Rivelta Solare

Rivelta Solare
Manufacturer	Rivelta
Appearance	Ridge Racer Ridge Racer 2 Ridge Racer Revolution Rave Racer Pocket Racer (opponent only) Ridge Racer V (first named)
Engine	4.5L Flat 12 DOHC (Standard class) 5.7L Flat 12 DOHC (Extra class) 6.5 L Flat 12 DOHC (Rave Racer) 8.0L Flat 12 DOHC (Oval class)
Drivetrain	MR
Handling type	Drift (V)

"Rivelta's mid-engine car sacrifices handling in pursuit of top speed."

―Ridge Racer V's blurb for the Standard class version

"The Rivelta "Solare" pursues top speed while sacrificing handling. It is a drift car for advanced users."

―Ridge Racer V's blurb for the Standard class version -translated from the JP version

"This tuned-up Solare has been tweaked to enhance its top speed performance."

―Ridge Racer V's blurb for the Extra class version

The Rivelta Solare was a sports car manufactured by Rivelta, appearing since the first Ridge Racer. The name itself did not appear until Ridge Racer V.

After Rivelta was purchased and closed down by Soldat, the Solare may have been succeeded by the Solare-based Soldat Raggio.

Description

The Solare is characterized as an Italian mid-engined sports car, with the looks resembling the Ferrari Testarossa, or more specifically, the Ferrari 512 TR.

• The comparison makes even more sense sense considering the Solare has a Flat-12 engine, just like the Testarossa. However, its standard engine is only 4.5L, whereas both the Testarossa and 512 TR have a 4.9L engine.

• In the first Ridge Racer game, the Solare appear as opponent cars in 4 colors. These cars (Solvalou Yellow, Solvalou Blue, Xevious Red, and Xevious Green) became playable in the PlayStation version, each with different handling properties, as well in Ridge Racer Revolution. Note that the Xevious cars are only available if a startup minigame is completed.
• In the arcade games Ridge Racer 2 and Rave Racer, the Solare is chosen in the operator's menu. The car IDs for Solare are 1 (yellow), 2 (blue), 6 (yellow), and 7 (orange, listed as red in operator's menu).
• In Ridge Racer V, the name Rivelta Solare is used for the first and only time in the series. The Solare is a Drift-type car, and is considered the hardest car to master in the game, with a very wide turning radius compared to the other drift cars (Kamata Fiaro and Danver Toreador). In the Extra class, the car gains FIA GT style aerodynamic parts. The car's stock R4CT engine is stated to be able to produce 435 horsepower.
• The rear fascia of the Solare has "XEVIOUS" badging. Considering Xevious is more related to sponsors and liveries, it is unknown if this has a correlation to the car itself (such as the trim or edition of the Solare).

The Solare featured in Ridge Racer, a.k.a "Yellow Solvalou"

Performance chart

Ridge Racer Revolution

The car's maximum speed from all the four available types (when using manual transmission).

Type	#2 Solvalou Yellow	#12 Solvalou Blue	#7 Xevious Red	#17 Xevious Green
Type-S	175 km/h	188 km/h	177 km/h	182 km/h
Type-R	196 km/h	209 km/h	198 km/h	203 km/h
Type-X	217 km/h	230 km/h	219 km/h	224 km/h
Type-Z	238 km/h	251 km/h	240 km/h	245 km/h

• All maximum speed numbers correspond to the car when driven with manual transmission. There is a maximum speed reduction when automatic transmission is used. It should be noted that all variations have different handling characteristics as well.
• RT Xevious Red share top speeds with Galaga RT Prid's car.
• Numbers sourced from rr-ken.net (Japanese only).

Ridge Racer V

All the three engines available for the car:

Engine	Specification	Class	Maximum speed	Power
Rivelta R4CT	4500cc Flat 12 DOHC	Standard	321 km/h	435 ps
VECT VCT33	5700cc Flat 12 DOHC	Extra	382 km/h	526 ps
VECT VCT36	8000cc Flat 12 DOHC	Oval	431 km/h	806 ps

• Numbers sourced from rr-ken.net (Japanese only) and/or Robert Karlsson's GameFAQs entry.

Trivia

The Solare billboard featured throughout Moscow in Ace Combat: Assault Horizon.

• The Soldat Raggio may be the successor to the Solare, since Soldat purchased the Rivelta line and closed it down. Further evidence is the similarity of the front fascia between the Solare and the Raggio.
  • It may also be a standalone car to the Raggio, as the description of the Rauna implies that the Raggio was once a Rivelta product that was known for being a popular supercar since the 1970s.
• The in-game Solare has smaller cylinder volume compared to the real-life Testarossa. The real-life Testarossa/512 TR has 4.9 liter flat-12 engine, whereas the Solare (standard class) has 4.5 liter flat-12 engine. The Solare also has one more gear than its real-life counterpart's transmission (6-speed as opposed to 5-speed).
• The Solare that appears in Ridge Racer V is based on the Solares that appear in Rave Racer, featuring holes below the pop-up headlights.
• In early games, the headlights and taillights of the Solares are often inconsistent. For instance, in the PlayStation Ridge Racer and Ridge Racer Revolution, the Solvalou Solares have circular taillights and fixed headlights, but the Xevious Solares in the same game have rectangular taillights and pop-up headlights.
• "Solare" means solar in Italian.
• In Ace Combat: Assault Horizon, billboards advertising the Solare can be seen throughout Moscow. The advertisements themselves depict the Solare without any sponsor decals, implying a road-going version of the car. This is similar to the Assoluto Fatalita seen in Ridge Racer (PSP)'s intro.