First, let me say that I am a huge fan of the MX-5 in R3E. IMO, it is the best addition to the game in over a year. The feel of the car, the handling, the sound and everything else is top notch. As I have been away from R3E for the better part of a year now, I am enjoying the car while racing against the AI on American tracks that I am very familiar with both in Sims and real life. I have driven the Mazda on Mid-Ohio, Laguna Seca and Daytona. I am also a huge fan of Spec Miata and Global MX-5 racing and have watched real racing in these classes both in person and broadcast. In my opinion, some of these have been the most exciting and competitive races that I have ever seen including the Spec Miata race during the SCCA National Run-Offs at Daytona a few years ago where 61 MX-5 took to the track and races at Sebring and Mid-Ohio where the win was decided by thousands of a second. One thing that is the common denominator in all those real life races is the drafting that takes place each and every lap of the race. A driver can go from 20th place to the front in just a few laps due to using the draft to make passes on the longer straights. This is the one area that I think may be a little lacking in R3E. I have found that all my passes come during braking. The AI seems a little tentative going in to some corners. But on the straights where I would expect to be able to use the draft to make a pass, I find that I am actually losing straight away speed even when tucked up right under the bumper of the car ahead of me. I do not believe that should happen. There does not seem to be much draft effect at all unless I am trailing two cars running side by side ahead of me at Daytona and then I get a pull from them. In the real life races at Daytona I saw the Spec Miata lead change two or three times per lap while on the high banks and cars paired up and drafted by each other. I have seen passes on Global MX-5 made many times on the back straight of Mid-Ohio prior to reaching the corner at China Beach. That does not seem to happen in R3E right now. Running the default set-up with the AI set to where my times are about mid pack, I cannot seem to get a pull from the draft on the straights and must make all my passes under braking. I feel drafting is a integral part of MX-5 racing in the real world and should be the same in R3E In my opinion, the drafting effect needs to be enhanced slightly. I was just wondering what other drive's experience has been. Do you agree or do I just need to get more experienced with the nuances of the car? No matter what, this has become my favorite car and racing in R3E. Once I knock the rust off my driving, I intend to start joining some multiplayer races featuring this car. EDIT: For those that have not had the pleasure of seeing a Global MX-5 Cup race.
I havent watched any real life mx5 races but now that you say it id agree that the slipstream doesnt do a lot in these cars in r3e based on my (limited) experience. Yesterday in a ranked race i was 4th the entire time and for like 10 minutes straight 1st place was never more than a second in front of me and yet i never even got to a point where i had a realistic chance of an overtake at the end of a straight
I felt the same way about the TCR cars when I did a race at Daytona. It took a long time for not much of an effect.