Italian Avant Garde - C12S

  • Thread starter Der Alta
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Der Alta

Der Alta

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DerAlta
Italian Avant Garde

This race was run after I reached 100%. Refer to the "to do list" on my compendium for races that I decided to rerun.

Rome Circuit
10 laps

I used a Zonda C12S.

Car Setup:
Full Racing Suspension
Sports brakes
Brake Balance controller
Stage 3 NA tune-up
Engine Balancing
Racing Transmission
Triple plate clutch
Racing Flywheel
Full LSD
T4 tires
Stage 1 lightweight

Settings:
Springs: 12.6/13.1
Ride height: 53/62
Shock Bound: 5/6
Shock Rebound: 7/8
Camber 3.0/1.9
Toe: 2.0/-2.0
Stabilizers: 4/5
Brakes: 16/17
LSD: 7/18/11
Final Drive: 3.429
Auto Setting: Level 37
Down Force: 0.29/0.58
ASM = 0; TCS = 1

I’m turning 965 hp.

I qualified in first place with a 1’20.LOW. I didn’t write it down, as I was just in the testing phase.This can be a tough run, and I thought that I’d have to take more runs at it. The wife was on the phone with her mom, so I figured I had 15 minutes to spare.

I battled with the AI for about two laps, and then stretched my lead far enough out to avoid them for the remainder of the race.

Results:
Best lap: 1’18.867
Total Time: 13’41.004
Average lap: 1’22.100
AI Average lap: 1’24.271

Zonda Race car: + 21.709 (pitted lap 8)
Zonda Race car: + 27.759 (pitted lap 9)
Zonda Race car: + 27.780 (pitted lap 9)
Zonda Race car: + 28.598 (pitted lap 9)
Zonda Race car: + 29.901 (pitted lap 9)

I did not pit.

Rome Circuit II
10 laps

I used the same Zonda C12S.

Car Setup:
Same setup: with the exception of switching to T3 tires. I can manage this race with T4’s but I know I’ll have to nurse the last lap. Rumor also has it that the AI won’t pit this race. So I’ll have to be a bit more stringent with regards to the tire wear. I could have opted for the other way, and planned a pit stop, using T6 tires. They would have worn out in 5 laps, but given me a faster time to accommodate the pit stop. I’ll err on the safe side to not have to pit.

I qualified on the pole with a 1’20.582. Warm up lap, then a qualifying lap.

Results:
Best lap: 1’19.997
Total Time: 13’37.694
Average lap: 1'21.769
AI Average lap: 1'23.497

Zonda Race car: + 17.274
Zonda Race car: + 20.010
Zonda Race car: + 21.886
Zonda Race car: + 22.036
Zonda Race car: + 22.256

Nobody took a pit stop.

Thoughts:
With the Zonda, you have to hit the brakes in a straight line.Any derivation from this method results in an out of control slide, severely extending your braking distance and most assuredly resulting in a wall slam. Proper use of the throttle is absolute key here. You simply cannot slam the throttle down, but rather caress it as you exit the turn. Hammering on the throttle sets the rear of the car in an outward motion, not conducive to proper acceleration or tire wear. As it was, I had to nurse my tires through the final lap of the first race, resulting in a 1’25+ lap.

The AI are not exceptionally good drivers in this race, but once in the lead, you need to know your braking points. Your braking points are the key to winning this race.You can oops the throttle control, as it takes only a few moments to correct. If you oops the braking points, you bang the wall, destroying any momentum you had. Carrying momentum through the back corners, results in a far greater speed down the back stretch which is where you will pull away from the AI. Here is the secret to braking in the Zonda.Hit the brakes three times sooner than you think you need to and do it in a straight line. This car has rice pudding for brakes, and the backend will slide out every chance it gets.

Good luck

AO
 
That series was...unpleasant. I wish i had checked out these tips before i did it. Getting smacked around by Zonda Race Cars as I brake for a turn seemingly a full lap ahead of time in my C12S was very frustrating. Plus in the first race they all pit, giving me an edge. I expected the same in the second. On the final stretch of lap 9 I realized that wasn't gonna happen and I made a desperate run from third place eight seconds behind the leader to first .8XX seconds ahead at the line. I basically rode the walls and the second place car rather than actually attempting to turn...and the sick part is that it was faster! I'm glad I beat it because if I had to do it more than once I would go crazy. Good luck to anyone who attempts this series in a C12S!
 
that's true. with the C12S the braking problem is worse. but it was a good, challenging race and those are the best.
 
