LIGHT VS POWERFUL. what is the best car? LIGHT VETTE VS MY MUSTANG

[flyhalf]

from the FB page
THIS IS WILD.
what is better? light car or more powerful car?
ok I lost by half second .mainly due to a mistake in t10 (overslowed) and t11 ( too deep braking) .I was head to head till t9.
so WHAT IS BETTER?
this is Jake corvette vs me and my mustang
320whp 2925lbs VS 470whp 3750lbs
150whp difference
825lbs difference
main differences.
1.MINIMUM SPEEDS on slow corner where his corvette is sometime 10mph faster than me.
2. Mustang is up to 10mph faster on straight.
3. Braking points of corvette are way deeper.

and of course consumables will be way different.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS!

 

[JDee]

With my stock motor vettes are almost always faster than me in a straight line, at least the C5 and up models. Corners are another matter though, I am faster than most vettes there.

 

[Ewheels]

With my stock motor vettes are almost always faster than me in a straight line, at least the C5 and up models. Corners are another matter though, I am faster than most vettes there.

That's interesting, I would have thought it would be the opposite as corner speeds favor lighter weight cars and corvettes definitely have us beat there.

 

[JDee]

True dat, but most of these guys are not running big enough rubber, they are running staggered with smaller front tires so they're kind of pushy. C5s and 6s came with 245 up front/285 rear and that's what most of them are running. Have yet to see one with anything more than 285s up front, except for the full-on race cars which run square big tires as they should be and they're in a whole other league.
C5/C6 Vettes are much lighter than my stang, I think around 300 - 400 lbs, have better aero with lower silhouette and have within about 25 HP of what I have so they kill me on the straights. ZL1 1LE Camaros are really a problem, way more horsepower than I have and a very good chassis, if they're well driven they are unbeatable. Even the 1LE NA is a tough nut to crack with a good wheelman.
The general knows how to make a car handle, just too bad some of them are so fugly. Though with the direction Ford went on the new car they're starting to look better......

 

[honeybadger]

from the FB page
THIS IS WILD.
what is better? light car or more powerful car?
ok I lost by half second .mainly due to a mistake in t10 (overslowed) and t11 ( too deep braking) .I was head to head till t9.
so WHAT IS BETTER?
this is Jake corvette vs me and my mustang
320whp 2925lbs VS 470whp 3750lbs
150whp difference
825lbs difference
main differences.
1.MINIMUM SPEEDS on slow corner where his corvette is sometime 10mph faster than me.
2. Mustang is up to 10mph faster on straight.
3. Braking points of corvette are way deeper.

and of course consumables will be way different.
SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS!

What tires is the Vette using? Compound and size? some of that mid corner speed looks like tire to me

 

[flyhalf]

What tires is the Vette using? Compound and size? some of that mid corner speed looks like tire to me

A7 like.me.
335 345 (im 315.sqaured)
Definitely important. But turn a car 800lbs lighter matters too i think.

 

[honeybadger]

A7 like.me.
335 345 (im 315.sqaured)
Definitely important. But turn a car 800lbs lighter matters too i think.

For sure, but it'll really exaggerate the differences having big tires on a light car. If you went to equivalent tires, i'd bet those two corners where you were down 10mph at the apex would decrease dramatically.

I'd be curious if weight matters as much in TT as it does in W2W. Since you have time to cool down the tires/brakes, not sure it matters as much assuming power to weight ratio is equal and you're somewhat similar in aero.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

Weight is the enemy, plain and simple.
TT this is a very close battle; in a W2W race your extra HP might allow you to pass on straights and defend/hold up a faster car in corners, negating their momentum advantage. However if such a car were to get around you, you might not be able to catch it again, even with the power.

 

[Stan Whitney]

Thats a lot of tire disadvantage, is that per rules for TT2? If you are running 18's now, can your setup handle 19's, to gain a bit of diameter which will help braking and accel.?

 

[flyhalf]

Thats a lot of tire disadvantage, is that per rules for TT2? If you are running 18's now, can your setup handle 19's, to gain a bit of diameter which will help braking and accel.?

I feel is quite the opposite tho.
Smaller wheel is lighter and the 10speed gives a good option for optimal power band.
I come from 19.

 

[Stan Whitney]

I feel is quite the opposite tho.
Smaller wheel is lighter and the 10speed gives a good option for optimal power band.
I come from 19.

Yeah, lots of advantages of the smaller combo, gearing, weight. The only possible gain of the taller tire is some more mechanical grip, but if you lose 3 things and gain 1, its not going to be enough. Your experience shows which one is faster.

 

[Scootsmcgreggor]

A7 like.me.
335 345 (im 315.sqaured)
Definitely important. But turn a car 800lbs lighter matters too i think.

As has been said weight is always the enemy. To overcome extra weight is by definition inefficient. Not that you cannot achieve the same lap time in the end, but momentum cars will always be more efficient. So if you define "best" in the traditional sense in racing, that is generally the most efficient solution. The most efficient is the lightest.

In this case as well the amount of tire each car has obscures your comparison. The vette's tire is being tasked with carrying 2.05lbs per mm tire width, and your car's tires are being tasked with carrying 2.93lbs per mm tire width. That's 42% more weight per mm tire width. So wile the performance relationship may not be a linear 42% advantage, whatever it is it is certainly material.

 

[ArizonaBOSS]

There are no tire size limitations in TTU, TT1, TT2, TT3--these are the "race your wallet" classes. Only a penalty for slicks vs. DOTs, and *credits* for running smaller tires than a certain size and/or treadwear.

 

[blacksheep-1]

Light cars will be faster everywhere but top speed, if the straight is short enough, the light car will beat you there as well. ( due to a faster corner exit) That's a general statement.
Similar with aero, more aero will usually win, (unless the corner is so slow it relies solely on mechanical grip) unless you have to drag that barn door down a long straight ( which is why we pulled the wicker off your car at Daytona).

 

[KazarS197]

Pretty cool video! I'm curious how a 2017 grand sport 3425 ish lbs and 460 HP stock with slicks and race camber would do in the same comparison. 325 lb diff and 60ish whp diff. As for the vid I think it's hard to beat the lighter weight and wider tires even with the lower HP. I think vetts are hard to beat for bang for the buck with the HP weight and handling. BUT there is nothing like a Stang! Pretty darn comparable in many aspects and look so much better. Couple tweeks and it surpasses. The Italian Stang is one of my favorites here!

 

[stevbd]

Cool video and nice driving. Adding to the weight is always the enemy theme, this video is a good reminder of the rule that although the grip of a tire will increase with more weight put on it, that's not a linear formula. So even if you have 2 cars with identical power to weight ratios, and identical tire width to weight ratios, and everything else is identical, the lighter car will corner faster. The heavier car will also have more weight transfer from the inside to the outside tires, further compounding the problem.

My first and last thought watching the video though, was, you guys are freaking fast! Fun video.

 

[Ewheels]

Ale, here's your next car
Rush SR

Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap consumables, fully adjustable, ready for w2w or TT, and paddle shifted. Hell, I want one!

 

[EF1]

Ale, here's your next car
Rush SR

Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap consumables, fully adjustable, ready for w2w or TT, and paddle shifted. Hell, I want one!

That looks like fun. I want one too!

 

[flyhalf]

Ale, here's your next car
Rush SR

Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, cheap consumables, fully adjustable, ready for w2w or TT, and paddle shifted. Hell, I want one!

One was at national. St2..didn't do very well for st2.

 

[EF1]

With that kind of hp/weight advantage and running more tire, this shouldn't even be a competition. The fact that you were only down .6 second with a couple of mistakes shows how good of a driver you are.