Diablo Series / Race #5

[Old Geezer]

Episode Five
"The Devil On the Hill"

Race #5:
Pro/ All Japan GT Championship / Apricot Hill Raceway (20 Laps)

Tire Specs: T2s ONLY!
Pit Stop(s): FOUR Stops are MANDATORY !!!
Denso Sard Supra MUST be in the Field
NO Pit Sops on Lap #20 Allowed !

Results due at 12:00 Midnight CST / 17 December 03


This Week's Challenge features MUCH BETTER "AI" driving than in Week #3 + No Cliffs or "Armaco Tunnels" !!! The HP they're packin' however varies between 775 & 780! (and BEWARE, this course EATS Right Front Tires!!!) I've run this "Sucker" 10 times already tryin' to find us a better race. Have tried every tire/pit combo I could imagine EXCEPT T8s!!! I would have given anything to find a "Soft Tire Combo" as recommended by both GT3mich & Der Alta but just could NOT find one that worked. Have FUN & stay outta the "Sand Traps" 👍...UB57

BTW: Most of my "Good Runs" on this course included at least one "Get Off" (legal by the Rules) so don't "Give Up" an otherwise great run cause you blew Turn #1 like I'm so Fond of doing!!!

 

[GT3mich]

Well thanks a lot UB! Now I have to find more cash!! When I told my pit crew we had to make 4 stops in a 20 lap race they demanded more money! four stops..... There will be no slowing us down
Why not make us sit at the start line until we get passed and then let us decide a pit strategy.

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by GT3mich
Why not make us sit at the start line until we get passed and then let us decide a pit strategy.

Funny you should say that GT3mich:
There's a Race I REALLY want us to run as Week #6 & I've been condsidering doing exactly what you've suggested to make it a better race!!! Got Six more days to test it....UB57

 

[Gil]

Originally posted by GT3mich
Well thanks a lot UB! Now I have to find more cash!! When I told my pit crew we had to make 4 stops in a 20 lap race they demanded more money! four stops..... There will be no slowing us down
Why not make us sit at the start line until we get passed and then let us decide a pit strategy.

You just had to go giving him ideas, din't you?!!!

 

[GT3mich]

Can we go back to our original Diablo for this run?

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by GT3mich
Can we go back to our original Diablo for this run?

You Bet!!! 👍
The "Special" was only to "Fool" the Game so we could run at Rome...UB57

 

[GT3mich]

I just ran my first race. What is the point of the 4 pit stops. Just wondering..
If those cars are running 775 hp then they should fire the chief mechanic. They are slow.
Fastest race lap was 1:15.6ish I think.
This car is sweet on this track.

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by GT3mich
I just ran my first race. What is the point of the 4 pit stops. Just wondering..

Just tryin' to keep us "In Traffic" but sounds like you're not having a problem beatin' 'em!!! In 3 trys w/T2s - 4 Pit format I only won ONCE! (Actually had a better Race Time finishing 3rd!!!) T7s would have made for even MORE Pit Stops, T6s created a "Blow Out" etc. etc.

Originally posted by GT3mich
Fastest race lap was 1:15.6ish I think.
This car is sweet on this track.

Good Lap time!👍 Best I've managed is a 1'15.916 & I must agree the Diablo is a "Dream" on this track!!!...UB57

 

[GT3mich]

That was why I left out my MOV. Can't show all my cards at once can I.

 

[slowpoke]

I ran the race a few times this evening. The first time I pitted every 5 laps. After all, 20 divided by the 4 stops required is every 5 laps, right? Nope, ya dope!

Pitting every 4 laps is a real pain in the rear! Just get the tires warmed up and it's time to pit again. No chance to establish any kind of rythem. It would have been much more fun to have t6's or t7's and run 'em as far as we could IMHO, but thems the breaks. Hopefully the weekend will give me more time to work on this one, I'm not very happy with the settup so far .

 

[Gil]

By the Way, this four stops bidness is a bit much Bob.
I've not had the wherewithal to run a full twenty laps yet, but I have the dream line up scoped.
I wanna get the Denso, and Castrol, and all the GT-Rs.

I would like to know how the GT-R's can be so fast in our hands, and so slow with the AI.
But hey, I'll use it to my advantage.

 

[Der Alta]

First race done. NOt exactly what I'd call sticking with the AI. Needless to say I was battling for 5th palce once after that I was well out in last place. MOV for this one was in the 22second range. For the AI. I swept up tha last place position.

Maybe it's my settings, but not likely. I'm feeling pretty good. The pit stop schedule is brutal. According to the rules, I can pit on lap 1,2,3 and 4? Then finally get my tired into the green/yellow stage?

As planned, I'll get two more chances at this, so I might manage a 6th place finish.

AO

 

[slowpoke]

Just curious, what's the point on insisting the Denso be in the field? In the race I just completed he finished 4th behind 2 NSX's

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by slowpoke
Just curious, what's the point on insisting the Denso be in the field? In the race I just completed he finished 4th behind 2 NSX's

Whoa!!
slowpoke finds another wierd "AI" combo! EVERY Time I tested the "Denso" was the Fast "AI." Go figure!!! ...UB57

 

[Der Alta]

In my race, he didn't finish all that well either. I don't recall where he finished, but I do know it wasn't in first place. Interesting.

AO

 

[Der Alta]

I figured I'd upload this little spreadsheet that I've been workinf from. Nothing exciting, other than somethign to track my races. I usually have to run 3-4 sessions because of a harried schedule. This helps me track my progress.

It's an MS excel spread sheet (Office XP).

AO

 

[slowpoke]

Originally posted by Der Alta
....... According to the rules, I can pit on lap 1,2,3 and 4?....

