I decided to see if a little Elise could defeat a Z06 and a couple of Vipers. After a little tuning and practicing, I felt I was ready for the challenge. I didn't take notes too well on this one, but I think I have enough to give you a good replay.
The Starting Grid(photo)
1.2003 Dodge Viper SRT10
2.2000 Lotus Esprit Sport 350
3.2000 Corvette Z06
4.1999 Lotus Motor Sport Elise
5.1999 Dodge Viper GTS
6.1998 Lotus Elise Sport 190 (me)
A-Spec Points: 200
Laps: 76
Prize: 250,000 credits and a 1971 Dodge Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi
Pit Strategies
Viper SRT10 34 Laps
Esprit 29 Laps
Z06 30 Laps
Motor Sport Elise 26 Laps
Viper GTS 25 Laps
Elise 190 26 Laps
Elise 190 Setup I upped to power to 197PS just to make the car get a little faster down the long straight.
Lap 1: The SRT10 leads the pack through the starting line. Everybody follows through the hair-pin turn in formation. I notice immediately that I'm struggling down the straights. The other cars have way more power than I do. As we reach the right turn onto 55th, I quickly realize that the Lotus drivers can't find the brakes and just slam into the wall(photo). It's here where the Z06 takes advantage of this to slide into second. The Viper GTS passes the Elise Motor Sport to take 4th. As we all turn onto 53rd, I slide past the Motor Sport and put him in last. The larger cars are slow around the turns and I know that this is the section where I have to beat them. As we head down Broadway out of Columbus Circle, I realize even the Motor Sport has more straight away power than me and get put back into last place before we cross the line.
Lap 2: Positions are we start this lap are: SRT10, Z06, Esprit, GTS, Motor Sport, and me in the 190. Once again the Motor Sport hits the wall at 55th, taking the Viper GTS with him. I easily take 4th place here. The Esprit also rubs the Z06 against the rails and takes 2nd from him. As we turn onto Central Park South, I take the inside line, and capture 3rd from the Z06. I come onto Broadway strong and slipstream past the Esprit for a quick taste of 2nd until both he and the Z06 scream past me on the straight towards the hairpin.
Lap 3: The Esprit takes the lead as we head up 7th, but in Lotus fashion takes out the wall and the SRT10 and Z06 fly pass him. The GTS Viper doesn't realize how much faster he is than me and decides the rear end me into the rails as well. I'm back in 5th and getting angry at the GTS. I get my position back as I pass the Viper getting onto 57th. I then get back to 2nd after passing the Esprit and the Z06 getting onto CP South. The GTS decides to put the Esprit in 5th and follows behind the Z06. I hold the Z06 off and rush into Columbus circle(photo). The Esprit also gains its position back from the GTS. The leader and last place are only about 3 seconds apart so we are running pretty close. Coming out of CC, I go inside and take the lead.
Lap 4: After a good head start down Broadway, I actually cross the line in 1st a 1/10 of a second ahead of the SRT10. He passes me right before the hairpin, but I the outside of the turn and reclaim 1st by the exit of the corner. The SRT10 passes me just before 55th and out friend the Esprit slams me into the rails and he follows be hind to kinda wedge me in there. Thank good there aren't any airbags in the Elise or I'd have to deflate and cut them out before I could get running again. A little maneuvering through the turns and I head back out on CP South in 1st just ahead of the SRT10. It looks like all I need to do is keep capturing the lead earlier and getting a few seconds head start down the straights and I can keep them off my back bumper.
Lap 5: Crossing the line 2.536 seconds ahead of the SRT10 allowed me to go through the hairpin and the turn onto 55th without the terror of getting slammed from behind. The positions are: Elise 190, SRT10, Z06, Esprit, GTS, and Motor Sports until Mr. Esprit does his wall trick and the GTS moves into 4th. The GTS Viper decides the he would like 3rd and rubs past the Z06 through Columbus Circle(photo).
