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The Âge Écureuil (pronounced Ey-kyu-re-uy) is a small three wheeled special car featured in Ridge Racer Type 4, Ridge Racers 2, and Ridge Racer 3D. It is mostly based on the Hunslet Scootacar mk. II, Its front end resembles a 1959-1965 Panhard PL 17, while its rear end is similar to that of the Messerschmitt KR 200 and TG 500, as well as the Isetta, since those vehicles and the Ecureuil have 3 or 4 wheels. The Ecureuil has 3 wheels in Ridge Racer Type 4 and has 4 wheels in Ridge Racers 2 and Ridge Racer 3D.

Ridge Racer Type 4[]

The Écureuil is Âge's angel car in Ridge Racer Type 4. Of all the special machines featured in this game, it is the smallest, lightest and has the lowest top speed, but is also the most agile and features instantaneous acceleration. Power comes from an extremely powerful 500 cc parallel two-cylinder engine, mated to a single-speed transmission. In its Ridge Racer Type 4 incarnation, it only featured three wheels, 2 at the front and 1 at the back.

Because of its extreme grip capabilities, it is advised to be light with your controls when driving this car, one small mistake can lead to over-running corners and crashing.

Even when letting go of the throttle, players must be careful as it can violently swing itself into the walls, as being able to corner with more force, even when braking or easing off the throttle, is a common feat done with Grip-handling cars.

The origin of power which is exhibited in extreme conditions.

The Écureuil is a machine that was active as a rally car about 30 years ago. At that time, Age Solo had been in a slump since the end of World War II in the racing world and it was the one-two-three finish with the Écureuil in the international rally that was revived in the racing world. Écureuil, which can be said to be the starting point of the restart, was revived on the special stage of RRR, but the engine of parallel 2-cylinder 500cc at that time is kept as it is, and it is full of the feat of hitting the maximum horsepower of 500kg/rpm. The motor journalists must be sweating at trying to find out what the whole heart of this car is hidden in its little body.

Ridge Racers 2[]

Description[]

"The Écureuil is a legendary machine that made its debut as a rally car around 40 years ago. At the time, the Écureuil's 1st and 2nd place finishes rescued Âge from financial disaster. Equipped with only a 2-cylinder engine, will it be able to compete with the other machines?" - Description for the "Angelus Kid" variant.

"The Écureuil used to be known as one of the "Devil" cars, and has been restored with the concept of creating devilish looks and a black body. The machine's length is the shortest of all the machines, and it weighs only 1/3 of the other machines. However, within this diminutive body lies incredible power." - Description for the "Crinale Kid" variant.

In Ridge Racers 2, the Écureuil made a second appearance as the Crinale Kid and Angelus Kid, with both cars featuring liveries based on their respective counterparts, namely, Devil and Angel versions. This version appears to be a completely different car to the previous model featured in Ridge Racer Type 4, with noticeable differences. Both have four wheels instead of three, and both sport a two-speed transmission instead of a single-speed. As a result, when performing a successful rocket start, it usually launches at very high speeds (Around 210km/h right of the starting line). However, without the rocket start from a standstill, the acceleration would be rather slow at low-to-mid RPM's. This behaviour is very similar to the Terrazi Terrajin from RR6, but is much faster. Due to its extremely small size, it can go through tight corners at much higher speeds than the other machines and has a drift mechanic similar to the Soldat Crinale, where the driver does not need to press the brake to start drifting.

Both the Écureuil's Angelus Kid and Crinale Kid variants' top speed are the same as all Special 2 cars, 390 km/h / 242 mph, or 444 km/h / 275 mph with nitrous, and almost near-identical handling. Given these cars' reputation for extreme grip, they feature handling similar to cars with "Mild"-spec drift types. Because of its light body, as well as its short length and width, this could make it difficult to block oncoming opponents, leaving it vulnerable to being overtaken, especially in the Max tour.

The Crinale Kid also has the distinction of its side decals glowing when raced in a tunnel or at nighttime, Their tachometers are also unique, in the sense that they are inverted from one another.

Ridge Racer 3D[]

"The Petit500 is the smallest and lightest of all machines. Its exterior resembles previous age solo machines, but its interior has been completely revamped with the latest technology. Its Standard nitrous type cannot be altered." ~Ridge Racer 3D garage description.

