Nurburgring Race Series - Grand Final - Ruf CTR "Yellowbird"

[Dave_George]

Hello and welcome to week 17!
The final week of the NRS and maybe the toughest test of all, the Ruf Yellowbird.​

A car that needs no introduction, no voting, nothing. Its legendary status has been re-awoken thanks to GT4 and what better a car to finish off the NRS with.

I contacted Ruf to find out exactly what specs this car came with in 1987 to try and decide how to run this week. Now the "Realism" may not suit everyone, but the emphasis here is on tuning the standard fit sports suspension whilst running what was in its day the fastest car in the world on road tyres.

The Ruf came with an ultra high performance Dunlop Tyre that I believe would amount to an N3 in game, and as such thats what we are running with. We will also be running with 469BHP, the same as standard so that means NO oil change this week.

Here is a car that demands you drive it, a real test of skill and control, and for this we are running a two week session with two races!

The first event will be the usual format "Hotlap" on N3 tyres, submit your best times as usual to me.​

The second event is a two lap race in the "Family cup" section, GTmode/Nurburgring/Family cup
This is to be run with the AI set at +2 difficulty, submit your total time for the two laps, you may discuss your first full laptime if you want, but no discussion of the 2nd laptime or total time please👍

This is the real test, and will carry bonus points, the quickest time getting 10 points, 2nd = 9 points and so on. As is usual in OLR no contact with the AI is allowed, will you be able to strategically pass the AI with zero contact and complete the 2 laps on N3 tyres? The challenge has been set!​

I hope that you will join us in this final event to see the NRS out with a bang, should be a great two weeks im sure

So to recap,

Please use only the following parts on your car :

NO OIL change
NO WEIGHT REDUCTION
N3 tyres
Brake balance controller IS allowed (Non power advantage allowed to help tune cars balance)

Standard OLR rules apply, lets see some of the usual suspects back racing for this one:tup:

Deadline is offically 9PM gmt Monday 13th March.

I would also like at this point to thank all the people who have put time into the race series i created, I have been humbled that my idea found interest for so many of you, I would love to see a record turn out for the final week but i will understand that many of you have moved on and have other commitments, but to those who want to race, bring it on!👍

Let the racing commence

cheers and best regards

David

 

[VTRacing]

Dave, I want to race.

And the Family Cup idea is brilliant, if potentially extremely frustrating.

I just want to say thanks to you for coming up with a great series, it has brought me a great deal of enjoyment (frustration, angst, satisfaction etc.) over the past few months. Thanks also to goixoye for taking up the reins and doing a great job when the series was in trouble.

I apologise for running only when the car appealed, unfortunately I don't enjoy piloting race cars around the ring. It just seems wrong to me, somehow.

But for the final fling around the 'ring, in such an iconic car, with power oversteer on demand and two-hundred-foot drifts into the apex...well, how could I resist?

 

[goixoye]

Dave, nice pics.

I've been looking forward to this for quite awhile now. I think the Family Cup is a brilliant touch too.

I thought this car was most especially difficult to drive on N3s. But in the past week or so I driven a few other cars around the 'Ring shod in N3s and while they're not quite as difficult as the Ruf they are much more difficult to dirve with N tires. The N tires seems to require more pedal modulation ... easing into the brakes ... and easing into full throttle for all cars, not just the Ruf.

I think I'm going to focus more on "simulation" in the future and use N tires more often as it's just plain more challenging and fun. I feel like I've accomplished more when I learn to drive the cars with the N tires (S and R tires seem more "arcade"-like).

I may have over-looked it in the initial post but I believe it was your intent to prohibit the use of driving aids this week? At least the ASM? Personally, I'm driving this 'Bird without any TCS/ASM no matter what the rules are. I'll let my time be whatever it is without worrying about the competitiveness of the said time.

Just getting a clean lap in this thing is a significant achievement...then being able to whittle down the time is really satisfying. For the Family Cup being able to string together 2 clean laps without touching the AI is phenominal...especially since we start with cold N3s.

Well done Dave.

 

[Dr_Watson]

thanks for the series dave... i'll certainly do something this week.

oh, and if no oil change... what do you have to do when the car looses a bunch of hp 150-200 miles down the road. reset the console? pretty anoying proposition no?

