fideelio: as the car unlocks and career progress follow a timeline through the history (and pseudo history) of a segment of rally racing, it's true the technology of the cars improves over time. as technology improved, cars gained more power, more grip, more aerodynamic devices, and more gears. with the increase in speed however, they also became more frantic to drive.

while horrible may be a strong word to describe the group 2 cars, it's true they would have more mass, less power, and worse brakes than later cars, but it's also true your driving skills will improve as you progress through the classes, so upon returning to group 2 later, you may find them a more enjoyable relaxing drive than say, group s.

group 2 cars are more slide more easily, but they're also more manageable given their lower speed.
happy to hear you stuck with it though, as it sounds like you found something more to taste.
each of the cars in art of rally drive differently, so if you're not getting along with one, change it up. there's quite a variety even within a particular class. have fun! :)

fideelio: this would be fine, if there weren't global cross-platform online leaderboards for stage times.