As I missed yesterday, I started with the fresh set of Weekly Challenges on the GTP account while waiting for 10 am to show up for the first Manufacturers Cup GT3 slot. The first races went as follows:
- Sardegna European Sunday Cup 500 in 3:36 (by 1.7 seconds over an AMG A 45) with a stock 1973 Porsche 911, after finding the Mercedes 190 E a bit too slow
- Laguna Seca Japanese Clubman Cup in an "unclean" 5:18 (by 1.1 seconds over an Evo IX) with a stock 2022 Honda Civic (though I don't know where I lost the CRB)
- Daytona Special Event in 6:47 (by 0.9 seconds) with an almost-stock 1970 Plymouth Superbird (full LSD left untouched and a custom manual non-racing transmission with the first 4 gears at the stock 2.650/1.930/1.390/1.000, 5th gear at an absurdly-high ratio so I wouldn't use it, and the final drive at 2.500 (which gives about 160 mph in 4th at the redline)
I only added the LSD because the open differential left me spinning the rear tires too much. It's not as fast as the AI through the twisty part of the track, but it makes up so much ground on the tri-oval part that it's not funny. Completely stock didn't cut it, while a run with a shovel-nose front end (B), racing transmission, full LSD, a 5-speed and SH tires was too easy.
It took so much time to get the formula right for a competitive race with as close to a stock feel, I blew right past the 10 am GTWS slot. I picked up my 300,000 Cr. from the first 3 Weekly Challenges and the "high-showing"/2nd-lowest-possible 10,000 Cr. from a 3-star Wheel of Despair.
I hit the 11 am GTWS race, with 20 points to the winner. I started 13th of 15 (1st of 3 to not even start a flying lap), and thought I had mistakenly left intermediates on lap 1. The game didn't tell me that it put hards back on, and I missed the clue that there was no wear). I ended up quitting out and hitting the noon race, with more points up for offer as most of the drivers were C (though lower SR).
That write-up is over in the GTWS thread. It was a bone-dry race, and though I had no speed, I ended up 9th and with more points than if I had won the aborted 11 am race.
The Suzuka Turbo Sports Cars race is incredibly variable. The run I finally won, with the Maserati MC20 (one of the many post-launch cars you might see in the field) was dry, with the RE Amemiya and Mercedes-AMG GT S the main opposition. That was done in 11:48, 3.1 seconds ahead of the RE Amemiya.
After applying the latest Praiano Sardegna tune (but keeping the old Praiano 800 PP gearing) to the Porsche 962 C, I dominated an essentially-dry Fuji Neoclassical Challenge, winning by 38.4 seconds in 16:48, though I somehow lost the CRB along the way.
On the Plus account, I blitzed the challenges as follows:
- Sardegna European Sunday Cup 500 in 2:47 with a 2021 Aston Martin Valkyrie
- Laguna Seca Japanese Clubman Cup in 5:07 with a 2010 Lexus LFA
- Daytona Special Event in 6:03 with a 1970 Plymouth Superbird fully-tuned (no supercharger or engine swap) on SS tires (666.68 PP), at a cost of 290,550 Cr.
- Suzuka Race of Turbo Sportscars in a dry 11:29 with a 2019 Ferrari F8 Tributo by only 1.3 seconds against a Alfa Romeo Giulia GTAm that gets stupid-fast when you get close and a Maserati MC20 that gets almost as stupid-fast if it's close the last 2 laps
- Fuji Neoclassical Challenge in a dry 16:06 with a 1991 Mazda 787B tuned to exactly 800 PP
The 4-star Wheel of Despair was more cruel than usual - instead of gold bars or a decent car, it gave me nitrous.
