[Mod Edit- we don’t call out others on the forums.Please don’t make threads just to make fun of other people you have listed.-fyerball]
Showdown races continue to be particularly entertaining, especially when people expect X999 cars to compensate for their complete and utter lack of skill. 
Anyone else having fun outmatching these kind of players?
I definitely will enjoy kicking butt with the supposedly “rubbish” cars like the Rabbit GTI and SUV/Vans/Trucks as well as Group B
That’s more like it! Mind explaining how you managed to win against higher-classed vehicles? I’m assuming it has something to do with your tuning set-up and difficulty settings?
Showdown races have a delayed starts depending on the class of vehicles.
In this case OP would have had a sizeable head start over the other cars and they would close in on him during the race.
I seem to do well with lower class vehicles in Showdowns as well (except the drag one lol)
Well, first of all, he is a very good driver. Second, he probably does have a good build and a lower class so he does get a head start. That said, if you pick a showdown race were there are lots of twists and turns and not so many straight aways, it helps to have a lower class that can keep on power and high speed through all the corners which some of the faster cars can’t do as well.
On the showdowns around Castelletto, a lower class car that can do 70 the whole time will fare much better than a car that can hit 180 between switchbacks for a few seconds but needs to practically stop to the take the corner.
Nothing to do with difficulty settings.
Some people know how to be quick and some people don’t.
Online there are no crutches like rewind so if you miss a checkpoint you lose seconds.
So the art is staying on tracks and being quick.
Given FH2s inherent understeer and grip there is something to be gained via tuning eg add power and very little handling and then tune the thing to turn.
I’ve still been taking the motorsports approach and building for handling and lower weight but the Rivals I have done have all been in stock cars. I still find it’s not too difficult to stay ahead or keep up when playing online. Especially since most cars have so much power and torque right out of the box, I find there’s not much point to upgrading that. Once I start playing more online maybe my thoughts will change.
I find the cars have too much grip so see no need upgrading that lol
I am generally not upgrading too far though.
I will need to test the one beast car I have tuned. When its ready I will share lol. Loving the engine swaps where the source car is not in the game 
cough quad rotor cough
But yeah most tyre compounds are not getting much use by me lol
Rivals is just as crazy!!!
[Mod Edit- we don’t call out others on the forums.Please don’t post just to make fun of other people you have listed.-fyerball]
DT
Since you can’t tell before the race loads what kind of terrain you’ll be driving on you’d do well to be a little more modest with your car selections. You’re really going to struggle to control a high powered vehicle over some of the rough terrain you see in FH2.
I’ll admit to using the occasional rewind in rivals, and in SP I use it more to correct the drivatar’s errors, not mine (read: damn robot rammed me).
Those I race online can attest I’m no slouch in realtime though, and that’s what really matters in a game like FH2 I think. Rewind in rivals just means my run has a little shoe polish on it: it represents the best I could do. I’m of the belief (and SatNite has posted similar thoughts) that rewind won’t give you magic instant driving skill increases. If I’m a better driver/have a better car/better tune/any of the above, go ahead and mash ‘Y’, you’ll only pass me on a fluke. Then you’ll probably need to do so again next corner. And the one after that.
My point is: rewind is nice, but doesn’t allow noobs to beat veterans, unless they’re willing to play the game 3 seconds at a time in rivals mode. It won’t help anyone online, where the REAL (virtual) racing is done.
One other thing: It amuses me that I’ve seen attempted wallriding in online races, and more often than not it fails. The best is when someone sees them doing it and wrecks them (so long as they don’t get in my way).Failing that, tthey scrub off all their speed, or bounce off the wall into a tree. I suspect on the LB they’re “playing 3 seconds at a time” to get their 'ride just so.
Sorry for rambling on 
B Wald
I agree with B Wald.
I use rewind in rivals, not to the extreme but its just to speed up the process. If I don’t rewind and redo the turn now I will just run again and get it right anyway.
I just want to get it done and get back to online or career.
And as above I do not believe the lack of rewind shows me up as a slouch online.
While I do find the peculiar results of a mismatched field of cars to be somewhat humorous, I am of the opinion that so long as those gamers are within the parameters of the race (that is, not glitching the game to enter with otherwise ineligible vehicles), they are free to choose whichever car or truck they decide will either give them a chance of winning or will be one that will allow them to enjoy the game to their desires.
Believe it or not, some gamers just enjoy playing the game - win or lose - in whatever way they see fit. Again, as long as they are not exploiting any part of the game that may be considered cheating, keep beating them in whatever car class you choose and they’ll either learn to be more careful in their vehicle choice or, if they are content with the race results, will stick to their guns in the name of enjoying the game.
No need to blast their perceived shortcomings or, as has been put, “complete and utter lack of skill” on the web. In fact, this is nothing more than naming and shaming.
Wait, you think I have a problem with people using X999 cars? That’s cute.
You can relax. 
No. I don’t have a problem with people using X999 cars. I have a problem with people like you thinking of yourself to be so high and mighty because you beat people in a videogame, post a photo of said players’ gamertags (the naming) and then call out their supposed “complete and utter lack of skill” (the shaming). Joke all you want but apparently the moderators side with this perspective as your post has effectively been edited.
Huh, so they have. That took a mighty long time! No big deal though, it was only really there so I could make the Bond reference.
My favorite is beating higher classes by a margin larger than the head start difference. I do that a lot when I’m just one class lower.
I had an opponent exploit a glitch to launch his S2 class lambo alongside my class C fiat. I think it would normally have given me a 30 second head start. He “won”, but by barely more than 10 seconds. And I lost a good 5-6 seconds due to a spin.
I am going the different direction with this.
I also enjoy driving an X class car and reeling in a good player to win at the end.
.
I’ve never lost against any S2-X999 car in my D and C class cars, I wish there were more people who drive in the lower classes.