Lap 6: I now have a 6 second lead on the rest of the pack. The Vipers and Z06 are all running bumper to bumper. I've gotta just stay a few seconds ahead of them and I'll be ok. At 55th, the SRT10 does a bad job braking and allows the GTS to go passed him on the inside. Of course a little touching happened and the SRT10 found himself hugging the rails and the Z06 follows the GTS and takes 3rd. The Esprit actually did a descent job this time with the turn.
Lap 7: The cars are starting to spread out. I have a 6 minute lead on the GTS in 2nd, followed by the Z06, SRT10, Esprit, and Elise Motor Sport that is trailing pretty far behind now. The positions stay the same this lap and I cross the line at 1:51.207, my fastest lap so far.
Lap 10: The Z06 and GTS have been running close the past few laps with a little rubbing here and there. They have narrowed my lead down the 4.5 seconds. Coming out of CC, the Z06 tries to make a move for 2nd but the GTS holds him off.
Lap 11: After going wide at 55th, the GTS has to settle for 3rd as the Z06 finally is able to pass. The rest of the pack is running as usual. 6th place in now over 30 seconds behind the lead. After the fight for 2nd, I have a 6.55 second lead.
Lap 12: Car is really hooking up now as I just ran my fastest lap of 1:50.073.
Lap 14: I'm starting to run consistently in the low 1:50 range. Only problem, I'm still only 7.2 seconds ahead of the Z06. Not a very comfortable lead considering I don't know how the pitting is going to go.
Lap 15: Coming around 55th, the SRT10 hits the wall hard and the Esprit takes the 4th place position. The SRT10 lead the first 5 laps, and is now 5th, I hope the same doesn't happen to me.
Lap 18: I can see the Z06 closing in my mirror. That last lap only left me 4.7 seconds of breathing room. I have a very slow lap this time in the 1:53.155 and my lead shortens to 3.404 seconds.
Lap 23: The past few laps have been very intense. I have been running 1:51.1xx on the past 5 laps. I cross the line about 3.5 seconds in the lead, but by the time I read 55th, that has shrunk to 2 seconds. I have to run the corners up to Central Park South very good to get my lead back before the 3 straights. My rear tires are yellow and my fronts are getting that color.
Lap 25: Ok, at 55th, the Z06 is right on my tail just a second away. My right rear tire is getting orange so I might have to pit soon.
Lap 26: The GTS pitted last lap so the Esprit is now in 3rd with the SRT10 now in 4th. I decide to pit at the end of this lap giving the lead up to the Z06. The Motor Sport also pits.
Lap 27: I exit the pits in 3rd right behind the Esprit. I follow the Esprit all the way around and finish the lap still in 3rd, 21 seconds behind the leader. The positions are: Z06, Esprit, Elise 190, SRT10, GTS, & Motor Sport.
Lap 30: The Esprit pits at the end of lap 29 and I finally get back to 2nd still trailing the Z06 by 23.5 seconds. The Esprit exits the pits in 4th place ahead of the GTS.
Lap 31: YES! The Z06 is in the pits as I cross the line to take my lead back. The Z06 exits the pits quickly and is in 3rd place right behind the SRT10 in 2nd by 55th.
Lap 32: After the Esprit decided to see if the rails at 55th could still withstand a brutal impact, the GTS passed him and is now in 4th place.
Lap 35: The SRT10 pits at the start of the lap and the Z06 is back in 2nd trailing me by 22 seconds. The SRT10 exits the pits in 5th place behind the Esprit in 4th. 3rd place is held by the GTS. A lap time of 1:49.809 make it my fastest of the day and helps extend my lead at the end of the lap to over 27 seconds.
Lap 42: Nothing exciting in the past few laps. I'm staying a good 25-30 seconds ahead of the Z06 and my lap times are in the 1:50.xxx range.
