Car of the Week 228: COTY GTS Finale

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I really haven't been a fan of testing out multiple versions for COTW.
What will happen when someone picks the Mustang because there are 7 of them in GTS as of now.
Or even worse the Skyline GTR as there are 12 of them.

You see how it can get out of hand very quickly depending on the make and model.
That's just my opinion but I will leave that decision up to everyone else.
We did one week back in GT6 where we reviewed every single model of MX5..

But yeah, I see your point. I'm sure the F1 GTR will have it's time in the limelight at some point here!

Did we even drive it in GT6? I dont remember..
 
We did one week back in GT6 where we reviewed every single model of MX5..

But yeah, I see your point. I'm sure the F1 GTR will have it's time in the limelight at some point here!

Did we even drive it in GT6? I dont remember..

Its more of a time issue I think than anything else. Testing two cars is really not that bad but the more we add the less time gets spent on the actual car that was chosen.

I really don't remember if we drove it in GT6 or not. I think you have a post in the GT6 section that shows all the cars we tested. I will have to look that up later.
 
McLaren F1 '94
6,064 cc
626 hp / 7,500 rpm
480 ft-lbs / 5,500 rpm
2,513 lbs (1,140 kg)

Stock time trial at Tsukuba:



Cars within range:

0:57.967 - Bugatti Veyron 16.4
0:58.110 - Ferrari LaFerrari
0:58.727 - McLaren F1
0:59.339 - Lamborghini Huracan LP 610-4
0:59.414 - Gran Turismo Amuse S2000 GT1 Turbo
0:59.424 - Porsche 911 GT3 RS (991)
0:59.853 - Ferrari F40
0:59.869 - Nissan GT-R Nismo
0:59.970 - Dodge Viper GTS

Nothing from the mid-90s era comes close besides the F40 which weighs 88 lbs (40 kg) less but gives up 155 horses and 55 ft-lbs of torque to the F1. It's not a beater because it can still hold its own against modern hypercars 25 years later. I wouldn't call it a sleeper either. It's just an excellent car.
 
I feel a fair compromise would be that we run just the F1 like shown and let the F1 GTR have it’s day in the sun further down the line. ;)

Yep we can save the F1 GTR for another day. Early on we tested the Corvette and it's two race variants and by the end of the night we only got to race the Gr.3 Corvette once before everyone called it a night. Trying to do three cars in one night is tough with the allotted 2hr for COTW.
 
Its completely up to you guys. Again I don't feel two cars puts a huge strain on time but anymore than that will.

There is always the option of running the McLaren P1 GTR & the McLaren F1 GTR in the same night too.
I feel that might be a better scenario as we might be able to race them against each other.
 
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The McLaren F1

It's probably not the car you had a poster of hanging on your wall. Compared to the other Super Cars of it's day the F1 was kinda the ulgy duckling of the bunch. But its looks had an important function and that was to be first production car to go above the 200 mph mark. A remarkable milestone for it's time.

The F1 had a bunch of first for a production car. The first car to have an all carbon fiber body ( why they painted it is beyond me), the first car to use magnesium and titanium through out, the first car where the driver sits in the middle of the cockpit. All this contributed to it passing the 200 mph mark.
Yes I know none of that seems exciting anymore as almost every automaker has a production car now that goes well above 200 mph and all those exotic material are such common place today. But back then it was all new and unheard of on a production car..hell it was even uncommon on most race cars of that time. The one million dollar price tag was also a first for any new production car.
The McLaren F1 had so much cutting edge technology at once that no other new Supercar has really matched that level since.

So how well does this iconic Supercar hold up in GTS?
Well I have to agree with @MidFieldMaven on this one. The McLaren F1 is not a beater and it's not a Sleeper its just plain awesome and it's also the fastest car in the N-600 class.
But It does have its flaws like braking & understeer that make it hard to control especially around others.
She might not be the prettiest girl at the dance or the one with the most finesse but she will still rock your world after all these years.

I'm calling this one neutral

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Before I do my McLaren F1 write up, I figured I oughta reveal what I been up to and why I asked you all for colours and numbers!!

Well, here's my idea. Matching liveries for the Ford Mustang Gr.3!!! My inspiration was the LM racecars of days gone by in GT, which often had multiple colour options but the same livery. Well this is the same thing!! The same livery, but personalised for each driver to give that one-make race look to our battles!

Here's a 360 of my one to see what the livery looks like in general:


And now for the individual variants!!

Firstly, mine.
IMG_20190310_173134.jpg


@Vic Reign93
IMG_20190310_174333.jpg


@Rinsky
IMG_20190310_174346.jpg


@Racer283
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@JackRyanWMU
IMG_20190310_174340.jpg


@Draggon
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@MrWaflz55
IMG_20190310_180042.jpg


@Soyuz 77
IMG_20190310_180052.jpg


@Baron Blitz Red
IMG_20190310_180057.jpg


So, what do you all think? If you guys like them, then I'll share them so you can all don them when we race the Gr.3 Mustang, whenever that is (hopefully in the near future).

