I think I've said this before, so if so... whatever.

Personally, I think anyone who's having trouble with the AI should just ignore it for a while and play online. This way you can get to know the tracks well, while racing people who are at/near your own skill level so you're not constantly taking hits to your morale. Plus, if you ever find yourself in a room against some of the top-tier players, you'll be wishing they were as slow as the elite AI.

Seriously. I remember struggling to beat the elite AI early on. After playing online against some of the best for a couple months, the elite AI is nothing. I can go against it on any track and win first time almost every time (90% of the time, I win 100% of the time... heh).

Besides, this game's replay value comes almost entirely from the multiplayer. Why bother playing single player if it just pisses you off? It doesn't add anything new to multiplayer mode anyway.