Reread the words..
Extremes, like above 5.12.... in other words, you can't magically "fix" a lack of torque, without incurring penalties. Yes, you can make the car acclerate faster, but you will run out of top end. So, they go by at the end of the straight when the motor is spinning 8400 and breathing thru a straw.
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Sorry - didn't mean to pick on any one car here, but for an example.

When I originally asked, I was actually comparing the 2nd gen RX7 and the ITS 240SX. Graphing out the torque from the 5.12 vs the 240 with a 4.3, the tq at the wheels is similar. Both have a 0.76 top gear ratio.
240 @ 7000 RPM in 5th, 4.363 = 149mph
rx7 @ 8200 RPM in 5th, 5.12 = 149mph

(both with 225x15x50 tires, calculated from http://www.catherineandken.co.uk/sti/tyres.html

It's all a compromise. But lack of tq is lack of tq. And tq wins races.
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I think I could argue that HP wins races...if only start/finish was closer to the exit of a turn instead of in the middle of a straight!! (typically anyway!)

In your 1st gen's defense, I'd say that the torque differences with the ITA RX7 vs the ITA 240SX are far greater than what I had in mind when I wrote originally. Heck, I think the ITA 240's put out more torque than the ITS 240's at some points in the powerband.

joe