 

[holl01]

oh wicked! i have never driven a multi lap race at the nurburgring b4, and u certainly have delivered a huge challenge with N3 tires aswell

 

[Dave_George]

thanks for the series dave... i'll certainly do something this week.

oh, and if no oil change... what do you have to do when the car looses a bunch of hp 150-200 miles down the road. reset the console? pretty anoying proposition no?

I would set B spec to win another YB i think and start with a fresh motor, its only 3 quick races to aquire the YB.

regards

David

 

[goixoye]

Actually without the oil change I think the HP stays constant. With an oil change I think the HP would decrease only down to the original value. I also think somebody somewhere did some research on HP and the various different values (replay HP vs garage HP etc) and their relativity to the oil change.

 

[holl01]

yeah the car levels out at 469, had a quick half hour session but failed to finish a lap

r we allowed to adjust suspension settings

if so i used

110/110
10/10
.7/.8

i pulled the camber figures out of my arse, i dont know if that works or not

 

[zoxxy]

This is extremely hard and equal fun.

 

[Dave_George]

I may have over-looked it in the initial post but I believe it was your intent to prohibit the use of driving aids this week? At least the ASM? Personally, I'm driving this 'Bird without any TCS/ASM no matter what the rules are. I'll let my time be whatever it is without worrying about the competitiveness of the said time.

Well done Dave.

Thanks Ronny:tup:

Regarding the TCS/ASM....its a tough one, I did forget to mention that.

I think to ban all aids would be against the spirit of OLR and potentially make life hard for anyone who has not progressed to switching them off, but as a "Gentlemans agreement" I will not be using any aids on the Ruf and welcome all to join me in driving it raw!

Great to see a bit of interest too, if you drive make sure you submit a time!!

regards

David

 

[goixoye]

Looks like the good doctor is back to defend his overall 2nd place position? With only a 1 point difference, after Week 16 (Jag), between 2nd (Dr Watson) and 3rd (myself) it looks like he'll have to. Not much chance of me stealing the overall 2nd position but you never know given the difficulty of driving the YB. Dr Watson has been well ahead of me in head to head competition throughout the series.

Like Dave, I'm driving "raw" (NO TCS/ASM). I expect I'll fall deep into the field especially if there are folks out there who use the aids.

It'll be interesting to start seeing some T10's posted. When others do post I personally would be interested to know if aids have been used.

I know during the last 3 weeks of the series I used them and it made a significant difference compared to my times without aids.

Anyway it's good to see strong interest in the series finale. My advice to all is to challenge yourself to stay with this event despite possible frustration. This is quite possibly the toughest combination in GT4 regardless of tire choice and since we're on N3's to boot this absolutely must be the most difficult car & track combo. Persevere.

 

[VTRacing]

I won't use aids, I love winding on half a turn of opposite lock and feathering the throttle!

 

[holl01]

yeah, i didnt use any aids i dont think, aids will probably impare ur drifting

 

[bigrew]

I will try and make some time for this one! 👍

 

[goixoye]

T10 = 7'01.245, No TCS/ASM.

 

[Dave_George]

Well I managed a lap this luchtime before I go to work, turned out to be clean and not too bad overall:tup: (Compared to the times im sure holl01 and VT will be posting soon its prob not so good... )

Had this been real, spectators would have reported seeing the driver with a look of sheer terror on his face at pretty much every corner on the track, some of the fast ones are nearly close your eyes and hope you come out the other side!

What a car....

Anyway some T times to set the ball rolling, no TCS or ASM of course:tup:

Set up wise i found that for me the Ruf was best with a slight bias towards the rear being softer and lower, hence :

Ride Height = 120/115
Damping =4/3
Camber = 2.3/2.3

Brake Balance = 3/1 (Trying to stabilise the rear under braking)

T1 - 48.752
T2 - 1'25.591
T3 - 1'56.007
T4 - 2'50.860
T5 - 3'31.353
T6 - 4'00.697
T7 - 4'55.759
T8 - 5'42.572
T9 - 6'07.051
T10 - 6'53.462

Watching the replay proved interesting, whilst there were some areas I was pushing my luck and losing time by getting a rear wheel on the grass there were obvious areas where i was way too cautious so plenty to work on from the above times. I think I have my goal set for where i want to be by the weekend.

