Originally Posted by: Peregrine57 
Honestly, when this game first came out, I had been playing FH3 and FM7 with the AI on Above Average. I'm now competitive against Expert, and can consistently get the weekly solo championships without too much trouble. So I feel I'm making progress. But Unbeatable is still a bit beyond my skill. Add to that the randomness of your own team messing you up, and... I just don't bother with the co-op championships unless the prize is really enticing. I only stand a chance if the rest of the team is really good, and I don't really feel that I'm contributing to the effort.
If you can beat the expert solo's then shouldn't be too much of a stretch to score decent points in the unbeatable coops. Only the first couple of DT's really run at 'unbeatable' pace and even they can usually be conquered with some track knowledge and a decent tune. Don't expect to smash it first time out, it takes a few runs for the braking points and lines to become more natural then you can focus on being quick and passing cars. I don't think these events are designed to be a one shot or too easy... the Devs seem to like to force us into MP. if you can get a group of you in the mid pack it's a win.
If you're on the racing line, the DT will push you over as it follows it's path so be ready to push back. It's not worth putting yourself alongside a 'team mate' next to a checkpoint, as they often ram you either intentionally or unintentionally. Better to be a car length behind as you approach the next corner, poised and ready to drive around their next mistake. I have way less unintentional offs with some defensive driving, and when I do I've usually put myself in a dumb place. Unfortunately there is no cure for those who don't brake into the corner and smash into you, but often as your car is at a controlled speed, you can recover and pull away while they are sorting our their exit.
Good controller settings help, eliminating the dead spots and linearity in the 30-40 range gave me a lot more fine adjustment to pick lines at speed though it will take a few days to adapt.
Tunes can be a challenge, most of what you download is trash. Spending 10 minutes to set up a base tune using a calc or app makes a significant difference to how the car drives, and is often better than any of the 'bolt on all the go faster bits' tunes you download. Aero can be a bit over powered so worth using where you can. Once you have an OK car, you can then tweak a to your liking or to compensate for car behaviour on track.
I only really got back into racing games last year when I discovered Horizon 1, then completed most of hot wheels to entertain my youngest and now into H4. I'm comfortable on expert/pro most of the time, but with a tune and a little persistence I can repeatedly win against unbeatable once I find my grove on a particular track.
Good luck