When many people start playing this game, they aren't quite sure how to tune a car for drifting. It can be a frustrating situation and I figured that I could probably help people out by posting a guide. So here is my version of a Drift Tuning Guide for Tokyo Xtreme Racer Drift 2, enjoy.
Drift Tuning Guide for Tokyo Xtreme Racer Drift 2
Written by: why_spyder
Version 1.20, Copyright 2008 All Rights Reserved
Table of Contents
[0] Version History
[1] Introduction
[2] Critical Tuning
[3] Choosing Your Car
[4] Powertrain
[5] Suspension
[6] Alignment
[7] Other
[8] ROM
[9] Tires
[10] Wheels
[11] Drift Techniques
[12] Special Thanks
[13] Copyright Information
[14] Comments
[0] Version History
1.00 - First complete draft finished (August 6, 2008).
1.10 - Addition of five more sections and some minor corrections (August 8, 2008).
1.20 - Minor corrections made (August 9, 2008).
[1] Introduction
his is a guide that should help anyone that is looking to improve their experience with TXRD2. Tuning allows for better performance against rivals and improves the enjoyment in Record Challenge mode.
[2] Critical Tuning
Critical Tuning is the combination of parts that allow for the highest performance for each car. Each type of engine has its own combination.
H Engine/Turbo
Part A: UNI
Part B: HVN
Part C: HRM
Intercooler: KW
Turbine: GME
Air Filter: TZM
R Engine/Turbo
Part A: HVN
Part B: HVN
Part C: HRM
Intercooler: CRA
Turbine: TRM
Air Filter: KW
S Engine/Turbo
Part A: AKP
Part B: HRM
Part C: UNI
Intercooler: GME
Turbine: TZM
Air Filter: TRM
V Engine/Turbo
Part A: BAS
Part B: HRM
Part C: UNI
Intercooler: TRM
Turbine: CRA
Air Filter: KW
[3] Choosing Your Car
When you first purchase a car for drifting, think about what you want your car to be able to do. The configuration of your drivetrain will affect how easily you will be able to drift.
Front-Engine, Front-Wheel Drive (FF) - These cars are not much for drift cars. With the drive wheels in front, the rear of the car has to forced to slide around the corners. Not a configuration recommended for beginners.
Front-Engine, Rear-Wheel Drive (FR) - The most commonly used car for drifting. These cars are lighter in the rear than the front and slide easily. FR's are beginner friendly.
Mid-Engine, Rear-Wheel Drive (MR) - Just as good as FR cars, MR's are usually used more for grip racing. Their mid-mounted engine make them much more balanced in weight (front to rear) than FR's.
Front-Engine, All-Wheel Drive (AWD) - Designed for rally driving, these cars are built for gripping. These cars require special tuning to get them to handle more like an FR/MR car. AWD are not for beginners.
[4] Powertrain
The powertrain is where all the gearing is adjusted. Adjustment of the transmission and differential is just as important as any other aspect of the car.
Transmission - Setting the values to the right (larger numbers), will increase acceleration at the sacrifice of top speed. Moving the values to the left (smaller numbers) will do just the opposite. Before changing the 1st - 5th (or 6th if applicable) transmission gears, change the final drive gearing. The final drive gearing will affect the car's performance more efficiently than the individual transmission gears will. Changing the individual transmission gears should be used for fine tuning.
Tip - Adjust the final drive first and test out the car. Once you find a relatively good arrangement, go back and do any fine tuning you feel is necessary (i.e. adjust a gear to go longer or shorter).
Initial Torque - This controls how strong the LSD starts out when accelerating and braking. A larger value will cause some understeer at low speeds, but at higher speeds it will cause more oversteer. For drifting, oversteer is better than understeer. Be careful though, as too large of a value will make the car less stable at higher speeds.
Tip - Start with the default value until you get to know your car's handling. Once you know how your car handles itself then try changing the value up or down to see how your car changes.
LSD Ratio - This controls the "long-term" actions of the LSD. When cornering at higher speeds, the car's weight shifts from the inside wheels (closest to inside corner wall) to the outside wheels. When this happens the inner wheel will break loose. A larger value will increase the tendency for the tires to break loose - therefore inducing oversteer. Too large of a value will make the car more likely to spin out.
Tip - Start with the default value until you get to know your car's handling. Once you know how your car handles itself then try changing the value up or down to see how your car changes.
