Q: Is there RNG in this run?

Short answer: Yes. Long answer: Yes, but you can easily make it work for you. If the game sees you are trailing at the championship, RNG will often be massively rigged in your favor, and will give random DNFs/delays to your rivals. Which is why if you have the choice between skipping an early rally and a late rally you should skip the early rally in priority. I would advice against taking part in the first rally(especially Mexico in Extreme mode) because a win will override the RNG rigs, and make your rivals very strong later in the run, even if you are trailing them.

Q: Is there a specific car I should pick? A: Not really. They all seem pretty even. It's mostly down to driving style/personal preference.

Q: Is there anything else I should know? A: Double layered armcos(like the ones in Cyprus and Turkey) will absolutely shatter your car for some reason. You might get away with it with a square/parallel hit, but hitting them with a quarter panel means big trouble. Otherwise, not really. It's a vanilla rally game. Make sure to work on your menus, etc.