. In this event, his time was 2:39.18.395, again demonstrating being held up by traffic until after pitstops. It seems this lineup is a good alternative to running against the '69 'Vette Convertible.

Another thing that needs to me said is that running on Comfort Soft tires is hard work! Mercifully, the Peugeot 205 Turbo 16 '85 with 4WD does a terrific job of getting power to the ground without wheelspin, and is very hard to spin out - which is vital in a close race for low PP.

Respectfully submitted,
Steve

A mighty run on CS tyres! Interesting line up as well.

I've got a few runs of this lined up, but just can't seem to make the time atm.

a Quick teaser before I post a very disappointing race report. Over the past weekend I took my lovely '69 Camaro Z28 out to Laguna Seca and failed miserably on Three consecutive attempts. The Corvette convertible was just too much of a car for me to beat. Closest finish was 4.5s a lousy second place for all my efforts.
So I will be back there the next available moment, I need to redeem the Cherry Lady.

fjdutoit

a Quick teaser before I post a very disappointing race report. Over the past weekend I took my lovely '69 Camaro Z28 out to Laguna Seca and failed miserably on Three consecutive attempts. The Corvette convertible was just too much of a car for me to beat. Closest finish was 4.5s a lousy second place for all my efforts.
So I will be back there the next available moment, I need to redeem the Cherry Lady.

Click to expand...

Great encouragement is in order for those attempting to win with vintage/historic machinery! A while back I thought about asking axletramp to establish a leaderboard specifically for American 60's-'70's muscle cars. We look forward to your report, plus a renewed effort to put American iron on top! In my distant youth, I raced '68 Camaro, and drove a '69 Z28 on the street. I owe it to my self-respect to make a run with such a ride, and will do it soon! Thanks for your inspiration, fjdutoit!

Respectfully,
Steve

This isn't a bad idea as no one has yet run any of the AI machinery. That poor Mustang GT that I constantly lap surely needs it's moment of glory?

Dotini

Great encouragement is in order for those attempting to win with vintage/historic machinery! A while back I thought about asking axletramp to establish a leaderboard specifically for American 60's-'70's muscle cars....

Click to expand...

This sounds like a worthwhile endeavour.

If the AI can run classic American muscle at Laguna Seca, then so should we!

I'm off to my garage......
GTsail

i just ran this race for the second time. Laguna Seca is one of my favorite tracks and this range of cars (say neighborhood of 400 to 500 PP) are easy to control and enjoyable to drive for long periods of time IMO. I won with the 08 WRC Ford Focus and the 02 Lotus V8 Esprit. both stock, both very easy. Now I've got an idea of what other cars can be used and make the race more challenging.

I'm gonna try some warm up laps with the 91 Acura NSX and see how it feels..

i'm also tempted to run it with my Dodge Ram quad cab, with the suspension dropped. sports tires and some tuning. i do enjoy the commanding view of the surrounding racetrack

also I run this race at least -0.4 EV brightness because it seems awful sunny on my screen 👍

As promised The race report.

The classics never go out of style.


After being posed the question by my crew chief as to why there are no muscle cars in the race reports for Laguna Seca I took it upon myself to fix that.

So after some delegation the pit crew turned out this beauty
'69 Camaro Z28 with 798.7km on the speedo
1415kg worth of poetry in motion propelled by 418bhp from the startline.
Some test run tweaking and the resulting setup as follows:

Aero 0/10
ECU
Engine stage 2
Sport intake
Racing filter
Sport exhaust
Tranny set to 220km/h 135mph
Twin clutch
Sport flywheel
LSD 12/42/25
SH tires used through out the race.

The Grid:
Prowler '02
Mustang GT '05
Corvette Z06 C5 '00
SRT4 '03
Camaro SS '00
Cuda Six Pack '71
Camaro Z28 '69
Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi '71
Corvette Coupe C2 '63
Mustang V8 GT Coupe Premium '07
Corvette Convertible Stingray C3 '69
Camaro SS '69

No sneers or laughs at the start line this time around as this car fits like a glove.


So we're off amidst the roaring sound of rolling thunder as the V8's announce their presence at Laguna Seca.

