Okay, I'm gonna kick off B class with another scoreboard outlaw.
The 1991 Honda CR-X PI:700
A RWD conversion, weighing in at a scant 1863lbs with 628 ponies under the hood. Yep, shes a missile but, easily the nicest one to drive from my current stable. This is the setup that took me to a 07:48.666 on the Nordschleife.
The Build :
Powertrain: RWD conversion, didn't write down what code that was. Race everything w/turbo
Platform:All race parts including weight reduction, with exception of stock brakes. At less than 1900lbs, it didn't need 'em anyway
Aero: Forza race rear wing only
Tires & rims: Stock compound, 205/30R18s front and rear on Volk GT-Cs
The Setup :
Tire Pressure:
Front:44
Rear:55
Gearing:
Final Drive: 3.55
(1): 3.11
(2): 1.99
(3): 1.52
(4): 1.22
(5): 1.02
(6): 0.89
Alignment:
Camber Front:-0.5
Camber Rear:-0.5
Toe Front:0.0
Toe Rear:-0.3
Caster: 5.5
Anti-Roll Bars:
Front: 40.00
Rear: 1.00
Springs:
Front: 372.6
Rear: 248.8
Dampers:
Rebound Front: 7.7
Rebound Rear: 5.0
Bump Front: 3.9
Bump Rear: 2.5
Aero Adjustment:
Front: na
Rear: 150 (max)
Brake Bias:
Bias: na %
Pressure: na%
Differential:
Acceleration: 18%
Deceleration: 26%
That works out to be a weight bias of 60% and 66.7% springs.
The tire pressures are unusual but, seemed to be necessary to stabilize the stock rubber. The real subject for discussion however, are the ARBs and springs. This was talked about here awhile back in a post titled 'Build Note: Do the Sway Bars Really Matter in Forza?' over in the 'its about the cars' section.
Basically the technique uses a full strength bar on one end of the car and no bar on the other. My interpretation of what's at work here is, that with most all cars, one end of the car, or the other, is the key to making the car perform. With a FWD or AWD car, that end is the front end. Responsible for propelling, braking and steering the car, maintaining the best possible contact patch is very important. The same can be said of a muscle car and particularly a missile but, maintaining maximum traction on the rear end is what's important there.
If you've looked at the traction circle screen in telemetry before, you've probably noticed how the inside wheel's contact patch turns gets very small during cornering loads. The stiffer the bar, the smaller the patch. The ARB works as a torsional spring, linking the suspensions on each side of the car together. As you drive into a corner and the body rolls over, the suspension is compressed up into the wheelwell. Since there is a bar connecting the left and right side suspension components, the 'unweighted' suspension also gets compressed, virtually lifting it off the ground. If you've ever watched SCCA style races with production FWD cars, you know what I'm talking about. Well, how's a tire gonna help you corner if its not touching the ground??
Here's why I think this type of setup can be successful. You apply the full strength ( 40 ) to the bar on the less critical end of the car. Let's say we're talking about a FWD car so, the non-critical end is the rear. Sometimes a little softer spring is necessary for this but, basically you're looking to handle almost all of the anti-roll adjustment with that end of the car. The front springs will help out some, even with no bar. Now, you set up the critical end, in this example the front, with minimum bar ( 1 ) leaving the left and right sides to move independently. As cornering forces are now applied, both front tires can maintain full contact with the pavement, providing significantly more available grip.
Is this absolutely necessary, no. Should it be used all of the time, no. Does it have to be done the same way, no.
I have some setups that are 01/40 for FWD and AWD or 40/01 for RWD missiles, I have some at 10/40, I have some at 15/32.... You can use it as much or as little as you want to improve your contact patch and reclaim the grip needed to get the job done or, you can dismiss it as foolishness. To me, its just another tool in the box, another method of improving the performance of the car and in the end, isn't that what the whole idea of tuning in Forza is all about?
I hope that you enjoy the CR-X and that it helps you claim some new powertrack hotlap records like it has for me. I also hope that after driving it, you'll try your hand at a few experiments with this tuning technique and let me know what you think.
J