Also I can still whip one up for @RobboGTAddict once he lets me know his choice of colour and number.
 
The McLaren F1 is one of my all time favorites. From the seating position, perfect weight balance.. ugh. Just a spectacular car. Mr. Beans had one. That should say it all.
Ayrton Senna had a major hand in the development of this beaut (hence the name F1). Hands down one of the top 10 cars ever made. It set the tone for supercars 20 years before "supercars" became a thing.

Perhaps I'm biased.
 
It set the tone for supercars 20 years before "supercars" became a thing.

I agree, but think Hypercars is the better word to use here. Supercars have been around for as long as there have been cars. The Merc 300SL was the supercar of its day. The Porsche 911, Lamborghini Countach, Ford Gt40 and Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R all also come to mind, being all-dominating supercars from their respective time periods.

But the F1 was the first car to really break what was previously possible, and as such I reckon it was the first real hypercar.
 
The McLaren F1 is one of my all time favorites. From the seating position, perfect weight balance.. ugh. Just a spectacular car. Mr. Beans had one. That should say it all.
Ayrton Senna had a major hand in the development of this beaut (hence the name F1). Hands down one of the top 10 cars ever made. It set the tone for supercars 20 years before "supercars" became a thing.

Perhaps I'm biased.

Nah. Not even a bit controversial. The F1 is the greatest of all time, always will be, will never be topped. Like a lot of things in our hobby, there's a once in a lifetime car and this is it.

I think the greatest indictment of our society is they struggled to sell 64 of these things and yet today a million dollar supercar isnt nothing special.

Its one of those cars that's a conglomeration of everyone at the top of their game.

I do get that there's stories of $50,000 tyre changes and the like and $150k major services but this is the price of owning the ultimate.

In the game the car is just crushingly dominating in every classification. From N500 to N900 it smashes everything.

I prefer it around 540hp N500... its nicely balanced and yet there's communcation when its just about to go over the edge.

I got mine for free and I tend to not use it when I'm called to because its just that good.

Also the race versions... just about every version from short to longtail is an iconic piece of history... we all know what they look like.
 
I don't know what to say about the McLaren F1.......

Maybe it's just me, but I think it has a huge understeer problem. Add the great rear grip it has, and applying a decent amount of power before the corner exit lifts the front end and sends it to the outside of the turn. I found myself thinking of putting harder tires on the rear to get it balanced. I wonder if the real car has this problem. Maybe it just needs to be flung into the turns.

Anyway I give it a neutral rating because it's a McLaren :D

Announcement at Atopolis! Harrod's has graciously allowed Uneo Clinic to open a kiosk just inside the gentlemen's lounge 👍

6998696144455860244_0.jpg
 
Did a 07.09.563 with it on the Nordschleife. What an unbelievable car this is. Built in 94 and faster than most modern supercars, actually faster, than all of them. Only hypercars can give it a run for its money. Also, its handling is just ssssuuuperb! It's just really so easy to move at the limit and to improve slightly lap by lap, it all goes so natural! Just an absolutely fantastic car!

Verdict: If there's ever been a sleaper, than it's this one!
 
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Did a 07.09.563 with it on the Nordschleife. What an unbelievable car this is. Built in 94 and faster than most modern supercars, actually faster, than all of them. Only hypercars can give it a run for its money. Also, its handling is just ssssuuuperb! It's just really so easy to move at the limit and to improve slightly lap by lap, it all goes so natural! Just an absolutely fantastic car!

Verdict: If there's ever been a beater, than it's this one!
Just so you understand the context we use here. Beaters are the bad cars (as in "Beat it, ya pile of garbage!") Sleepers are the good cars, because... Well that's just how it's been here since GT5.
 
I don't know what to say about the McLaren F1.......

Maybe it's just me, but I think it has a huge understeer problem. Add the great rear grip it has, and applying a decent amount of power before the corner exit lifts the front end and sends it to the outside of the turn. I found myself thinking of putting harder tires on the rear to get it balanced. I wonder if the real car has this problem. Maybe it just needs to be flung into the turns.



Anyway I give it a neutral rating because it's a McLaren :D

Announcement at Atopolis! Harrod's has graciously allowed Uneo Clinic to open a kiosk just inside the gentlemen's lounge 👍

6998696144455860244_0.jpg

Don't forget that using an automatic transmission contributes to the understeer problems. When using a manual transmission the car will rotate through the corners much much better than auto.
I use the automatic transmission also on the DS4 but all that is about to change in the next few days.