Lap1 1:46.210
up to 5th as the 6 pack is short a pair and the ugly '00 SS chivalrously made way for the dame in red, the beauty the Z28.
Lap2 1:43.432
take 4th at the Andretti hairpin.
Lap3 1:42.588
Lap4 1:47.392
Went off at turn 5 and lost 3 spots
Lap5 1:42.319
Back to pace and take 4th easily again
Lap6 1:45.035
Lap7 1:42.063
Still in 4th now 16s behind the leader. Need to focus and lap consistantly.
Lap8 1:43.733
Lap9 1:42.404
Now 14.7s behind so I'm catching up.
Lap10 1:48.064
Off again turn 5 is proving a problem, drop back to 5th 18s behind leader.
Lap11 1:42.049
The C3 is leading now and I'm 15.8s behind.
Lap12 1:43.506
Lap13 1:41.197 (Fastest Lap)
15s behind the leader and closing, the fastest lap for the C3 at this point was 1:41.190 so we are pretty evenly matched.
Lap14 1:43.513
Now 11.6s behind and consistancy still eludes me
Lap15 1:44.663
Lap16 1:48.217
14.7s behind
Lap17 1:44.939
15.4s behind, the C3 is my main focus as this was the second of three runs and he's the clear favorite.
Lap18 1:43.461
Still in 5th 13.7s behind
Lap19 1:42.147
Lap20 1:47.543
Lap the silly little ford car V8 GT something.
Lap21 1:43.563
Lap the 6 pack and pass the SRT4 while were passing the Plymouth
Lap22 1:43.916
Comfy in 4th gaining on the C3 now 4.4s behind.
Lap23 1:46.360
Lap24 1:44.426
Lap25 1:45.384
2.6s behind the C3 every glimpse makes me push harder to catch up.
Lap26 1:47.901
Thats what you get for not paying attention, the C3 doesnt wait around and stretches open a 5s gap quickly.
Lap27 1:45.881
Lap28 1:45.526 still 4th but catching up 1.7s behind the C3 who leads like she owns it.
Lap29 1:48.339
Take 3rd at Andretti take 2nd at turn 4 and first at the cork screw as the C3 laps the C2.
Lap30 1:46.314
Lap31 1:47.017
Lap32 1:48.253
Lap the Super Bee
Lap33 1:48.223
Lap34 1:50.074
Lap35 2:18.171
Pit tires are 10%F 20%R get a new set of SH and 15l of fuel.
Exit pits 26s behind the leader and the C2 and Super Bee have unlapped them selves
Lap36 1:53.249
Take 3rd as the Prowler pits
Lap37 1:44.825
Take 2nd as the C3 pits
Lap38 1:43.742
Put the C2 a lap down again
Lap39 1:43.119
Still 26s behind the C5 now leading atleast he isnt getting any faster.
Lap40 1:43.074
Put the Super Bee down a lap in a display of power down the S/F straight, now 24s behind the leader.
Lap41 1:42.252
Closing the gap 20s and shrinking
Lap42 1:44.495
Gap down to 16s
Lap43 1:50.697
I'm finally in the lead as the C5 pitts along with the GT '05
The C3 ran its fastest lap of the race on this lap 1:40.896
Lap44 1:48.753
Put the V8 GT 2 laps down, i think that pony has a broken leg, someone put it down.
Lap45 1:47.407
Drop to 2nd as the SRT4 sneaks by through the Corkscrew finish the lap 0.4s behind it.
Lap46 1:45.218
Staying behind the SRT4 to see if it cuts tire wear and fuel use 10 laps should do.
Lap47 1:45.294
Lap48 1:46.422
Lap49 1:44.641
Lap50 1:45.919
Lap51 1:45.833
Lap52 1:46.529
Lap53 1:46.714
Lap54 1:48.916
Lap55 1:43.866
Came to the conclusion that drafting and the early braking dont do much for tires, and its terribly tedious folloing a slower car. Take 1st at the Andretti hairpin.
Lap56 1:43.987
Lap57 1:43.173
Lap a mustang, couldnt be bothered to see which one.
Lap58 1:44.394
Lap the 440 agian, now have a lead of 15s over 2nd place
Lap59 1:46.975
This is ofcourse the part of the race where the 440 would put up a fight over being passed.
Lap60 1:44.097
lead down to 11.6s
Lap61 1:44.946
Lap62 1:48.157
Lap63 1:44.685
lead down to 4.8s can only be one of the corvettes closing in this fast
Lap64 1:47.381
1s lead over the C5 but it wont last long
Lap65 1:45.930
Lap66 1:48.708
Lap67 1:47.110
1s lead holds up this far.
Lap68 2:26.695
Pit for tires and fuel the heavy braking earlier took its toll on the tires and its increasingly hard to maintain a line.
Lap69 1:51.847
Now in 4th the C5 leads the then C2 and SRT4 and 46s behind i plod on.
Lap70 1:42.407
Lap71 1:42.312
40s behind i'll catch them yet.
Lap72 1:41.078 (Fastest Lap)
My best lap of the race still a second slower than either of the Vette's
Lap73 1:42.696
32s little by little.
Lap74 1:41.735
Take 3rd as the C3 pits for his last stint.
Lap75 1:41.519
Lap76 1:49.743
a little off road wake up call to make me aware that im now 24s behind the leader.
Lap77 1:43.364
Lap78 1:43.677
Lap79 1:43.956
Lap80 1:42.526
Lap81 1:43.587
Take 2nd place on turn 4 now 12s behind the leading C5
Lap82 1:43.818 9.5s behind
Lap83 1:44.564 8.1s behind
Lap84 1:44.573 6.9s behind
Lap85 1:45.947 6.0s behind
Lap86 1:45.070 4.9s behind
Lap87 1:46.651
Pass the C5 as he pits for i hope 3 laps of fuel, cross the line to the great news that im 5s ahead of the C3
Lap88 1:46.358
Only 2s left of my lead.
Lap89 1:48.185
The C3 has me nervous as we cross the line to start the last lap
I have a 0.869s lead....