Now THAT gives me an idea!!

 

[Der Alta]

Well, I tok a new aproach to this. With a suggestion from a little bird, I decided to pit on lap 8. I followed this with a pit on 9, 10 and 11.

I pmroved my MOV by 3+ seconds,and stepped up to 5th place, but placed a 2+ second slower time. I don't think my settings are anywhere close to where they need to be. At medium speeds the car snaps around corner, but at higher speed, I'm getting a bit of wash out. When braking, it's "Straight line or hell breaks loose".

Can I convince someone to offer up their settings to see if they perform better?

More to come.

AO

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by slowpoke
Now THAT gives me an idea!!

Sorry, answered Der Alta in a PM & not on the thread. YES!!! Pitting on 1,2,3 & 4 is Legal.
You can even pit on 16, 17, 18 & 19 as long as you DON'T Pit on Lap #20!👍 ...UB57

 

[slowpoke]

Here are the settings I've settled on for this race, they seem to give pretty even tire wear on longer runs, and from the times posted so far, I'm VERY happy with the lap times

SR 10.0/12.0
RH 75/75
SB 8/7
SR 7/8
CA 1.0/1.0
TA 0.0/0.0
ST 3/4

BB 22/20

LSD 20/30/10
AS 24 (I looked this time )
2.600/1.840/1.440/1.170/1.000/0.870//4.100

DF 1.00/1.25
TCS 2

Ya gotta be a lil careful at the first breaking point! Tis better to be too early than too late! Hope this helps

 

[Old Geezer]

Thanx slowpoke: 👍
Sent "Der Alta" one of your older set-ups, (From Rome I think) which was what I used testing Apricot Hill if I remember. Will try your latest set-up & see if I can post a "More Convincing" win! ...UB57

 

[GT3mich]

The key to this race is being able to run fast on cold tires. I was the bird that sent DA a PM. When he posted his results and said he only had a few more chances to run, I thought a little help was needed. Slowpoke's set-up is just about where I'm at except the gearing is a tad different but not by much.
When I was running for the "Numbers" in BCv2 Sly9 told me to be more aggressive in my race and I think it applies here. Attack every corner on every lap to extend your gap before the stops begin.

 

[slowpoke]

I agree with ya there 'Mich, ya gotta attack the turns with this combo. Repeat after me: "The rumble strips are our friends, the RUMBLE strips are our friends!"

THe one nice thing about running the harder compound tires is that they do not change much over the course of a race, there's not a lot of handling differances between the Blues and oranges if you can get that far. I just wish we could scrub them up in our practice sessions

Mich, when you feel comfortable with it, would you please post your gear settup? There are a lot of variations that will work, but I'm just curious about yours'

 

[GT3mich]

My trans isn't much different than yours.
1)2.700
2)1.840
3)1.410
4)1.150
5)0.980
6)0.840
Final->4.300
Auto->24
LSD->5/5/5

Late last night around midnite I decided to roll out the Diablo
for a quick race with your trans numbers and beat my time so I think yours is faster. The one thing about these T2 tires is I'm running 2 seconds faster after they warm up than I can in free run and I managed to grab 1st before I hit the T1 marker last night. I had almost a 5 second lead by the start of lap 2. I may try this a few more times later today.

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by UB57
Thanx slowpoke: 👍
Will try your latest set-up & see if I can post a "More Convincing" win! ...UB57

Well, THAT was Wishful Thinking! Ran this race three more times last night & have yet to post another victory! I have however taken more than Six Seconds off my best "Winning" time & was beaten by the Denso Supra by only 0.327 Seconds Guess the "AI" Combos are much more varied than I thought!

to slowpoke & GT3mich for helping us slower guys with our tuning! ...UB57

 

[GT3mich]

One more important bit of info. I have moved my TCS up from 1 to 3 and seems to have helped. Many of the faster drivers in BCv3 were running with a lot of TCS. Some above 5!

 

[Old Geezer]

Thanx Guys! 👍
Went back to my final set-up from TMR (Mostly "Pokie's"), upped the TCS to "4" & Found 2 more seconds. Managed a "Convincing Win" as well. Don't know why I'm so reluctant to add TCS. Guess I 'd like to "think" I can run without it but adding some almost always helps. Guess it's my slow reflexes & 100% Throttle or 100% Brakes Style of driving.

Know I'll never catch you "Fast Guys" so am off to "test" for Week #6...UB57

 

[Old Geezer]

Hiya Guys: Need some Input!
Race #6 is ALMOST ready & will end December 27th as suggested by several of you.
My question: Do you guys want a race #7? or have we had all the FUN we're going to have with the Diablo? Thanx...UB57

 

[GT3mich]

Can't give up the keys, eh Bob! If you want to run a race 7 its alright with me. Where? I wonder if we can beat the F1 cars at MidField(30 laps and we would need some hacking to get it in)? I wouldn't worry about pit stops for that one. Another good race could be GT All Stars @ GVII 15 laps against the big LM cars.

 

[Old Geezer]

Originally posted by GT3mich
Can't give up the keys, eh Bob! If you want to run a race 7 its alright with me. Where? I wonder if we can beat the F1 cars at MidField(30 laps and we would need some hacking to get it in)? I wouldn't worry about pit stops for that one. Another good race could be GT All Stars @ GVII 15 laps against the big LM cars.

As Always, THANX GT3mich: 👍
I was more worried about everyone's Holiday Schedule. No big deal for me but I realize Christmas/New Years IS a big deal for some. Race #6 will have a "Shocking" New Format!!! AND "Bonus" Points! Be Prepared! ...UB57