A 2P Battle Thread: Beating the STi Spec C...

[VQuick]

Yep, my friend and I are having 'Ring duels in 2P Battle again. Previously, I used a very lightweight 290hp Amuse S2000 to best his 320hp S14 Silvia. He then proceeded to beat my lightened and GT-wingless 450hp R34 GT-R with a torquier more aerodynamic Supra with 430hp. A full lightweight, 360hp NSX-R got a good jump on the Supra, up until the high speed sections after Bergwerk and leading up to the finish.

We've kicked things up a notch now, and he seems to have gotten the edge again...with my help.

While borrowing my PS2, he ran across a 385hp STi that I had set up. I guess he liked it so much that he bought a Spec C STi and transferred my settings over. He built this 1160kg 460hp Impreza to beat my aforementioned R34 GT-R, because it was more stable than his Supra.

I tried using a 470hp Evo VIII MR I hadn't driven in a while. Turned out the weight was still pretty high, with only a stage 2 weight reduction leaving it 100kg heavier than the Impreza. Not only was the slight edge in horsepower negated by the extra weight, but the Spec C had a hefty advantage in torque with a meaty 460-ish lb-ft. The high amount of torque comes from using a Stage 1 turbo.

My friend had the nerve to save a hot lap on the 'Ring on my memory card, so I've been trying to tune various cars to take on the Spec C ghost. Darn it, the Impreza is just so good! I've tried:

1. Adding a wing to my Stage 2 lightweight R34 GT-R with a Stage 1 turbo. Couldn't cut it. Probably too heavy.
2. A Stage 5 turbo 350Z with a full weight reduction. More power and less weight than the Impreza, but still won't do the trick. Possibly because of less torque. I have Stage 3 NA and Supercharged versions as well, and they all fall short in terms of torque.
3. Another Evo VIII MR with a Stage 1 turbo. Still not quite as much torque as the Spec C.
4. An Evo VI TME RS. I hoped to play the weight advantage card with this older model, but this didn't work either.

I plan on trying an R32 GT-R V-Spec N1, and possibly an R32 S-Tune from NISMO. Hopefully I can get the weight down on those cars in order to be competitive. I suppose maybe an Evo VIII RS is an option as well. The last straw might be a TVR T350C or Griffith. They weigh less in stock form than even the Stage 2 lightweight Spec C, and hopefully reducing weight could help make up for the torque deficit I'll probably have.

Any other ideas as to what reasonable(no overkill) cars I can try? Another thing is that I need to keep power at a reasonable level. My friend and I use S3 tires, and tune our cars conservatively enough to have an entertaining race and exciting replay rather than use full-power, R5-equipped cars where you just hold on for dear life instead of focusing on the course.

No comments about my driving, please. My friend is more about brute force, bouncing off curbs and using ridiculously short gearing to make up for any mistakes(I use close ratios too, but he takes it to an extreme). I am more about finesse, driving much cleaner, consistent and a tad more more conservative compared to the ghost replay he saved. I can actually gain ground on corner entry and through a series of corners, but immediately fall behind on corner exit and on straights. I feel that I really need a car, not practice, to win in this case.

Mods, should this thread go in Race Reports? If so, feel free to move it. 👍

 

[Vonie]

Try the C5 Vette. Nothing like good old American Torque.

 

[stinkfistZ06]

i like that idea- i have a Z06 supercharged with a bunch of other goodies and im quite fond of it

on the griffith i like it and its lightly tuned except weight reduction all the way. its fast but its really twitchy at high speeds, still accelerates fast as hell with no engine mods

 

[Rypien]

Myself and my bro in law also enjoy the occasional split screen duel. Shame that no replays can be saved as with GT3, but its still fun.

Had a spot race a while ago (nobody really ran it bar us two) and it was good fun - http://home.swiftdsl.com.au/~tosk/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=449

go the split screen 👍

 

[General Gravy]

Just when you get GT5: Buy an Ariel Atom (that is, if they'll put it in GT5). But otherwise, your best bet could just bet an Lotus Carlton with a stage 3 weight reduction, and oil change. The Carlton still might be heaver, but it has a little more torque. Also, try adding a Stage 1 Turbo. Another good bet could be the MazdaSpeed 6, and just add a stage 1 turbo and weight reduction to the max. Also, try playing around with the gears.

 

[SlipZtrEm]

I'd give the NSX-R another shot, only because it's rediculously fast around the 'Ring in stock form compared to the other Japanese 280hp machines. The Spec-C is a tough little bugger to take on. Maybe a 22B or an STi VI? Play the weight card

The Corvette is a good suggestion because while it's FR, it's very stable. The other one I would suggest is an M3 CSL, or maybe even the regular M3. I don't know much HP you can add onto an S15 Silvia, but that could also be an idea. An RX-7 is an extremely agile car, more so than any Impreza ever can be, so that too can be an idea (and in the game, you don't have to worry about the turbo Wankel going boom ).

 

[subie power]

Nah i rekon m3 with a few good mods will see you take the win. the spec c is an awesome car. the m3 has stacks of grip and standard with good tyres i manage easy 720's.
The mines r34 gtr standard i could get below the 7 mark but it did oversteer on the exit a tad but was easy to handle that was standard.

 

[daan]

The mines r34 gtr standard i could get below the 7 mark but it did oversteer on the exit a tad but was easy to handle that was standard.

The Mines has 600bhp, so that would be a bit overkill considering his friend's Spec C only has 460.

 

[VQuick]

Thanks for the replies, everyone. I'd love to use a Mine's GT-R. It might be overkill, but the power to weight probably isn't too different. I might need a car like the Mine's GT-R. Even after bouncing off of curbs and going off the track several times, my friend managed to run a 7'09 lap.