And now dear gentleman proof that the AI might be stupid, but they arent above knocking you out of the race.

Exhibit A


Exhibit B


This little paint trade took place just after the Corkscrew and the was no way to catch up to the Vette, i hit the accel hard out of the corner and just made a mess of smoke and noise and not much else.

Lap90 1:51.369
After 2h39.xxxmin i finish the second run at Laguna Seca 4.517 seconds behind the gorgeous C3 Vette.
The third run wasnt completed, and i am sure that the Z28 at 418bhp should be faster so a setup tweak is on the cards prior to its next outing to Laguna.

For my next attempt, I decide to run a "stock" classic American muscle car, so its off to the Chevrolet dealership where I purchase a brand-spanking new Camaro Z28 '69 for $65,000.

The Camaro Z28 already has sport hard tires installed, so there's no need to buy a set for the race (I give my pit-crew an extra $6k for a second set of SH tires just in case I need them during the race).

Since I will run the Camaro "stock" my fabled pit-crew doesn't have much to do except give my car a wash.

After the wash, my Champagne Gold Metallic Camaro Z28 '69 has the following spec's:

Horsepower: 281
Weight: 1415
PP value: 446
P.Limit: 100%
Tires: SH (used throughout the race)
4-speed tranny, 135mph top speed limited
Odometer: 0 miles
No skid

Sitting on the Laguna Seca grid are the following suspects from Alternative lineup # 4 (after the PD Cup - Expert):

1) Chrysler Prowler
2) Corvette Grand Sport
3) Mustang V8 GT Coupe '07
4) Corvette ZR-1 C4 '90
5) Superbird '70
6) Chrysler 300C '05
7) GTsail in the Camaro Z28
8) Camaro SS '00
9) Tempest LeMans GTO '64
10) Challenger R/T '70
11) Challenger SRT8 '08
12) Camaro Z28 Coupe '97

After a liberal application of sun-tan lotion, the flag drops and we're off!!

During lap # 1, I muscle my way up to 4th place in the race (paint and some sun-tan lotion gets rubbed off during the car-to-car contact). By the end of the lap I'm 5.2 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

After 3 laps, I'm 9.4 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

After 5 laps, I'm 9.6 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after an early lap record of 1.44.292. I'm starting to adjust to my Camaro and its bauky transmission. The Camaro's handling is decent, so I begin to enjoy the laps!

On lap # 7, I pass the 3rd place Corvette ZR-1 C4 as we go thru the corkscrew.

I set a new lap record of 1.44.132 on lap # 8. I'm still 9 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 11, I set a new lap record of 1.43.829 and end the lap only 8 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

The 4th place Challenger R/T '70 has glued himself to my rear-bumper over the last five laps. He often tries to get past me as we start to brake for turn # 5, but somehow he doesn't find the space.