Im also finding that with this car setting up 3 setups using the "A", "B" and "C" tabs is worth doing, I have a stiff/low setup, a higher/softer setup and medium (as above) that im switching between as im finding that the Ruf can feel different each time I drive it???

regards to all

David

 

[goixoye]

Wow Dave... Absolutely blistering time there. I don't think I can touch that. 8 sec ahead of me. Simply amazing. Well done.

 

[zoxxy]

T10: 6.59.040 on the first lap. Dirty though, and with a spin.

Edit: 2nd lap, clean, and T10: 6.54.985.

 

[Dave_George]

Wow Dave... Absolutely blistering time there. I don't think I can touch that. 8 sec ahead of me. Simply amazing. Well done.

Cheers Ronny, I did have a dirty 6'51.xxx using holl01's settings before i left for work, surprisingly the car didnt feel as stiff and unpredictable as i had expected it to with the extreme low/stiff setup, so i will be working next with the harder setups to see whats possible...

Enjoying the Yb, however it can be a frustrating car, I reccomend that if like me you have sessions where you cant get past t2-t3 ish then walk away, if your having a bad session in the YB I find it rarely gets any better! My 6'53 was on my first lap this morning so obviously shows what a fresh head can do for you in THAT car!

I think im going to try and perfect the "Hotlap" this week and spend next week trying to get the 2 lapper done clean, which i predict will take a few goes

regards

David

 

[Dave_George]

Another couple of laps tonight experimenting with set-ups, now I mentioned in my earlier post that the Low/stiff setup didnt seem too bad, will im not sure how i ended up with the set up below but i found the Ruf to work well with a strong damper on the front and a softer rear, here are my setup and T times, lap is clean:tup:

(Previous settings/times in brackets)

Ride Height = 115/110 (120/115)
Damping = 8/3 (4/3)
Camber = 2.3/2.3

Brake Balance = 5/1 (3/1)

T1 - 48.292 (48.752)
T2 - 1'25.507 (1'25.591)
T3 - 1'55.869 (1'56.007)
T4 - 2'50.794 (2'50.860)
T5 - 3'31.442 (3'31.353)
T6 - 4'00.531 (4'00.697)
T7 - 4'54.434 (4'55.759)
T8 - 5'40.765 (5'42.572)
T9 - 6'04.543 (6'07.051)
T10 - 6'50.364 (6'53.462)

Its clear with these settings i was able to push harder through from T6 to finish as before that i was level with my previous lap, Pleased with progress so far, feel free to try the settings, seems like lots of combinations work with the Ruf, everything you do produces a noticeable effect.

cheers all

David

 

[bbq0801]

wow, this has to be one of the most awesome races ive ever seen on GTP! The realism (and effort put into it) make me drewl!

 

[VTRacing]

Had a quick go at the family cup aspect of this event, and I must say it's going to be difficult.

The Nurburgring is so narrow (and the AI so stupid) that it's very tough indeed to get by them without touching.

But I shall persevere. I'm enjoying the drift.

 

[Dave_George]

Had a quick go at the family cup aspect of this event, and I must say it's going to be difficult.

The Nurburgring is so narrow (and the AI so stupid) that it's very tough indeed to get by them without touching.

But I shall persevere. I'm enjoying the drift.

Indeed, the key to this race is picking your overtake points....

David

 

[goixoye]

I'm really not having a problem with the AI. But that's because I'm not good enough. Actually I probably could get into 4th or 5th place but then around T7 their tires warm up and they begin to pull away. If I get ahead they will likely tap me going by. It seems that my best strategy is to shadow them until they pull away and then I'm basically on the track by myself...but it's still difficult enough to string two consecutive clean laps together.