Lap 45: Finally something to write about. Lap 44 was my fastest lap so far at 1:49.761. All cars are in their same positions as they were 10 laps ago spaced out by at least 10 seconds each. But with the rear tires yellow, I decided to set another fastest lap time of 1:49.394. My lead on the Z06 has grown to 31 seconds.
Lap 50: I lapped the Motor Sport as we turned onto CP South. The Viper GTS pits as planned as he finishes his 50th lap.
Lap 52: Me and the Motor Sports both pit. I leave the pits and still have a 10 seconds lead on the Z06 in 2nd.
Lap 55: Starting to get back to the 1:51 lap times and lap the SRT10.
Lap 60: The Esprit pitted on his normal schedule and I was able to lap him after he exited the pits. The running order is still the same as it has been since lap 35. Considering how close the first 15-20 laps were, this race sure has calmed down.
Lap 61: The Z06 is pitting after his 60th lap and the win is pretty much guaranteed for me already. You would think with a 200 A-Spec race, that I would be fighting for the lead up until the last lap.
Lap 69: The SRT10 pitted. I think to myself "YEAH" in a very unenthusiastic way. I'm running consistant low 1:50 laps again with a couple of high 1:49's. Here's a photo of me running down Times Square.
Lap 76: Last lap. I could run it in reverse and still have a killer lead. It's amazing that a little 196 PS Elise could put a hurting on such great cars as a Vette and the Vipers. Oh well. I finish the race over 53 seconds ahead of 2nd at 2:22:10.044. I take my 200 A-Spec points, 250,000 credits, and my Dodge Charger and leave. Maybe I should try using a Cooper Mini next time.
Final Results
1.Elise 190
2.Z06 53.426
3.Viper GTS - ???
4.Esprit 1 Lap
5.Viper SRT10 1 Lap
6.Motor Sport Elise 1 Lap
Total Race Time: 2:22:10.044
Fastest Lap: Lap 45 1:49.394
Average Lap: 1:52.237
Average NonPit Lap: 1:51.507
Laps Led: Not sure but around 60+ laps
Pit Stops:2
The Starting Grid(photo)
1.2003 Dodge Viper SRT10
2.2000 Lotus Esprit Sport 350
3.2000 Corvette Z06
4.1999 Lotus Motor Sport Elise
5.1999 Dodge Viper GTS
6.1998 Lotus Elise Sport 190 (me)
A-Spec Points: 200
Laps: 76
Prize: 250,000 credits and a 1971 Dodge Charger Super Bee 426 Hemi
Pit Strategies
Viper SRT10 34 Laps
Esprit 29 Laps
Z06 30 Laps
Motor Sport Elise 26 Laps
Viper GTS 25 Laps
Elise 190 26 Laps
Elise 190 Setup I upped to power to 197PS just to make the car get a little faster down the long straight.
- Racing Muffler/Intake
- Computer Chip
- S2 Tires (F/R)
- Brakes
- Full Suspension
- Full Tranny
- Triple Clutch
- Racing Flywheel
- Full LSD
Lap 1: The SRT10 leads the pack through the starting line. Everybody follows through the hair-pin turn in formation. I notice immediately that I'm struggling down the straights. The other cars have way more power than I do. As we reach the right turn onto 55th, I quickly realize that the Lotus drivers can't find the brakes and just slam into the wall(photo). It's here where the Z06 takes advantage of this to slide into second. The Viper GTS passes the Elise Motor Sport to take 4th. As we all turn onto 53rd, I slide past the Motor Sport and put him in last. The larger cars are slow around the turns and I know that this is the section where I have to beat them. As we head down Broadway out of Columbus Circle, I realize even the Motor Sport has more straight away power than me and get put back into last place before we cross the line.
Lap 2: Positions are we start this lap are: SRT10, Z06, Esprit, GTS, Motor Sport, and me in the 190. Once again the Motor Sport hits the wall at 55th, taking the Viper GTS with him. I easily take 4th place here. The Esprit also rubs the Z06 against the rails and takes 2nd from him. As we turn onto Central Park South, I take the inside line, and capture 3rd from the Z06. I come onto Broadway strong and slipstream past the Esprit for a quick taste of 2nd until both he and the Z06 scream past me on the straight towards the hairpin.