On lap # 14, I set a new lap record of 1.43.760 and end the lap 7.6 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 16, I set another lap record of 1.43.695 and end the lap only 5 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 19, I catch and pass the 2nd place Corvette Grand Sport as we go thru turn # 11 and the end of the lap. I'm now only 3 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

The Chrysler Prowler catches and passes the 12th place Mustang V8 GT Coupe just as they begin lap # 20.

On lap # 20, I pass the 12th place Mustang V8 GT as well as we go thru turn # 6.

After 25 laps, I'm still 3.4 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler. The 3rd place Corvette Grand Sport has been following me closely over the last five laps. The 4th place Challenger R/T '70 is right behind the Corvette Grand Sport.

At the end of lap # 27, I'm only 0.607 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler after a decent 1.44.679 lap.

On lap # 28, I catch and pass the 1st place Chrysler Prowler as we go thru turn # 9. At the end of the lap I have a 0.845 second lead over the Chrysler Prowler.

On lap # 33, I pass the 11th place Challenger SRT8 going thru turn # 5. I also pass the 10th place Tempest LeMans GTO and the 9th place Superbird '70 as we go thru turn # 11.

On lap # 34, I pass both the 8th place Camaro Z28 Coupe and the 7th place Camaro SS '00. I end the lap with a 6.3 second lead over the 2nd place Chrysler Prowler.

Looking back on lap # 35, I see that I'm now the leader of a 7-car train, which has no more than one second separating any car in the train!

On lap # 38, I pass the 12th place Mustang V8 GT Coupe again and put him two laps down. At the end of the lap, I see that I have a 15 second lead over the Chrysler Prowler after a 1.45.468 lap. The Prowler has been getting held up by a hole slew of back-markers.

At the end of lap # 45, I see that I have a 29 second lead over the Chrysler Prowler after a decent 1.46.428 lap. I have used about 40% of my tire's lives.

On lap # 50, I get caught and passed by the 6th place Chrysler 300C. He must be a lap down to me after a pit stop. Since he's on fresh tires, he's just too fast for my Camaro Z28, so I can't stay with him during the rest of the lap.

I dive into the pits at the end of lap # 50 and ask for a new set of SH tires and 50 liters of fuel. I had a 41 second lead over the Chrysler Prowler when I pitted. While I'm in the pits, I get passed by the 2nd place Prowler and the 3rd place Corvette Grand Sport (plus a couple of back-markers), so when I begin lap # 51, I find myself in 3rd place.

At the first checkpoint on lap # 51, I see that I'm 6.5 seconds behind the race leading Chrysler Prowler.

Just as I begin lap # 52, I pull along-side the Plymouth Superbird and see that I'm in 2nd place in the race. The Prowler has just entered the pits, so I jump up a spot on the race order. The Corvette Grand Sport now has the race lead. I battle side-by-side with the Plymouth Superbird going thru the Andretti hairpin and take the position on the exit from the hairpin. Blue flags were waving all over the place, but the Superbird must not have been able to see them! At the end of the lap I catch and pass the race leading Corvette Grand Sport as we go thru turn # 11. The Grand Sport kind of "parks" himself on the exit from the turn so I accelerate away and let him inhale my Camaro's exhaust!

At the 2nd checkpoint on lap # 54, I see that I have a 53 second lead over the Dodge Challenger R/T '70 who has taken over 2nd place in the race when the Corvette Grand Sport pitted. The Grand Sport has fallen back into 5th place. The Chrysler Prowler is now in 3rd place and the Chrysler 300C has climbed up into 4th place.

On lap # 55, I set a new lap record of 1.43.203 and end the lap with a 51.6 second lead over the Challenger R/T.

After 60 laps, I have still have a 51 second lead over the 2nd place Challenger R/T after a decent 1.43.620 lap.

After 65 laps, I have a 49 second lead over the 2nd place Challenger R/T after a 1.43.750 lap.

On lap # 67, I pass the 8th place Challenger SRT8 and put him a lap down.

After 70 laps, I'm back up to a 51 second lead over the 2nd place Challenger R/T after another good 1.43.627 lap.

After 75 laps, I have a 53 second lead over the 2nd place Challenger R/T after a 1.44.291 lap. My tires are just starting to age a bit, but only a very small amount so my lap times are staying very consistent.