[5] Suspension
Suspension is probably the most important part to setting up a drift car. It keeps the tires on the pavement and keeps the car controllable when going sideways. Alignment plays a roll too - which is covered in the next section.
Spring Rate - This controls how resistant to compression your suspension is. A larger value increases the resistance (stiffness). Stiffer suspension will lessen pitch (front to back motion) and roll (side to side motion) - which reduces weight transfer. Less weight transfer will make steering tighter while cornering. Too large of a value will make driving on roads with bumps and dips more difficult - as the car will have a tendency to bounce rather than stick to the pavement.
Tip - If the car pitches or rolls too much, increase the values.
Damper - The amount of compression and extension by the suspension is controlled here. The damper must be matched closely to the spring rate to prevent the shocks from not being allowed to move (will induce understeer) or being allowed to move too much (body of car smacking the pavement - causing a bounce). A larger value will reduce pitch and roll; reducing the transfer of weight.
Tip - If the car pitches or rolls too much, increase the values. I recommend making the values the same as the spring rate to make sure the suspension has enough room to travel.
Stabilizer - This controls how much roll is between the left and right side of the car. A larger value will help prevent body roll. Having a stiffer front stabilizer will increase understeer and a stiffer rear stabilizer will increase oversteer.
Tip - Start with increasing the rear value to increase oversteer.
Ride Height - Just as it states, this controls how high your car sits off the pavement. A lower stance will lower the center of gravity on the car, improving stability. Lowering the front end increases front tire traction and promotes oversteer. Lowering the rear will increase traction to the back tires and promote understeer. Too low of a value will increase the chances of bottoming out on courses with uneven pavement.
Tip - Lower the car as much as the course will allow you.
[6] Alignment
The alignment of the tires is almost as important as the suspension itself. This affects the tire wear and the amount of traction on the pavement.
Toe - This helps to control the steering of the car around corners and on straight-aways. Toe-in is when the front edges of opposing (left to right) tires are closer than the rear edges. Toe-out is just the opposite, when the rear edges of opposing tires are closer to each other. On the front tires, toe-in increases understeer - toe-out increases oversteer.
Tip - This is more of fine tuning setting. When you have the rest of your car's settings figured out then come back to this if you want to.
Camber - This controlls the vertical angle of the wheels. Positive camber makes the bottom of the tires closer together - forming a "\\ //" when viewing from the rear of the car. Negative camber makes the top of the tires lean together - creating a "//\\". Oversteer can be created by setting the front to negative camber and the rear to positive camber or excessive negative camber.
Tip - If you need more oversteer, start by adjusting the rear camber.
[7] Other
Brake Effect - This adjusts the strength of the front and rear brakes. A larger in the rear will promote the rear of the car to slide - creating oversteer.
Tip - Adjust the brakes to fit your braking style. Strong front brakes will improve straight-line braking - strong rear brakes will aide in brake drifting.
Hand Brake Work - This adjusts the strength of the handbrake (e-brake).
Tip - Adjust the brakes to fit your braking style. If the brake isn't getting the rear tires locked up fast enough for you - increase the value.
Wing Angle - This is only applicable if a GT Wing is installed. Increasing the value will increase downforce - making grip and stability stronger at the sacrifice of top speed.
Tip - This isn't too noticable unless you are running higher speeds (100+ mph). It can help with traction during high speed drifts.
Steering Angle - This adjusts the maximum steering angle while driving. As speed of the car increases, the steering angle drops. Adjusting the angle can allow for a larger angle at high speeds. Larger angles aide in the ease of drifting. Too large of an angle will make the car quite hard to control around corners and on straight-aways.
Tip - Adjust this setting before changing camber, as this setting can really do a lot for car control without sacrificing traction like camber does.
Torque Balance - This is only for certain AWD vehicles. Adjustment of this can make the AWD vehicle behave more like a FF or FR car. More torque to the front will create the FF-like effect - more torque to teh rear will create the FR-like effect.
Tip - Moving the torque to the rear is better for drifting for beginners. More experienced drivers may not adjust this much.
Traction Control - This adjusts how much wheel spin is allowed. A larger value will increase traction at the expense of acceleration and power. Setting the traction control to "0" disables it.
Tip - For drifting a setting of "0 - 2" is probably best. Another way to counteract wheelspin is to put on stickier tires.
ABS (Anti-Lock Brake System) - This prevents brakes from locking up. A larger value will increase control while braking, but will reduce braking power. Setting the ABS to "0" disables it.