I had so mcuh trouble doing the avante grade, the C12S had such bad turning and braking, but eventually I beat it!
 
Hey, this would be my first post here but I will probably post more after a while.

Anyways her is what I did. I upgraded my C12s until you are at max hp and slap on a pair of Super Sick Tires. Then widen the gears to the max and go racing. I ran the wall the whole time and lapped the CPU twice. It was prbably the easiest race I ave ever done. Don't expect to waist them off the start though.
 
Well, it's probably the easiest race you've ever done, because you didn't actually do it. It sounds like you used your thumb instead of a rubber band, and that's it. You missed some fun and challenging races by taking that way out.

Rome II - 10 laps

I ran this race first, since I knew from Der Alta's writeup that the field wouldn't pit in this one. I figured if I could tweak the street Zonda to beat this race, then the clockwise race would be easy. Taking the prize C12s, I added the following:

Full race suspension (no point in doing less)
Sport brakes with brake balancer
N/A 1 tuning
Engine balancing
Chip
Full race transmission and LSD (again, no point in doing less)
3-plate clutch and race flywheel
Lightweight 1
T4 tires

This gave me 682 horsepower and a small weight advantage over the field of racecars, but of course the street car lacks downforce compared to the racers. That soon became apparent, as even with the car dialed in, the racecars outcornered me severely on the high-speed turns like the last turn and the 2 doglegs on the back side of the course. However, I did enjoy a midrange acceleration advantage.

I sorted the car out during qualifying, with ASM at zero and TCS at 1. The T4 tires had a usable life of 10 laps, if I was careful, meaning I could run without a pit. I took second on the grid with a 1':21.667", 0.010" behind the pole on my fastest lap to date. After some final setting adjustments, I started the race.

I grabbed the lead at the launch, but immediately fell back to third while negotiating for Turn 1 on cold tires. However, I regained 2nd on the back straight, and took the lead in the Downtown section of the first lap. The tires came online during the second lap, and the third time was a charm for me, as I widened my lead to 5+ seconds. After overdriving the next few laps, however, I briefly lost the lead in the short chute between turns 1 and 2 of lap 6, but regained it immediately. As expected, nobody pitted, and I finished first with a reasonable if not huge margin. The tires were all orange, with the outside front starting toward red.

Margin: +3.038" - +7.635", Zonda racecars
Total Time: 13':53.382"
Fast Lap: 1':20.493"
Average Lap: 1':23.338"

Rome - 10 laps

I went back to the first race in the same car, with the same setup. Knowing I could make it without pitting, I started from 6th on the grid without qualifying or practice. Either they were on softer tires or they were more aggressive (knowing they would pit), but this time I had no acceleration advantage over the field. They left me at the start, so I concentrated on driving cleanly and let the track position take care of itself. After catching the lagging 5th place driver on lap 3, I passed for 4th at the Coliseum on lap 6. Still working on clean driving, I caught up to the front runners at the beginning of lap 9, and picked them off one by one between the Coliseum turns and through the Downtown section. I had a 1.5" lead by the end of the third quadrant on that lap.

I was beginning to think they weren't going to pit after all, when the whole field went in at the end of lap 9. The 6th place car may have pitted on 8, but I'm not sure. Rather than roast my tires, I took a fairly gentle last lap, crossing the finish line with a large margin and light to medium orange tires. My fast lap this race was not nearly as fast as the reverse, but my lap times were much more consistent.

Margin: +15.657" - +20.693", Zonda racecars
Total Time: 13':51.462"
Fast Lap: 1':21.115"
Average Lap: 1':23.164"

This grosses me 60,000cr and a Zonda racecar, which is luckily not redundant since I decided to take the Autobacs MR-S earlier. I don't know if I'll ever use the black Zonda, but it at least gives me an alternative to the Legion of Japanese Wondercars.
 
No, I never did. You should be able to cream them, especially if you don't pit. The C12s (built up this way) was a little faster in the straights, but much slower in all but the tightest turns. In any medium or fast turns the racecars were a lot quicker.
 
I ran the series in a C12S tuned to only 682 HP. Controlling it on Super Slick tires sucks for 3-4 laps until the tires come in.;) Of course i won both races because of my 1337 sk1llz at GT3.:lol:
 
Yeah, that's the power I was making. Like you say, it's rough when the tires are cold. Rome is pretty easy on tires, too, so it took a while for them to heat cycle.
 

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