After 80 laps, I have a 55 second lead over the Dodge Challenger R/T after a 1.44.289 lap.

On lap # 81, I pass the Mustang V8 GT Coupe and put him another lap down.

After 85 laps, I have a 59 second lead over the Dodge Challenger R/T after a slightly slow 1.45.026 lap. I think that the AI have given up any hope of catching me so I guess they are just cruising and taking pictures at this point.

On lap # 89, I catch and pass the 5th place Corvette Grand Sport as we go thru turn # 10. At the end of the lap I'm right behind the 4th place Chrysler 300C and about 63 seconds ahead of the 2nd place Dodge Challenger R/T. Lap # 89 takes me 1.45.955.

After 90 laps, I cross the Finish Line and win the race after 2 hours, 38 minutes and 27.723 seconds

Finishing order:
--------------
1) GTsail in the Camaro Z28
2) Challenger R/T------------63 secs back (pits on lap # 48)(BL 1.42.1)
3) Chrysler Prowler----------1min,41secs back (pits on lap # 51)(BL 1.43.9)
4) Chrysler 300C------------1min,45secs back (pits on lap # 46)(BL 1.41.9)
5) Corvette Grand Sport----- 1 lap down (pits on lap # 53)(BL 1.43.6)
6) Camaro Z28 Coupe-------- 1 lap down (pits on lap # 52)(BL 1.43.4)
7) Corvette ZR-1------------ 1 lap down (pits on lap # 52)(BL 1.43.4)
8) Challenger SRT8---------- 2 laps down (pits on lap # 50)(BL 1.44.4)
9) Camaro SS '00------------ 2 laps down (pits on lap # 54)(BL 1.44.9)
10) Tempest LeMans--------- 3 laps down (pits on lap # 50)(BL 1.46.3)
11) Superbird '70------------ 3 laps down (pits on lap # 47)(BL 1.46.3)
12) Mustang V8 GT---------- 5 laps down (pits on lap # 55)(BL 1.49.2)

Post race notes:
----------------
A stock Camaro does quite nicely at Laguna Seca. A quite enjoyable drive even if I wasn't challenged after about lap # 30. Dotini has found an excellent lineup with a bunch of snails! The Chrysler 300C is fast for a few laps, but he must have driven some very slow laps to have ended up in 4th place during my race.

After the race my Camaro Z28 has 201.3 miles on the odometer. This is a tenth of a mile less than the published race distance. I must be cutting a few corners somewhere! I do my best to go thru the corkscrew properly, but maybe I'm still cutting it a bit. I will check for this on future races.

Enjoy the racing!
GTsail

that is intense. Funny thing is I had muscle cars on my mind this morning too & did 200 miles of Laguna Seca in a brand new 69 Z28 Camaro also I had an old hotrodded one in tuxedo black, but I got a new Le Mans Blue and repainted it the same color chip so the stripes would change to white.

after a lap around Le Mans (where you feel the need for a new transmission) and a couple warm up muscle car Aspec races at Laguna Seca, i started my endurance race. sports soft tires and sports exhaust for better sound, everything else stock. there were some lead changes during pit stops (I pitted after 30 laps and got the only fuel I'd need, then at 55 and 75 for new tires) but I won by 28 seconds. best lap was just a 1:39. I guess the AI was having a slow day or I got a good starting grid.

I still may run the race in the Acura NSX next. I decided the Ram is too slow and would require so much modification I should just drive something else. May do Grand Valley with it. The SVT F150 Lightning has Laguna Seca potential. i could be one of the first to run the race in a pickup don't you think??

Tad Dainty

The SVT F150 Lightning has Laguna Seca potential. i could be one of the first to run the race in a pickup don't you think??

Click to expand...

Challenge accepted


You first I want to see if its possible, I've already made a muck of the Z28 run

with the stock F150 and soft sports, i was able to get in front early & stay there (some dodge viper was the lead car) until I slid out and retired from the race. best lap 1:40.9. somebody who's good at driving could do it.

the truck seems kinda rough on tires.. i just thought that I'm not on the latest patch because my internet is limited & i just have whatever came with XL edition, haven't taken it online... so my tire wear & stuff could be different. Im not really going for the leaderboard anyway, I just like driving on my days off from driving

i'm going to practice some on the professional aspec muscle car race. 5 laps at laguna seca with the same opponents as the 24 hr race, limited to american cars though.