Before I do my McLaren F1 write up, I figured I oughta reveal what I been up to and why I asked you all for colours and numbers!!

Well, here's my idea. Matching liveries for the Ford Mustang Gr.3!!! My inspiration was the LM racecars of days gone by in GT, which often had multiple colour options but the same livery. Well this is the same thing!! The same livery, but personalised for each driver to give that one-make race look to our battles!

Here's a 360 of my one to see what the livery looks like in general:


And now for the individual variants!!

Firstly, mine.
View attachment 805309

@Vic Reign93
View attachment 805305

@Rinsky
View attachment 805306

@Racer283
View attachment 805307

@JackRyanWMU
View attachment 805308

@Draggon
View attachment 805310

@MrWaflz55
View attachment 805311

@Soyuz 77
View attachment 805313

@Baron Blitz Red
View attachment 805312

So, what do you all think? If you guys like them, then I'll share them so you can all don them when we race the Gr.3 Mustang, whenever that is (hopefully in the near future).

Also I can still whip one up for @RobboGTAddict once he lets me know his choice of colour and number.


I like them alot...nice work.
 
Don't forget that using an automatic transmission contributes to the understeer problems.

I've been using a manual trans with the DS4 for a few weeks now. It helps the McLaren a lot, but it's still a difficult car for me.
 
I've been using a manual trans with the DS4 for a few weeks now. It helps the McLaren a lot, but it's still a difficult car for me.

I could have sworn you said that you were using an auto trans the night we raced the F1 like I was.
Sorry my bad.
 
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The Legendary McLaren F1


Okay, don't think for a second that I don't love the McLaren F1. I adore it. It's timeless, it's hyper fast and ultra exclusive. It's ticks all the boxes in that regard! However, as demonstrated in this week's racing, it's not a race car as such.

In a straight line it's unbeatable (until you introduce newer, modern rivals), which is 90% of it's claim to fame anyway. But it just doesn't stack up in other fields of performance. For a car that weighs in at around 1100kg, braking is unacceptably bad, and I highly doubt the teeny pop up spoiler does much to help that. It also feels very slow to turn, considering I had a better handling experience in the F50, which is saying something!

Granted, if the track is wide, flowing, and open enough, you could have a great time! But if you choose to race around Bathurst, or Tokyo, you're in for a difficult time (And an expensive repair bill!) Luckily the F1 GTR is a much more pleasant package, with significantly nerfed top speed, but improved handling. But we'll talk more about that if/when it gets chosen... :D

Verdict: Beautiful, fast, but not one I'd drive all the time. Neutral.


Also, I'm uploading my race footage, but publishing it gradually over the week, rather than one big dump of 9 videos.
 
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Livery by TT_merkz
If you are a car person, you'll never forget the cars that were icons when you were young. And if you came of age during the '90s, you were more than likely aware of the McLaren F1. The same things that made it distinctive back then still make it eye-catching and iconic today. Whether its the unmistakable styling, the center seating position, the early example of active aerodynamics in a road car, or just the blisteringly high top speed for a car of its age; the F1 is absolutely unique to anything else produced in its day.

That said, when you drive it there are reminders that the mid-Nineties were 25 years ago, even if it's difficult to accept it as a fact. On paper, a 600 horsepower mid-engine car at 2500 Pounds should be a cornering maestro, but the McLaren was surprisingly reluctant to turn into a corner even when shod with the most adhesive of street legal rubber.

6dqKQBv.jpg

This likely isn't so much a problem with the car itself, but its age. When I tested the McLaren 650S against the F1, the newer car felt far more eager around the curves despite weighing 400 pounds heavier. Perhaps it's because of wider tires, more aggressive active aero, or just a general improvement in technology over two decades and a half. The McLaren F1 is no Beater, but with its younger siblings able to achieve similar, if not better performance at a smaller price tag; it's difficult to recommend buying the F1 unless you absolutely have to have it.

 
McLaren F1 is the 4th fastest N-class car in the game at Tsukuba, behind the Veyron, LaFerrari, and Veneno. Now I haven't tested the Huayra or Vulcan, so I can't set that in stone just yet. It's a whole second faster than the 650S though and nearly 2 seconds quicker than the F50. I'm hearing a lot of "the F1 can't brake or turn" but honestly it was one of the best-driving super/hyper cars I've experienced once I got used to it.
 
I'm hearing a lot of "the F1 can't brake or turn" but honestly it was one of the best-driving super/hyper cars I've experienced once I got used to it.

Yeah with practise it's driveable, but the main thing about the Tuesday nights is you only really get a few laps to practise on each track, and sometimes it's just not enough to prepare yourself properly.
 
So that means things kick off an hour earlier, right? It's 10am over here, still a bit too early for me to brain right.
 

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