Based on: Chevrolet Camaro SS ‘10When I saw this pop up in the RKM tuning thread I had to go look. Back in 2001, Cartoon Network began airing episodes of Gundam Wing in the US and that became my stepping stone into the world of Gundam and anime in general. And of course Deathscythe was my favorite of the mobile suits in the show (well, Deathscythe Hell really but close enough for our purposes here). The Camaro, on the other hand, not so much a favorite of mine. I was disappointed when GM killed off the Camaro/Firebird and was looking forward to its return. The retro style is OK but it lacks finishing and a cohesive character. So let's see which side of the fence we land on with this tune.
Obtained: Brand new model at Chevrolet
Drivetrain: FR
Horsepower: 687 BHP (@ 31.5 miles)
Torque:---- 85 kgfm
Weight:---- 1210 kg
PP:-------- 651
PARTS
GT Auto
Racing Modifications
Tuning Shop
Rigidity Improvement
Engine Tuning Stage 3
Sports ECU
Sports Intake Manifold
Racing Air Filter
Titanium Racing Exhaust
Sports Exhaust Manifold
Catalytic Converter: Sports
Supercharger
Fully Customisable Transmission
Twin Plate Clutch
Semi Racing Flywheel
Carbon Propeller Shaft
Fully Customisable LSD
Fully Customisable Suspension Kit
Sports Soft Tyres
SETUP
Body/Chassis
Aerodynamics
Downforce: 35/60
Ballast
Amount:-- 0
Position: 0
Engine
Power Limiter
Power Level: 100.0%
Transmission
Transmission
(Set Max Speed, then each individual ratio.)
1st:-- 3.041
2nd:-- 2.014
3rd:-- 1.454
4th:-- 1.146
5th:-- 0.950
6th:-- 0.813
Final: 3.350
Max Speed: 242 MPH
Drivetrain
Differential
Initial: 0/5
Accel:-- 0/20
Braking: 0/5
Suspension
Suspension
Ride Height: -25/-25
Spring Rate: 12.5/8.0
Extension:-- 8/8
Compression: 6/6
Anti-Roll:-- 5/3
Camber:----- 3.0/2.7
Toe:-------- –0.15/-0.05
Brakes
Brake Balance Controller
Brake Balance: 5/6
Intended Driving Options
Transmission: Manual (MT)
ABS: 1
Everything else: OFF
Tuner Comments:
This is Deathscythe. Deathscythe doesn’t care about you. Deathscythe doesn’t care about your problems. Deathscythe doesn’t care about your health. All Deathscythe cares about is slaughtering everything, including you.
In stock trim the car is actually not bad. Despite looking slapped together on the real roads it is suitably quick with some actual agility. It will turn very nicely if you keep it with the limit. Step past that and you will find the muscle car within. True to its American heritage it will light up the rear tires given an excuse, especially in the higher RPM range. The four-speed gearbox was also a killer. On something modern as this is you'd expect at least a five-speed. Retro is fine but only for aesthetics, not technology. All said and done I was able to lap GVS in a respectable 2'12.380".
Since this tune is a race mod car I am adding in the extra step of testing the RM version. I went straight to GT Auto after the stock test and bought only the race modification, no parts. I did go through the list of parts and from what I was able to see this includes aero, weight reduction, race exhaust, custom trans, twin plate clutch, semi-racing flywheel, driveshaft and custom suspension. Looking over that list I expect that it will handle much differently. And that is exactly right. While it did not necessarily feel any faster the handling has improved and feels easier to control letting you carry more speed through the corners. The steering feels crisp but without being twitchy. The downside here is that none of the changes have really helped to keep the rear in line. However the time at the line changes significantly down to 2'04.448".
The parts mod will make your head spin. True to its namesake this car is stupidly fast! The pace is almost unbelievable, especially given the feel during the lap. It still has a tendency to spin the rear tires and with this power it is nigh unforgiving. If you mess up you will eat wall. Catch a few blades of grass? Hit the rumbles the wrong way? Sneeze? You'll be staring back from whence you came or perhaps get a nice view of everything around you once or twice. Recovery is extremely difficult from all but the most minor of mistakes. Coming up the hill through the first esses I took the right a little too fast and was too far left to make a decent line through the left at the top. Tried to slow to avoid shooting into the wall, hit the rumbles and lost the back end. I spun from the top of the hill down to and through the second hairpin and several feet into the kitty litter beyond. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the pattern the tires made as they smoked all the way down the hill...it was quite artsy. The next lap felt better and I was able to avoid ending up off the track. I expected it to break two minutes but not by as much as it did; it hadn't felt that fast with all the corrections I had to make coming out of the corners. I ended at a best of 1'54.506" shattering the lap records of everything I had driven at GVS previously. And I haven't even played with settings yet!
Tweaking the settings to Roj's specs tightened the car considerably. There is now more of a feeling of control even if you don't necessarily have any. Recovering from mistakes is possible but only just. Deathscythe will still chew you up and spit you out, just now it takes a second to mull it over. If you catch it quick enough you can survive. That power oversteer is still hanging around but with a car like this it will probably never go away nor should it really as that is part of its character. Fast is another part. The time has gone down another chunk to 1'52.399", a 20 second drop from stock. Not bad.
The Camaro has been redeemed a bit for me and the name certainly fits well. This car has earned itself a little yellow star in my collection.
Lap Times
Grand Valley Speedway: 1'52.399"
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