I have a couple C5s, so I'll give them a try. I probably can't use a supercharger, because it didn't work well with an SVT Cobra R I tried. There was just too much wheelspin for the S3 tires to handle.

I was thinking of a 22B Impreza earlier, since the slight displacement advantage could help with torque.

On the other hand, my NSX-R was more than a match for my friend's Supra. It was very quick and balanced. The only problem was that the low weight of the car made it little skittish around the bumps at Pflanzgarten II and Schwalbenschwanz. I could build up a lead from the start to Bergwerk, then lose a bit of ground from Kesselchen to the Karussel. Then I'd pull away from the Karussel up until Galgenkopf and hope I didn't get overtaken after that. I guess I could increase the power on the NSX, and that might do the trick.

 

[un_peacekeeper]

haven't played GT4 in a while, but i think the HPA R32 may be pretty fast - 550HP

or you can try the Ford GT or SLR McLaren, sweet cars.

 

[Small_Fryz]

NSX-R or RX7 Spirit R type A will take it im sure. They hanlde brilliantly around the ring.

 

[Leonidae]

I'd say that 2nd gen MR2 turbo could be a good competition for that nasty Scooby. it's light, and it has good power to weight ratio, and it's pure fun to drive. second option could be Silvia 240RS. 240ish bhp and 910 kg can't go wrong.. 💡

 

[chinny]

Try the FPV F6 Typhoon or Tornado or whatever it is. The straight 6, 4 litre turbo made in Australia.

 

[Gabkicks]

Try the C5 Vette. Nothing like good old American Torque.

i agree. or a light tuned 350z. basicly any decent rwd car in gt4 will be a good match against the sti...

NSX...RX-7 or 8, i like older gen evo's and subarus as well as the skyline gtrs... tons of cars that can easily match or surpass the performance of a 450+hp Spec c.

I reccomend beating him with a older model subaru or evo because it would make victory sweeter. 👍 the sti ver.3 is good as well as the evo4. those are two favs of mine.

 

[JTSnooks]

The first thought that came to my mind when reading your post was "try something not Japanese". The first car that came to my mind was "Corvette Z06". After reading everyone else's posts I realized that the best car would probably be the little-known TVR Griffith 500. That car can be tuned to be faster than just about anything in its horsepower range and I've used it many times to beat cars with a lot more horsepower. The only disadvantages are that it has a somewhat low top speed due to only being able to have 550hp, but since his car has less that shouldn't be a problem. Also, it makes a LOT of torque and may be difficult to handle on S3 tires, but if you keep the rear suspension soft enough you should have a great car on your hands.

 

[F1GTR]

The Yellowbird, if you can handle it.

 

[VQuick]

haven't played GT4 in a while, but i think the HPA R32 may be pretty fast - 550HP

or you can try the Ford GT or SLR McLaren, sweet cars.

I'll have to look into that R32. It might be a bit heavy, though. The GT and McMerc are overkill.

NSX-R or RX7 Spirit R type A will take it im sure. They hanlde brilliantly around the ring.

I tuned my NSX-R to a little over 400hp this morning, and I had no problem with my friend's ghost. The car understeers a bit, but that's probably due to the roll cage. It's also a bit twitchy, probably because it's too light.

I snagged a '92 RX-7 RZ from Used Showroom I, which at 1230kg, is the lightest FD3S in the game. It's also one of the weakest, only having ~250hp. I tuned the car, but haven't driven it yet.

I'd say that 2nd gen MR2 turbo could be a good competition for that nasty Scooby. it's light, and it has good power to weight ratio, and it's pure fun to drive. second option could be Silvia 240RS. 240ish bhp and 910 kg can't go wrong...

I haven't looked into the MKII MR2s. I'll have to check them out. I forgot all about the 240RS. The other Silvias don't have the power to weight to compete, so maybe the old school car could be the one.

Try the FPV F6 Typhoon or Tornado or whatever it is. The straight 6, 4 litre turbo made in Australia.

I'll give them a look, but I imagine they're much too heavy. By the time I tuned the cars to come even close to the powert to weight ratio of the Spec C, I'd have more power than the S3 tires could handle.

The first thought that came to my mind when reading your post was "try something not Japanese". The first car that came to my mind was "Corvette Z06". After reading everyone else's posts I realized that the best car would probably be the little-known TVR Griffith 500. That car can be tuned to be faster than just about anything in its horsepower range and I've used it many times to beat cars with a lot more horsepower. The only disadvantages are that it has a somewhat low top speed due to only being able to have 550hp, but since his car has less that shouldn't be a problem. Also, it makes a LOT of torque and may be difficult to handle on S3 tires, but if you keep the rear suspension soft enough you should have a great car on your hands.

Yeah, I need to tune up one of my Griffs. I tried a T350C this morning, and with around 500hp(trying to get the torque up), the S3 tires were overwhelmed. If it weren't for the excessive wheelspin, it would've killed the Spec C ghost. I'm going to try it with less power too. If that doesn't work, hopefully the Griff's V8 will make a difference.

Thanks for the added options! I'm off for more testing and tuning. I'll be back with more results.

 

[VQuick]

Great news! I found a great weapon against the Spec C. The Opera Performance S2000. I did a full weight reduction and a Stage 2 NA Tune. I murdered my friend's ghost on the 'Ring. By the T3 mark, it was a little speck in my vision.

I guess the car came to mind because I like using it against the Peugeot Group B rally car when it shows up. I started thinking that my friend's Spec C is a little like a Group B car, and that the Opera S2000 might work against it. I ended up taking off the Stage 3 NA Tune I had; good thing, because it would have been serious overkill.

I'll still be testing other cars, in case my friend whines and says it's unfair to use a 'race car' like the S2000. What do you guys think of the Ford RS200 road car?