Car of the Week 228: COTY GTS Finale

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Do you guys who do write ups know anything about the platform you're writing about in real life or just in the context of a game?
You’re on an internet forum based around a video game. I don’t think anyone here cares about the real life performance of the car, nor would they have any reason to. Get over it.
 
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Hey! Just wanted to let you all know that the Mazda is coming to Car of the Week really soon, like really really soon. It’s urgent if you still want a cup car livery to contact me as soon as possible.

@RobboGTAddict you can download yours here or through my profile on GTS.

https://www.gran-turismo.com/gb/gts...lery/all/livery/1204631/1/7070660224556729889

For those of you who are lacking one, I’ve copied and pasted the order form for the livery below. Please take the time to fill it out so we can all look snazzily-dressed on Tuesday. I want to roll these out ASAP because there’s only a couple days left.

PSN ID: [Insert PSN ID here]
Primary Colour: [Colour here]
Stripe 1 Colour: [Colour here]
Stripe 2 Colour: [Colour here]
Secondary Colour: [Colour here]
Tire Manufacturer: [Tire preference]
Rim Style: [Brief description. I.E. Centre-locking, BBS etc.]
Racing Number: [number here]
Accent Colour: [Colour on splitter, mirrors, etc.]
Toppings: [Personalized touches, etc. (Anime girls? Why the frig not?)]
 
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I can't copy the link here using my tablet, but the video of my real life drive in a Ferrari 488 is up on my YouTube channel! (See my signature.)

But wait, wasn't I supposed to drive a Corvette? Well, that's a story I'll tell when I get home from vacation and have access to a keyboard instead of a touchscreen. For now, check out the video and watch a former race car driver tell me go faster a lot. :P
 
I think the last car I posted my two cents' on was the Toyota S800, so I'll work forwards from there.

Without further ado, here's

Nate's 10 words or less reviews!!!

Ferrari 458 Gr.4 - Gorgeous noise, with looks to match. That engine bay is arousing!!

Porsche 911 Turbo 930 - It's not called the Widowmaker for nothing I assure you!

Ford F150 Raptor - I actually really liked this one. Epic racing with @RobboGTAddict!

Z28 Camaro - Iconic, tail happy, but lacking a bit of extra grunt.

BMW i3 - Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!

Merc AMG - Usual supercar problems. Too heavy, handling is average. Fast though!

Merc AMG GT3 - Literally all the road cars problems are solved right here!

Dallara SF19 - If F1 cars actually raced instead of single file driving.

Mitsubishi GTO - I have feelings for this car despite obvious performance problems.

Right, I'll try my best to do a proper review for the Mazda!!
 
“A Gran Time”

Racing is always better in good company!​

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The post above is what I posted to my profile/race photo gallery immediately following the races. That was honesty one of the best nights of racing I’ve had on this game. I’m so glad everyone enjoyed my liveries and thanks to everyone who participated because every single person contributed to making this night special. From my opening battle with @Nismonath5 and @Vic Reign93 at Alsace, to the weird multi-class micro endurance. Every moment of this night is something I haven’t gotten out of a racing game in some time.

Again, thank you everyone for the races and I can’t wait to see all the videos of the battles I couldn’t see either from the front or back of the pack!
 
Thanks mate! I'll try it out sometime.
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I think the last car I posted my two cents' on was the Toyota S800, so I'll work forwards from there.

Without further ado, here's

Nate's 10 words or less reviews!!!

Ferrari 458 Gr.4 - Gorgeous noise, with looks to match. That engine bay is arousing!!

Porsche 911 Turbo 930 - It's not called the Widowmaker for nothing I assure you!

Ford F150 Raptor - I actually really liked this one. Epic racing with @RobboGTAddict!

Z28 Camaro - Iconic, tail happy, but lacking a bit of extra grunt.

BMW i3 - Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!

Merc AMG - Usual supercar problems. Too heavy, handling is average. Fast though!

Merc AMG GT3 - Literally all the road cars problems are solved right here!

Dallara SF19 - If F1 cars actually raced instead of single file driving.

Mitsubishi GTO - I have feelings for this car despite obvious performance problems.

Right, I'll try my best to do a proper review for the Mazda!!

I LOATHED the GTO when it dropped having had a second generation one with the 6 speed and more power, it was probably one of my favorite cars I've owned, but it's grown on me as well. It's beastly in its own way, strong turbo thrust, just geared terribly long. Playing with the gearing does wonders. I still don't know why they would choose this car over the iconic and rare 1999 US model, but whatever.
 