Great runs guys. I think you've inspired me to run something, shall we say, heavier.

In the meantime, here we are again with my trusty Elise '96 at Laguna Seca. Following my recent run on SS where I didn't need to pit, I've decided to have a crack at a really low PP run. My thinking is that if I can win by almost 2 laps at 405PP then surely I can drop that by quite a chunk and still win against the same grid (#13), albeit a much closer race. So I stripped all the mods off the Elise, didn't change the oil and stuck with my standard 80Kg of ballast. This left her at 373PP and only *gulp* 100HP! Hmm, that's going to make things difficult on the fast sections and the uphill section to the Corkscrew. I'm going for a 1 stop strategy as I think it's the fastest option here as tyre wear is low compared to other endurance races.

Car: Lotus Elise '96
HP: 100
PP: 373
Weight: 835Kg
Mods: None
Power Level: 85%
Top Speed Setting: Stock.
Tyres: SS
All aids off. ABS 1. DFGT wheel.

Set Up
Suspension and trans all stock.
Brake Balance: 7/5
Weight Adjustment: Ballast 80Kg @ position -50 (46/54 split)

Grid #13:
1. Camaro Z28 Coupe '97
2. Superbird '70
3. Cuda 440 Six Pack '71
4. Charger 440 R/T '70
5. Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88
6. Mustang V8 GT Coupe Premium '07
7. Me
8. Chevelle SS 454 '70
9. Camaro SS '00
10. Corvette Convertible (C3) '69
11. Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi '71
12. Cougar XR-7 '67

Lap 1: 1:52.669 - Woeful acceleration at the start drops me to 10th but I stay wide and retake 9th through the first turn. Mustn't let that Z28 get away at the front so a couple of banzai (but clean) moves through the next couple of turns sees me up to 5th. Got to rely solely on agility - and the fact that I can hammer my tyres - to get anything out of this as I'm being out-dragged on every straight. Take 4th place from the Cuda 440 as we exit the Corkscrew. Buckets of momentum through the next left hander sees me breeze past into 3rd at the next turn. Finish lap -4 secs down in 3rd.

Laps 2-5: Can't get near the two ahead (Z28 1st and Charger 440 2nd) but settle into mid to low 1:44.xxxs which isn't too bad but I'm only holding the Charger 440 and losing about 0.5 sec a lap to the leading Z28. Finished lap 5 -8 secs down.

Laps 6-10: Stalemate at this point. I'm starting to hit mid to high 1:43.xxxs now but the gap to 1st place remains around 8 to 9 seconds. I appear to have exactly the same pace as the Z28 - which could be fun later . However, I am slowly gaining at 0.5 sec a lap on the Charger 440. I take him at the final turn on lap 8 only to have him scream past me on the main straight with the obligatory side swipe the AI love so much - I'm only hitting 100mph before I hit the anchors! I then just stay wide and let my chassis and tyres do their work. This time I make it stick and pull out a slight gap of 2 secs which he appears to be able to hold. Finished lap 10 -8.5 secs down.

Laps 11-20: Keep consistent and keep calm. I'm here for the long haul and know I just have to keep the Z28 in sight to take him at the midpoint pitstop. Gap stays around 9 secs even though I hit my fastest lap on lap 13 of 1:43.244. But then there's a change. Around lap 15 I start to slowly, very slowly, chip away at the lead. I'm staying consistently within half a second of my lap times and by the end of lap 20 I'm only -1.5 secs behind the Z28. But I also notice that 3rd place has changed and I'm now being slowly caught by the now charging IROC-Z Concept - hang on, didn't he come a strong second to me on my last run? Hmm…

Laps 21-30: I take 1st place on lap 21 at the final right hander with little or no resistance from the Z28. His tyres have dropped off considerably in the last 5 laps and I can open a gap quite easily - damn, I was hoping it might be closer than that! But… the IROC-Z is still there and catching the Z28 fast. My lap times at this stage are now in the mid to low 1:44.xxxs, apparently matching the IROC- in 3rd. Finished lap 30 +6 seconds to the Z28 who's in a close battle with the IROC-Z.

Laps 31-40: More of the same from me but the AI are now dropping back as their tyres wear. Z28 and IROC-Z must be having an epic battle as they are locked together and now joined by the Corvette. But… whoa! What was that?! On lap 39 a loss of concentration at the last kink before the hill leading to the Corkscrew sees me 360° into the gravel and barrier. My gap was up to 23 seconds but I lose 15 secs and by the end of lap 40 i'm back to being only +8 secs ahead.