Lap 3: The Esprit takes the lead as we head up 7th, but in Lotus fashion takes out the wall and the SRT10 and Z06 fly pass him. The GTS Viper doesn't realize how much faster he is than me and decides the rear end me into the rails as well. I'm back in 5th and getting angry at the GTS. I get my position back as I pass the Viper getting onto 57th. I then get back to 2nd after passing the Esprit and the Z06 getting onto CP South. The GTS decides to put the Esprit in 5th and follows behind the Z06. I hold the Z06 off and rush into Columbus circle(photo). The Esprit also gains its position back from the GTS. The leader and last place are only about 3 seconds apart so we are running pretty close. Coming out of CC, I go inside and take the lead.
Lap 4: After a good head start down Broadway, I actually cross the line in 1st a 1/10 of a second ahead of the SRT10. He passes me right before the hairpin, but I the outside of the turn and reclaim 1st by the exit of the corner. The SRT10 passes me just before 55th and out friend the Esprit slams me into the rails and he follows be hind to kinda wedge me in there. Thank good there aren't any airbags in the Elise or I'd have to deflate and cut them out before I could get running again. A little maneuvering through the turns and I head back out on CP South in 1st just ahead of the SRT10. It looks like all I need to do is keep capturing the lead earlier and getting a few seconds head start down the straights and I can keep them off my back bumper.
Lap 5: Crossing the line 2.536 seconds ahead of the SRT10 allowed me to go through the hairpin and the turn onto 55th without the terror of getting slammed from behind. The positions are: Elise 190, SRT10, Z06, Esprit, GTS, and Motor Sports until Mr. Esprit does his wall trick and the GTS moves into 4th. The GTS Viper decides the he would like 3rd and rubs past the Z06 through Columbus Circle(photo).
Lap 6: I now have a 6 second lead on the rest of the pack. The Vipers and Z06 are all running bumper to bumper. I've gotta just stay a few seconds ahead of them and I'll be ok. At 55th, the SRT10 does a bad job braking and allows the GTS to go passed him on the inside. Of course a little touching happened and the SRT10 found himself hugging the rails and the Z06 follows the GTS and takes 3rd. The Esprit actually did a descent job this time with the turn.
Lap 7: The cars are starting to spread out. I have a 6 minute lead on the GTS in 2nd, followed by the Z06, SRT10, Esprit, and Elise Motor Sport that is trailing pretty far behind now. The positions stay the same this lap and I cross the line at 1:51.207, my fastest lap so far.
Lap 10: The Z06 and GTS have been running close the past few laps with a little rubbing here and there. They have narrowed my lead down the 4.5 seconds. Coming out of CC, the Z06 tries to make a move for 2nd but the GTS holds him off.
Lap 11: After going wide at 55th, the GTS has to settle for 3rd as the Z06 finally is able to pass. The rest of the pack is running as usual. 6th place in now over 30 seconds behind the lead. After the fight for 2nd, I have a 6.55 second lead.
Lap 12: Car is really hooking up now as I just ran my fastest lap of 1:50.073.
Lap 14: I'm starting to run consistently in the low 1:50 range. Only problem, I'm still only 7.2 seconds ahead of the Z06. Not a very comfortable lead considering I don't know how the pitting is going to go.
Lap 15: Coming around 55th, the SRT10 hits the wall hard and the Esprit takes the 4th place position. The SRT10 lead the first 5 laps, and is now 5th, I hope the same doesn't happen to me.
Lap 18: I can see the Z06 closing in my mirror. That last lap only left me 4.7 seconds of breathing room. I have a very slow lap this time in the 1:53.155 and my lead shortens to 3.404 seconds.
