R3 - The #8 Honda NSX

[Spiny Anteater]

She's red, she's white, she's not as slow as I expected (or indeed she appeared when i ran her in Career last year) - she's the number 8 Honda NSX in R3 Class.



So far, this car is proving a surprise, especially in low downforce configuration where it seems to be able to hit the top 500 on certain tracks. When it's got a high downforce setup, things aren't so good, but it's still not bad. I think it could give me a decentish time in R3 (a class I haven't run yet, so my hotlap position should drop a bit) - by the looks of early results I wouldn't like to call a winner in the "Time is right" competition yet.

One thing which has disappointed me with the R3 Class NSXs is the variety. Or lack thereof. There's 3 which isn't too excessive, and the dark green one is from an earlier year - 2003 - and as Blooze has pointed out elsewhere that one has a higher redline and peak power output that the #8 (and the 3rd NSX which is identical as far as I can tell). These two 2005 models are both turbocharged and have the exact same figures for all the ratings and outputs so I can't really tell the difference.

Still, with a bit of luck, I might end up getting this into the top 200 overall in R3. Then again, I might not if I can't improve on my Sebring position with the high d/f set-up

[Spiny Anteater]

This is the high downforce set-up I used at Laguna - it doesn't seem to place quite as high up the scoreboards as the car has done on the low downforce tracks, but it's still OK. On a side note, you can see how fast the crew are by looking at the R3 exhibition leaderboards - on more than one occasion there have been 7 of my friends list on the board, and all within the top 100.

But, without further ado, here's the high downforce set-up, feared for Laguna Seca:

Tyres: 28/28
FD: 4.00
Gears 1-6: 3.08, 2.13, 1.56, 1.21, 1.04, (0.90, not used here)
Camber: -0.9/-0.9
Toe: 0/-0.2
Caster: 5.4
ARB: 16.24/13.21
Springs: 443.5/380.6
Rebound: 6.3/6.8
Bump: 3.1/3.2
Aero: 198/463 (max)
Brakes: 49/100
Diff: 38/25

[Spiny Anteater]

Well, I finally got around to noting up the low downforce set-up - look familiar? This one is for Sunset Peninsula Long, but is equally effective on the Short version.

Tyres: 28/28
FD: 3.88
Gears 1-6: 3.08, 2.13, 1.56, 1.21, 1.02, 0.88
Camber: -0.9/-0.9
Toe: 0/-0.2
Caster: 5.4
ARB: 16.24/13.21
Springs: 443.5/380.6
Rebound: 6.3/6.8
Bump: 3.1/3.2
Aero: 66/154 (min)
Brakes: 49/100
Diff: 38/25

Further comments added below.

[Snyder005]

Nice car, i always liked the wide body kits in R3, especially on the skylines.  Is this used in the Time Trials at all?

[Blooze]

The #8 NSX is the Suzuka West Car.

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[Snyder005]

Cool, looks like i'll try out your set-up when i get around to that Time Trial again.

[Spiny Anteater]

I'd say good luck, but I don't think you'll need it.

[Spiny Anteater]

The low downforce tune is now posted up, and again it was done without recourse to feuerdog's calculator. I have to admit that I'm not missing the calculator as much as I expected (although if the default set-up is a bit dodgy it does take longer to get the car tuned). I think that shows how much I've learnt from you guys - a year ago I wouldn't have known where to start!

The main thing that I noticed when I made a note of this tune is just how little I changed between the low and high d/f tunes. I'm not sure whether that means that I'm missing something, or are just too dumb to see the benefits of FD's tuning adjustments to allow for the downforce.

As it is, the only changes are to the rear camber (just to even out the tyre temp some more and help with purchase off the line), the gearing (need longer gears for the higher top speed, and higher final drive because the low d/f version doesn't grip as well off the start-line) and obviously the downforce.

As a note on progress, last night I finished running the real world tracks so just the snakes and the Reverse Speedway left. I'm currently 295th on those tracks just a few seconds ahead of Detrick. Most of those times are with the NSX, with just 2 or 3 in other (faster) cars. If I can keep up that progress I should end up around 1 hour 7 minutes for all the tracks.

[Spiny Anteater]

All the tracks are now run, so here's some stats for anyone that's interested:

Time for all tracks: 1 hour 6 minutes 35.517 seconds
QR: 168.552s
PR: 172.523s
FR: 130.788s
TR: 130.694s

I said above that the car was likely to end up around 1 hour 7 minutes, so it shows that there was an improvement through the snakes. I know that this car is lacking a bit compared to the Viper and Ferrari in straightline speed, so these times would suggest that it is more equal through the turns.

However, I also wonder if there is another factor. I've noticed, both here and in FM1, that the standard deviation of times between cars varies more on power tracks than on twisty tracks - to me that suggests that the type of car driven is more of a factor on tracks where power is a factor than there handling comes to the fore. I can't help thinking that the higher position on the original tracks is hugley influenced by the snake tracks where I'm being penalised less for not running a "leaderboard" car.

Does this sound a valid theory? - I know there are fewer runners on the snakes, but those lower numbers are generally not at the top end of the leaderboard so I don't think the lack of competition here is too great a factor. It could also go some way to explaining why I did better on the twisty stuff in the R2 Ferrari a few months ago.

[Blooze]

I think this is a valid consideration.  My thoughts are that there are finite speeds for the various turns on the various tracks.  The lower that speed is, the easier it is for many cars to participate.   All of the R1 cars can produce the grip and accel necessary to get a reasonable time on Boomslayer.  But few of them can match the Peugeot or Audi R10 when it comes to top speed on the Nissan Oval.  I consider that the reason why in my Forza world, grip is king.  There are only a few tracks where power can overhaul bad handling.

How does that influence me?  I usually use the top car on the Nissan Oval, run the track and let it go.  But I am almost always on a search for an alternate on the other tracks.

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