Assetto Corsa Rally update 0.6 is out now, adding three cars spanning 38 years of rallying history, alongside private lobbies, custom livery support and a new Photo Mode. Players should note that leaderboards are being reset following the evolution of the driving model across all surfaces.
Three New Cars: 38 Years of Rally History
The headline additions are the 1980 Audi Quattro Gr.4, the 1999 Peugeot 206 WRC and the 2018 Volkswagen Polo GTI R5.
1980 Audi Quattro Gr.4
Audi unveiled the Quattro at the 1980 Geneva Motor Show, when rallying was dominated by lightweight two-wheel-drive cars. Audi’s answer was permanent four-wheel drive paired with a turbocharged five-cylinder engine, a combination that changed the rules of the game.
The game features the specification in which it first appeared at Rally Algarve, running as a course car: a 2.1-litre turbocharged five-cylinder producing around 320 hp, permanent 4WD and a mechanically locked centre differential. One detail reveals how different these early cars were: pulling the handbrake locks all four wheels, making traditional handbrake turns virtually useless.
Hannu Mikkola drove the prototype at the 1980 Rally Algarve, and although his times did not count towards the classification, he set the fastest time on 24 of 30 stages and would have won by around 26 minutes.
1999 Peugeot 206 WRC
The 206 WRC debuted at the 1999 Tour de Corse with drivers François Delecour and Gilles Panizzi, though both cars retired with mechanical problems. Marcus Grönholm scored its first WRC win in Sweden in 2000, and the car went on to win three consecutive manufacturers’ titles.
This is the 1999 specification, with a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder producing around 300 hp and four-wheel drive. Its compact dimensions and agile handling made it particularly effective on tight and technical stages.
2018 Volkswagen Polo GTI R5
Volkswagen developed the Polo GTI R5 over almost two years and more than 10,000 kilometres of testing, prioritising durability, consistency and ease of servicing for customer teams.
It features a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder producing 272 hp and 400 Nm, paired with a five-speed sequential gearbox. Weighing just 1,230 kg, it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in around 3.9 seconds. It debuted at the 2018 Rally Catalunya, where Petter Solberg took a WRC-2 podium on its very first rally.
Private Lobbies, Custom Liveries and Photo Mode
Private lobbies are password protected, giving you full control over your multiplayer sessions so you play only with the people you decide.
Custom livery support lets you import your own designs, save multiple favourites and select them from the in-game menu. The developers describe this as a first step towards modding support, which they plan to expand in future. Documentation is included in the game’s LiveryTemplates folder.
Photo Mode is accessible from the race, replay, service park and main menu in in-car view.
New Events and Driving Model Changes
Three new event groups add 18 rally events for the new cars, with AI times for all three added to every stage.
The Supernova Team has also evolved the driving model across all surfaces. The tyre thermal model is now enabled, ideal tyre pressure is 28 psi for tarmac tyres and 32 psi for gravel and ice tyres, and Greece and Wales now have separate gravel surface characteristics. Further tyre model tuning aims at more realistic gravel stage times.
Because of these driving model changes, leaderboards are being reset. All previously earned medals have been retained.
Other Notable Changes
- Online races now require 70% of ready players to start before the timer expires, and the grid timer no longer waits for players who have left.
- Weather, time and temperature conditions are locked in Time Attack and Challenges.
- The 60 FPS cap on replays has been removed.
- Ideal trajectories have been updated for all remaining stages.
- A default binding preset for the Logitech RS5 has been added.
- FMOD audio middleware has been upgraded to version 2.03.14.
Source: Assetto Corsa Rally Steam announcement