Lap 23: The past few laps have been very intense. I have been running 1:51.1xx on the past 5 laps. I cross the line about 3.5 seconds in the lead, but by the time I read 55th, that has shrunk to 2 seconds. I have to run the corners up to Central Park South very good to get my lead back before the 3 straights. My rear tires are yellow and my fronts are getting that color.
Lap 25: Ok, at 55th, the Z06 is right on my tail just a second away. My right rear tire is getting orange so I might have to pit soon.
Lap 26: The GTS pitted last lap so the Esprit is now in 3rd with the SRT10 now in 4th. I decide to pit at the end of this lap giving the lead up to the Z06. The Motor Sport also pits.
Lap 27: I exit the pits in 3rd right behind the Esprit. I follow the Esprit all the way around and finish the lap still in 3rd, 21 seconds behind the leader. The positions are: Z06, Esprit, Elise 190, SRT10, GTS, & Motor Sport.
Lap 30: The Esprit pits at the end of lap 29 and I finally get back to 2nd still trailing the Z06 by 23.5 seconds. The Esprit exits the pits in 4th place ahead of the GTS.
Lap 31: YES! The Z06 is in the pits as I cross the line to take my lead back. The Z06 exits the pits quickly and is in 3rd place right behind the SRT10 in 2nd by 55th.
Lap 32: After the Esprit decided to see if the rails at 55th could still withstand a brutal impact, the GTS passed him and is now in 4th place.
Lap 35: The SRT10 pits at the start of the lap and the Z06 is back in 2nd trailing me by 22 seconds. The SRT10 exits the pits in 5th place behind the Esprit in 4th. 3rd place is held by the GTS. A lap time of 1:49.809 make it my fastest of the day and helps extend my lead at the end of the lap to over 27 seconds.
Lap 42: Nothing exciting in the past few laps. I'm staying a good 25-30 seconds ahead of the Z06 and my lap times are in the 1:50.xxx range.
Lap 45: Finally something to write about. Lap 44 was my fastest lap so far at 1:49.761. All cars are in their same positions as they were 10 laps ago spaced out by at least 10 seconds each. But with the rear tires yellow, I decided to set another fastest lap time of 1:49.394. My lead on the Z06 has grown to 31 seconds.
Lap 50: I lapped the Motor Sport as we turned onto CP South. The Viper GTS pits as planned as he finishes his 50th lap.
Lap 52: Me and the Motor Sports both pit. I leave the pits and still have a 10 seconds lead on the Z06 in 2nd.
Lap 55: Starting to get back to the 1:51 lap times and lap the SRT10.
Lap 60: The Esprit pitted on his normal schedule and I was able to lap him after he exited the pits. The running order is still the same as it has been since lap 35. Considering how close the first 15-20 laps were, this race sure has calmed down.
Lap 61: The Z06 is pitting after his 60th lap and the win is pretty much guaranteed for me already. You would think with a 200 A-Spec race, that I would be fighting for the lead up until the last lap.
Lap 69: The SRT10 pitted. I think to myself "YEAH" in a very unenthusiastic way. I'm running consistant low 1:50 laps again with a couple of high 1:49's. Here's a photo of me running down Times Square.
Lap 76: Last lap. I could run it in reverse and still have a killer lead. It's amazing that a little 196 PS Elise could put a hurting on such great cars as a Vette and the Vipers. Oh well. I finish the race over 53 seconds ahead of 2nd at 2:22:10.044. I take my 200 A-Spec points, 250,000 credits, and my Dodge Charger and leave. Maybe I should try using a Cooper Mini next time.
Final Results
1.Elise 190
2.Z06 53.426
3.Viper GTS - ???
4.Esprit 1 Lap
5.Viper SRT10 1 Lap
6.Motor Sport Elise 1 Lap
Total Race Time: 2:22:10.044
Fastest Lap: Lap 45 1:49.394
Average Lap: 1:52.237
Average NonPit Lap: 1:51.507
Laps Led: Not sure but around 60+ laps
Pit Stops:2
