While the magnificent HistorX mod has been used exclusively for the past year or so, we should all remember that this is the rFactor Racing Club (not the Historic Club), and that allows us the latitude to explore and employ other mods to enhance your RD racing experience.
Dedicated Cortinaphiles or Alfacentrics need not fear - the HistorX mod is not going away, and it will still be used for the vast majority of of events, but we are going to be trying something slightly different for one weeks worth of events per month. Replacing the themed "WST" events that were devised to engineer some close racing for all, we will be running some events with the Made-For-RD V1.75 of the Caterham Mod by Major Parts & Cubits.
These used to be a highlight of the RD Calendar, providing simple, close and competitive racing that everyone could enjoy. Despite the mod containing all sorts of weapons-grade speed contraptions, the two models that worked after best after some extensive live event-based testing were the Classic and the Academy...the two slowest cars in the mod.
Both of these cars are the simplest and most standardised models in the available range, and crucially they share one thing that makes them best for our purposes: you cannot upgrade the default road-going tyres. This means you can slide them a little (the sticky upgrade tyres are a little too "grip, grip, crash"), and they feel a lot more like an HistorX sort of tyre. Pace-wise, the Classic is about the same sort of pace as a mid-pack A1 class - think the 64 Grantura, 911E, Mini 1275 sort of pace - while the Academy is closer to the aforementioned Alfa & Cortina sort of pace...and the grip is about the same. The Cats also use RealFeel - the preferred FFB engine for HistorX - so the cars feel related through the wheel. Plus the Cats have a secret weapon that we'll come onto later.
As the Classic is a road car, and the Academy is a strictly controlled racing class (where the cars have to be road legal to compete), they are both pretty restricted in their setups. No more torturing yourself over Diff percentages, Final Drive or Damper settings - because all of that stuff is locked down. All you can change is:-
Fuel
Steering Lock
Brake Bias / Pressure
Tyre Pressures
Camber
Anti Roll Bar (Front Only on the Classic)
Toe In/Out
What we found in previous events was that drivers developed a single setup per model, and then used that for every event...because it simply wasn't worth chopping and changing on the available settings. You get your Camber, Toe & Tyre settings to heat your tyres properly, and you're done. Just jump in and go.
We mentioned Upgrades earlier, and both cars do have a few Upgrades available...but all are performance neutral / cosmetic only - wheels, rollcages, horn, etc.
The Cats really are as simple as it comes, and these 2 models always delivered great racing across a multitude of track types. Given the stated relative speeds, it would be reasonable to assume that these would be fun on tight tracks but maybe not so much on the longer ones...well, nothing could be further from the truth. This is where the Cat's Secret Weapon kicks in, because they slipstream like crazy, and those "boring" straights become non-stop trains of aerodynamic leapfrog. If anyone has watched any real life Caterham racing, they will know that this mirrors how the races go in reality. As long as the Members all respect each other during the races, we will all get through and have more than enough opportunities to re-pass if we get jumped ourselves.
We recommend that you use a non-HistorX rFactor install (an rFactor Lite one would seem favourite) to house the Caterhams.
A big thank you to @Stuart Thomson for bringing the pack together and making the beautiful skin pack.
Click me for the mod pack
Dedicated Cortinaphiles or Alfacentrics need not fear - the HistorX mod is not going away, and it will still be used for the vast majority of of events, but we are going to be trying something slightly different for one weeks worth of events per month. Replacing the themed "WST" events that were devised to engineer some close racing for all, we will be running some events with the Made-For-RD V1.75 of the Caterham Mod by Major Parts & Cubits.
These used to be a highlight of the RD Calendar, providing simple, close and competitive racing that everyone could enjoy. Despite the mod containing all sorts of weapons-grade speed contraptions, the two models that worked after best after some extensive live event-based testing were the Classic and the Academy...the two slowest cars in the mod.
Both of these cars are the simplest and most standardised models in the available range, and crucially they share one thing that makes them best for our purposes: you cannot upgrade the default road-going tyres. This means you can slide them a little (the sticky upgrade tyres are a little too "grip, grip, crash"), and they feel a lot more like an HistorX sort of tyre. Pace-wise, the Classic is about the same sort of pace as a mid-pack A1 class - think the 64 Grantura, 911E, Mini 1275 sort of pace - while the Academy is closer to the aforementioned Alfa & Cortina sort of pace...and the grip is about the same. The Cats also use RealFeel - the preferred FFB engine for HistorX - so the cars feel related through the wheel. Plus the Cats have a secret weapon that we'll come onto later.
As the Classic is a road car, and the Academy is a strictly controlled racing class (where the cars have to be road legal to compete), they are both pretty restricted in their setups. No more torturing yourself over Diff percentages, Final Drive or Damper settings - because all of that stuff is locked down. All you can change is:-
Fuel
Steering Lock
Brake Bias / Pressure
Tyre Pressures
Camber
Anti Roll Bar (Front Only on the Classic)
Toe In/Out
What we found in previous events was that drivers developed a single setup per model, and then used that for every event...because it simply wasn't worth chopping and changing on the available settings. You get your Camber, Toe & Tyre settings to heat your tyres properly, and you're done. Just jump in and go.
We mentioned Upgrades earlier, and both cars do have a few Upgrades available...but all are performance neutral / cosmetic only - wheels, rollcages, horn, etc.
The Cats really are as simple as it comes, and these 2 models always delivered great racing across a multitude of track types. Given the stated relative speeds, it would be reasonable to assume that these would be fun on tight tracks but maybe not so much on the longer ones...well, nothing could be further from the truth. This is where the Cat's Secret Weapon kicks in, because they slipstream like crazy, and those "boring" straights become non-stop trains of aerodynamic leapfrog. If anyone has watched any real life Caterham racing, they will know that this mirrors how the races go in reality. As long as the Members all respect each other during the races, we will all get through and have more than enough opportunities to re-pass if we get jumped ourselves.
We recommend that you use a non-HistorX rFactor install (an rFactor Lite one would seem favourite) to house the Caterhams.
A big thank you to @Stuart Thomson for bringing the pack together and making the beautiful skin pack.
Click me for the mod pack
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