I quite like the Mazda 6 GT3... however there are a few downsides... the 3rd gear does sit with the turbo power coming in and you can loop it if you're heavy on the throttle.

The car also doesnt seem to be all that economical given that I thought a turbo 2.5 would seem great on fuel. It turns out you need a lot of boost to make 600hp on a 2.5 four. It however easy on tyres.

Otherwise a very middle of the road car besides these few downsides.
 
You’re on an internet forum based around a video game. I don’t think anyone here cares about the real life performance of the car, nor would they have any reason to. Get over it.
Wouldn't you want your car or a car you like to feel like it's the car you owned, sound like it, accelerate like it. It's just frustrating, but i can pick up GT5 anytime and get the second generation one and have fun
 
Wouldn't you want your car or a car you like to feel like it's the car you owned, sound like it, accelerate like it. It's just frustrating, but i can pick up GT5 anytime and get the second generation one and have fun

I have to agree with you on that point. I drove a modified VW bug for many years. Back in GT6, I found a great tune--as soon as I hit the track, it felt just like my old car. That was an awesome moment.

Anyway, following @Nismonath5 's quickie reviews....

I really enjoyed the Ford Raptor. It might not be fast, but it handles well and provided some great racing. Give it a try at N500 and use BOP for a big weight drop. It can beat the Porsches in the custom races. Sleeper!

The Z28 is one of the best handling old cars in the game. Sounds great too. It's much better than the new Ferrari 365 GTB/4. Go figure. It's a sleeper for sure!

The BMW I3 would have great potential if we could adjust the dam gearbox. That, plus being Gr.X relegates it to the beater bin.

As for the Merc AMG, the Safety Car is better than the normal version. I discovered this when I put a tune up on the Safety Car, yet I couldn't put the same settings on the normal one. Beater.

I had only 60 miles on the Merc GT3 before race night. Surprised how nice it is. Not quite as good as the BMW M3 GT or the McLaren F1. I'm undecided how to rate it.

Regarding the Atenza Gr. 3, I probably shouldn't review Gr. 3 cars at all. My skills have deteriorated since I quit Sport races last year. I'm having a tough time with them, and I expect it's more me than the car. That being said, comparing the Mazda to the Mustang we drove awhile back, it's much better. And the liveries @MrWaflz55 did up were great, so I can't give it a negative rating because we had so much fun. I :cheers:
 
I have to agree with you on that point. I drove a modified VW bug for many years. Back in GT6, I found a great tune--as soon as I hit the track, it felt just like my old car. That was an awesome moment.

Anyway, following @Nismonath5 's quickie reviews....

I really enjoyed the Ford Raptor. It might not be fast, but it handles well and provided some great racing. Give it a try at N500 and use BOP for a big weight drop. It can beat the Porsches in the custom races. Sleeper!

The Z28 is one of the best handling old cars in the game. Sounds great too. It's much better than the new Ferrari 365 GTB/4. Go figure. It's a sleeper for sure!

The BMW I3 would have great potential if we could adjust the dam gearbox. That, plus being Gr.X relegates it to the beater bin.

As for the Merc AMG, the Safety Car is better than the normal version. I discovered this when I put a tune up on the Safety Car, yet I couldn't put the same settings on the normal one. Beater.

I had only 60 miles on the Merc GT3 before race night. Surprised how nice it is. Not quite as good as the BMW M3 GT or the McLaren F1. I'm undecided how to rate it.

Regarding the Atenza Gr. 3, I probably shouldn't review Gr. 3 cars at all. My skills have deteriorated since I quit Sport races last year. I'm having a tough time with them, and I expect it's more me than the car. That being said, comparing the Mazda to the Mustang we drove awhile back, it's much better. And the liveries @MrWaflz55 did up were great, so I can't give it a negative rating because we had so much fun. I :cheers:
Agreed about the Z28. The Atenza fascinates me because it's acceleration rating is 5.2! It is a quick little thing, but the rating system of PD is off sometimes lol. Its got middling acceleration, but I like how it handles. At the same time it was forgettable. I wanted to like it more than I did.
 
Mazda Atenza Gr.3 Review: Big Choncc or Big Bonk?

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The Mazda 6, also known as the Atenza if you use pictures for letters, is a full-sized sedan produced by the Japanese Mazda motoring company. The base Atenza features lots of leather, a decently powerful Skyactiv four-pot, AWD, a smooth automatic transmission and a rear-facing camera. That all sounds wonderful for the average driver, but for a racer, just about the only thing on that list which remains is the camera.