In Ridge Racer 3D, the Ecureuil is succeeded by a modern tribute machine, the Petit500, and appears as a Special machine. It can be unlocked by completing Event 44 of the Grand Prix mode, the aptly named "Petit500 Duel", where it must be dueled against on Midtown Parkway and Seaside Route 765. While it carries the same exterior design from Ridge Racer (PSP), it is stated the interior has "been revamped with the latest technology." It can be painted with the Angel or Devil liveries seen on the 'Kid' variants from previous games, as well as a factory Âge Solo livery (painted in cream with a red stripe by default).

It boasts a top speed of 218mph, and it's small size and light weight allow it to easily slide through corners, making it a great choice for technical circuits. It's higher top speed also makes it a decent option for speed focused courses, although it will be outclassed by machines like the New Rally-X and Soldat Crinale.

The locations of it's two duel races may possibly be a reference to the duel locations of Angelus and Crinale in Ridge Racer 7, calling back to the vehicle's "Kid" variants.

NOTE: The car is branded under Âge Solo, not the original Âge brand in-game.

Trivia[]

  • Its name is French for "squirrel", hence its small build.
    • "Écureuil" is also known for being one of the most difficult words in French to pronounce, as it is pronounced "Eh-kyu-re-uy".
  • In the Japanese version of R4, the rear and the sides of the MMM version's livery have "HEAVEN" written on it; but in the other versions of R4, it has changed to "ECUREUIL" and "namco" instead, respectively.
  • The Écureuil is often misspelled as "Ecureuir" in the Japanese version of Ridge Racer 2 (PSP), this is because of the absence of "L" in the Japanese alphabet, and can often be replaced with "R".
  • According to the description of the "Angelus Kid" variant of the Écureuil in Ridge Racer 2 (PSP), it was once a successful rally car 40 years prior to the events of the game, which has won several races, and in turn, saved Âge from financial disaster.
  • In Ridge Racers 2, the description of the "Crinale Kid" variant states that the Écureuil was once famous as a Devil-type car, although no such Écureuil with the Devil livery has existed prior to the events of Ridge Racers 2. It's likely that this particular model introduced the concept of a Devil version of the car.
  • Since the Japanese R4 Official Guide Book states that this car was once a rally car 30 years prior to the storyline of Ridge Racer Type 4 (40 in Ridge Racers 2), it might be a nod to either the Austin/Morris Mini Cooper or the Panhard PL 17 which both cars participated and won in the Monte Carlo Rally during the mid 1960s.
  • The Écureuil in Ridge Racer Type 4 has a CVT transmission, due to the single-speed fixed gear.
    • Because the car only has one gear, selecting the manual transmission option has effectively no effect when chosen.
  • Lore-wise, it is possible that Âge had to pay royalty fees to Kamata and Soldat for use of the Angelus and Crinale names for their modern Écureuils in order to avoid a lawsuit from them.

Gallery[]

Cars in Ridge Racer (PSP) and Ridge Racer 2 (PSP)
Class 1/4 Kamata Fiera · Age Prophetie · Danver Bayonet
Class 2/5 Age Abeille · Gnade Esperanza · Assoluto Bisonte
Class 3/6 Assoluto Fatalita · Himmel E.O. · Soldat Raggio
Specials Kamata Angelus* · Soldat Crinale* · Rally-X Car' · Namco Pac-Man* · Danver Hijack^ · Terrazi Wild Gang^ · Age Angelus Kid^ · Age Crinale Kid^ · Yamasa Raggio^
* indicate cars in both games but with different designs, ' indicate cars only in 1, ^ indicate cars only in 2
Cars in R4: Ridge Racer Type 4
Stage 1 Assoluto Promessa · Lizard Bonfire · Terrazi Ambitious · Age Solo Prophetie
Stage 2 Assoluto Bisonte · Lizard Detector · Terrazi Troop · Age Solo Dirigeant
Assoluto Regalo · Lizard Wisdom · Terrazi Rumor · Age Solo Bataille
Assoluto Fatalita · Lizard Officer · Terrazi Wildboar · Age Solo Megere
Stage 3 Assoluto Rondine · Lizard Colleague · Terrazi Capital · Age Solo Antilope
Assoluto Cavaliere · Lizard Comrade · Terrazi Cowboy · Age Solo Averse
Assoluto Infinito · Lizard Ignition · Terrazi Starlight · Age Solo Licorne
Stage 4 Assoluto Aquila · Lizard Tamer · Terrazi Decision · Age Solo Espion
Assoluto Estasi · Lizard Cataract · Terrazi Terrific · Age Solo Sorciere
Assoluto Squalo · Lizard Reckless · Terrazi Destroyer · Age Solo Supernova
Extra Trial Assoluto Vulcano · Lizard Nightmare · Terrazi Utopia · Age Solo Ecureuil
Other Pac-Man
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