Tip - Adjust this to fit your braking style.
[8] ROM
The brains of the car, ROM's adjust the torque curve of the engine. The adjustment of the ROM can really turn a good car into a great one.
Tip - Move the torque curve to match the powerband of the car. When you install a L Level exhaust, the torque curve will need to be in the mid- to low-range. H Level exhausts run high RPM so the torque curve will need to be in the mid- to high-range.
Remember, torque is the twisting force applied to the car, not horsepower. Horsepower is the measurement of the work done by the twisting force over a period of time. So focus on getting the torque curve matched to the car's performance parts.
[9] Tires
The one thing that connects the car to the road. Selection of the appropriate tires is quite important in drifting. Too much traction and the tires won't break loose when you want them to - too little and you won't make it around the corners in one piece.
Tip - Start with Sports Tires. These will allow you to go with less or more traction in the future. It is important to have plenty of traction in the front tires, since they are what steer the car. In the rear is where experimentation will be needed. For more traction, Racing Tires work great. If less traction is needed, Wet Tires are the next best thing to Sports Tires.
[10] Wheels
These really can turn a car around in the aesthetics department - but that's not all. Believe it or not, they can also save you some weight and increase traction.
Using stock wheels as "0" weight, here is what the weight savings is:
Stock: "0" kg
Stock, +1: 0 kg
Stock, +2: 0 kg
Aftermarket, +0: -6 kg
Aftermarket, +1: -4 kg
Aftermarket, +2: -2 kg
The larger wheels are taller and slightly wider, giving the the tires an increased patch of traction (larger surface area of contact between tire and pavement).
Tip - If you are desperate for weight savings, use 2 sets of aftermarket (+0). For more traction, go for for the stock/aftermarket (+2).
[11] Drift Techniques
There are several recognized drifting techniques, they range from very basic to very advanced. I'll mention some of the easier techniques that can be applied to this game. Remember, practice makes perfect.
Handbrake (e-brake): When entering a corner, pull the handbrake and hold it until the rear of the car begins to swing around. Release the handbrake and apply the accelerator. For best results, try to entering the corner on inside or middle of the road - allowing space for your car to slide towards the outside when the rear tires break loose.
Clutch Kick: Very similar to the previous method, however you will want a more powerful car (or slicker tires in the rear). Approach the corner the same as you would as the handbrake method. Instead of holding the handbrake until the rear of the car comes around, you only hold the handbrake long enough to get the RPM's up (simulating the way holding in the clutch would do). When the RPM's redline, you release the handbrake - making the tires break loose. Apply the accelerator to keep the tires going.
Jump/Drop: When going around a corner, bounce the tires off of a curb or drop them into a dip to get tires to break loose. This is very basic, but can also be tricky. When the tires break loose from a dip, your car is going to want to slide a lot, so feathering the accelerator may be necessary.
Feint: This uses the natural inertia of the car's body to induce a drift. Approach the corner on the inside of the corner - as you get close quickly move to the outside of the road. Once you reach the outside, steer for the inside again - this will cause the car to roll and the tires to break loose. Apply the accelerator to help bring the car's rear end around.
Shift-Lock: With this, use the drivetrain to break the tires loose. When approaching a corner, downshift to throw the RPM's into the redline. The sudden jolt to the drivetrain will break the tires loose. Aim for the inside of the corner and apply the accelerator to bring the rear end around.
Braking: Strong rear brakes are needed for this. Approach the corner aiming for the inside wall, and hit the brakes. The rear end will break loose and start to come around. Once close to the apex, accelerate to continue through the corner.
Kansei (Accel-Off): A powerful car is and high speed is needed for this type of drift. When approaching the corner, let off of the accelerator. The car's engine inertia will break the tires loose, and cause the rear end to start coming around. Throttle and wheel steering are needed to keep the car in control through the corner.
Tip: Also in this game, some tracks have leaves/debris in the corners that can be used to break the tires loose.
[12] Special Thanks
Rotary Junkie
Genki Racing Project
[13] Copyright Information
This guide is protected by copyright laws. You may not, under any circumstances, reproduce this guide. This guide and all views expressed in it are protected.
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[14] Comments
Please use this guide as just that, a guide. It is not perfect, nor is it a complete guide. If you don't like how something is in this guide - do one of two things: A)Make a suggested change, or B)Write your own guide filling in all the mistakes I made.