Laps 41-45: It only takes me the next 5 laps to open the gap up again (hitting mid 1:45.xxxs now) and I pit on lap 45 +22 secs ahead. I don't need fuel so just take a new set of shiny SS tyres - fronts 60% / rears 80%. I re-enter the race at the start of lap 46 in 4th place -12 secs behind an epic battle for 1st between the still leading Z28, the IROC-Z and the Corvette. The IROC-Z has been stuck behind the Z28 for 15 laps now!

Laps 46-60: Ooo new tyres are nice! I now have a pointy and sharp Lotus back and quickly drop back into the low 1:44.xxxs/high 1:43.xxxs. The guys ahead are struggling now and I catch and pass them all between the Corkscrew and the final right hander on lap 49. Does anyone remember John Watson at Long Beach in '83? I felt a bit like that. AI start to pit and of the chasing pack the Corvette blinks first on lap 49, followed 3 laps later by both the Z28 and the IROC-Z. But as they exit the pits I notice the IROC-Z has jumped the Z28. Interesting. I end lap 60 a massive +1:02 mins ahead, so I presume everyone needed fuel.

Laps 61-70: Once I see the gap back to the 2nd placed IROC-Z I back off into a more leisurely pace of mid 1:44.xxxs and for a few laps everything seems OK. Then the gap flashes up as +1:00 mins, then by lap 70 only +0:58 secs. That IROC-Z has obviously hit clean air and is banging in laps almost a second faster than me. 20 laps and 58 seconds to make up… surely his tyres won't last?

Laps 71-80: +0:57… +0:56… +0:52… wait, what?! OK, up may pace this guy is making me a little nervous. I manage to hit a 1:43.266 on lap 76 but that's not my average at this stage. I'm still dropping a second a lap to the IROC-Z and now the Corvette who's not far behind him. Then on lap 79, just when my lap time/gap calculations tell me not to panic… BANG! I lose it again for no reason as I exit the left hander after the Corkscrew - DOH! I grind to a halt in the barrier on the left hand side and have to reverse back onto the circuit, I get going again (which is agonisingly slow with only 100Hp!) and cross the line on lap 80 only +29 secs ahead of the still charging IROC-Z and Corvette. Nice going Steve!

Laps 81-90: So I just get back on with it and, although my tyres only giving me 1:46.xxxs at this point, the gap stabilises and then starts to open up. Looks like worn tyres are taking the sting out of the IROC-Z's progress. Soon I start to open the gap by a second a lap and, as is traditional, I open up the little Elise on the final lap and hit 1:44.224 - not at all shabby at this point.

Finishing time was 2:34:55.750 with a much more comfortable MOV of +39 secs to the IROC-Z. Fastest lap: 1:43.244 on lap 13.

Final Standings
Lotus Elise '96 …………………………….. 2:38:21.264
Camaro IROC-Z Concept '88 …………. +39 secs
Corvette Convertible (C3) '69 ……... +44 secs
Camaro Z28 Coupe '97 …………………. +1:02 mins
Charger 440 R/T '70 ……………………… 1lap
Cougar XR-7 '67 ………………………….… 1lap
Camaro SS '00 …………………………….. 1lap
Chevelle SS 454 '70 ……………………… 2lap
Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi '71 …… 2lap
Superbird '70 ……………………………...… 2lap
Mustang V8 GT Coupe Premium '07… 2lap
Cuda 440 Six Pack '71 ……………………. 3lap

Conclusion:
Still a touch too much car for the event but I did my darnedest to make it closer by having two massive brain fades which cost me about 30-40 seconds. I think you could still win this at 350-360PP in the Elise but that's it for me with this car for a while and I think I'll have a go with something else next time. My backmarker nemesis, that Mustang GT '07, the one that is constantly trying to hurl me off the track when I lap him. He looks like a good candidate for a run out.

fjdutoit

As promised The race report.

Click to expand...

Really bad luck there, I feel for you as I've been on the losing end of the AI's tactics countless times. I think most people here know how I feel about it.

BTW, do you have the PP level for this car so I can add you to the leaderboards?

Sorry no PP levels for any of my cars, playing without updates since I don't have decent internet.