The leather has been replaced with a frankly unhealthy amount of carbon fibre parts, the windows have been removed and replaced with bodywork. The engine has been swapped for a race-tuned unit that spits flames, the AWD has been removed completely and the automatic transmission has been replaced with a six-speed racing unit. All this combines to create quite an imposing silhouette compared to the road model. It hardly looks like the same car when all is said and done.

Now on the track all this go-fast wizardry has combined to form a car which is incredible to drive. If one buzz-word could be used to describe the entire experience, it would be “flat.” Not flat as in boring, flat as in this car produces absolutely no drama whatsoever when being driven. It’s almost as if the designers took a page from Brabham and installed a little shop-vac in the rear to suck the car to the ground. The best part is it does that entirely on its own. It may look like a portly boy, but the Atenza’s size is not at all reflective of it’s quality handling setup.

If you want to race a car in GT Sport that really lets you focus on the race at hand rather than wrestling your car for superiority at every corner, this is the one for you. Unfortunately it does suffer from some issues, particularly on the straights where it looses out to many other Group 3 machines. But this car makes up for in consistency what it lacks in raw pace.

So is this car competitive in Group 3? If you look at top split, probably not. However, just about any car in Group 3 can be competitive in the class as long as the driver using it is skilled enough compared to the competition. This means that the Mazda is still an excellent choice for anybody looking for a Group 3 car that has predictable and stable handling that is easy to get into a racing groove with.

For these reasons, I award the Mazda Gr.3 with the title of:

Dummy Thicc
 
The Gr.3 Underdog?

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Not my first choice for a GT3 machine, I'll be honest...

The Mazda Atenza Gr.3. My first thought of this car was "Why on earth did Mazda pick an Atenza to turn into a GT3 car?". My immediate second thought was "Well, what else could they have used?" The RX-8 is dead, the MX-5 is too small, and frankly I can't imagine a Mazda CX-5 anywhere near a racetrack. Also, the regular Atenza is a diesel car, so does that mean that this is a diesel GT3 car? I'm not sure if that's in the regulations or not...
Trivial nitpicking aside, this is the model we're stuck with!

Like most in the Gr.3 class, the Atenza boasts significantly superior handling, speed and acceleration to it's road going form. It's wider, with the beautiful aero kit, nice smooth lines, and menacing racecar look. @MrWaflz55 's liveries only makes it look better! It's also very easy to drive. Probably best seen as a beginner's car for Gr.3 racing, it's not as brutal as a McLaren, not as quick as a Mercedes but at the same time you won't fall way off the pace in one either. I wouldn't exactly recommend racing for Mazda in the Manufacturer series, though. Daily races knock yourself out, but as far as serious competition it's just not that car. For me at least. Our night's racing in it was pretty fun! With only a few oversteer-y moments, the Atenza was great fun to do battle in, with plenty of action from a wide variety of drivers. It's a pleasant car racing for fun and the occasional time trial, but personally I wouldn't do any serious racing in it.

Verdict? Sleeper. It's not the king of Gr.3, but you can still get some better-than-average results from it.
Also, here's some vids from weeks gone by



 
This game is funny in that its happy to spam me a heap of say Toyota 86s I dont need but it wont ever give me a Citroen GT road so I'm using the one I bought.

Its a winning car in 400/500. It has its slight handling quirks in that it will get unstable if you push it too hard but overall it has high cornering speeds, predicatable chassis and you can recover if you push it too hard. Decent power from the Ford V8 (??) and the 7 speed box is plenty of gears.

The GT3 I've only suffered thru the challenges which is horrible. I've only driven the GT3 in a few races and it didnt leave and impression besides the terrible dash view/visibilty.
 
This game is funny in that its happy to spam me a heap of say Toyota 86s I dont need but it wont ever give me a Citroen GT road so I'm using the one I bought.

Its a winning car in 400/500. It has its slight handling quirks in that it will get unstable if you push it too hard but overall it has high cornering speeds, predicatable chassis and you can recover if you push it too hard. Decent power from the Ford V8 (??) and the 7 speed box is plenty of gears.

The GT3 I've only suffered thru the challenges which is horrible. I've only driven the GT3 in a few races and it didnt leave and impression besides the terrible dash view/visibilty.
So true. Lovely car though. What's the next COTW? I nominate the Toyota Supra GT A 1989, a legend in it's own right, it ran with the GTRs back in the day.
 
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