Here are my Family Cup splits (NO TCS/ASM):

T10.1 = 7'18.045
T10.2 = 7'08.810 (theoretically lap 2 could/should be closer to my hotlap of 7'01.245)

My rabbit in the race was a Viper SRT 10 finishing 20.380 seconds ahead of me. Looks like with me behind the wheel this 'bird ain't gonna catch that rabbit. But based on other times I'm seein' (10+ seconds quicker) you other guys are going to be mixing it up with the AI.

 

[holl01]

hi,

i had a 2 hour session with this beast of a car and i tried to drif every single corner on the track, but unfortunately that can be a tough challenge and i have yet to complete a clean lap, but i have seen the opening sectors pan out in this fasion:

46.2xx
1'22.2xx
1'51.2xx

using an ultra stiff setup
110/110
10/10
1.8/1.0

the stiff setup seems to provide important stability on the fast corners, where drifting isnt desirable. i will try daves setup, i also didnt buy a brake balance kit, so my brakes are default, they seem very good as default anyway. the combo is loads of fun!

 

[Dave_George]

hi,

i had a 2 hour session with this beast of a car and i tried to drif every single corner on the track, but unfortunately that can be a tough challenge and i have yet to complete a clean lap, but i have seen the opening sectors pan out in this fasion:

46.2xx
1'22.2xx
1'51.2xx

using an ultra stiff setup
110/110
10/10
1.8/1.0

the stiff setup seems to provide important stability on the fast corners, where drifting isnt desirable. i will try daves setup, i also didnt buy a brake balance kit, so my brakes are default, they seem very good as default anyway. the combo is loads of fun!

......4.6s up on me by T3 alone The rest of us might aswell pack up and go home!!

Thats just unreal. Respect:tup:

regards

David

 

[VEXD]

you might have known posting up such a combo would ensure so many drivers turned up to compete.

Of course Dave, if Zoxxy and Holl are here, we can get the beers out of the fridge now and put our feet up.

Those two coupled with watson are the top three just there.

I'd best get over to aus and see about reducing the competition.

Im glad to have been involved in ths series, and will be very sad to see it go.

Without wishing to quote project gotham, KUDOS to Dave and Ronnie for holding things together thru thick and thin, and for giving us all an excellent amount of enjoyment forthe past few months.

I will do my damndest to submit this week, though it is getting difficult.

Good Luck to all

What a car, what a track, no more secrets left there for me, thanx to this series, what a fitting finale.

Three cheers!!

Hip Hip
Hip Hip
Hip Hip



👍
David

 

[Dave_George]

Good to see you here VEXD:tup: and thanks for those words mate.

On another note I had 1 quick go at the AI race (couldnt help it) before i left for work this afternoon, I settled in on the bumper of the Viper SRT10 from T1 to T5 just after Bergwerk managing not to hit him as they braked, then started to try and pick them off, by Karussell I was in 3rd and I overtook the leader for 1st right bang on the T10 marker. I didnt complete the 2nd lap and cant remember the T times, i was more trying to get a feel for best overtaking points, the AI seem slow out of Bergwerk and Karussell so they are obvious points, I did receieve two taps by the AI though indicating you have to be completely sure of getting past them as they WILL turn in on you as we know!!

So the AI race is going to be good I think, putting a strategy to it makes it so much more fun than when your not bothered about hitting the AI.

For info my line up was :

Viper GTS
Skyline Concept
Zonda C12
Shelby Cobra
Viper SRT10
CTR YELLOWBIRD:tup:

regards

David

 

[IcemanGER]

Hi, to everyone first of all.
I'm kinda new here and would like to know if it is OK to participate? I used to compete in another forum before and have a few miles of experience in GT4 and especially the Nuerburgring !!!
This is the most challenging competition I've ever been into !

I tried a few laps so far and must say, that you really need a strategy. Especially for the 2nd lap.

Setup wise, I'm trying to soften it up b/c of the curb riding. The stiff setup will upset the car to much, imo. The car is already very upset to start with, lol.

There is a video out there, 2 laps in a yellow bird. It is the real thing and if you haven't seen it, go get it !
I'm trying to find a link......back later.

http://www.green-flag.com/Videos/Lap1.zip

http://www.green-flag.com/Videos/lap2.zip

 

[zoxxy]

ARRRRRRRRGGGHHH!!