Automobilista 2 | The Ultimate Formula 1 Season Guide (Updated)

Automobilista 2 F1 Ultimate Season Guide.png
When it comes to retro content in sim racing, it is hard to ignore Automobilista 2 – the selection is overwhelming, especially for Formula 1 fans. The sim currently offers no less than 15 Formula 1 seasons, spanning six decades – but which exact years are represented is only undoubtedly made clear in very few cases. To give you a better overview of the historic F1 content, we have assembled a guide to the different classes for you and also refreshed things to reflect the state as of late February 2024.

Last updated: November 30, 2023

No less than 51 cars from six decades – the amount of choice is a sight to behold and cannot be found anywhere else, except with mods. The best part: Most of the F1 cars in Automobilista 2 are free and already in the sim, all classes except both F-HiTech generations can be enjoyed without additional DLC.

Thanks to the incredible work of the RaceDepartment community, all generations of F1 cars in Automobilista 2 now feature a livery pack for at least one season they roughly represent.

Accurate Tracks & Locations​

After the update to the first version of this guide in May 2023, the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya has been added to AMS2, expanding the potential calendars of several seasons.
Additionally, we have also added an "Accurate Locations" section to most seasons, meaning you will be able to see tracks that have hosted an F1 event that year, but used a different layout.

The differences to what would have been run back in the day have also been added to the guide - a nice bonus for everyone who is interested in how circuits have changed over the years or wants to know why they are not listed in the "Accurate Tracks" section.

How to Install Skin Packs​

For increased immersion, we recommend skin packs to match the respective seasons. They usually come with AI files, so you will be able to compete against virtual versions of real drivers in singleplayer modes.

If available, the skin packs are linked on the respective season's page. Need a hand with installing them? Check out our handy guide on how to add mods to Automobilista 2 to get up and running!

What would you like to see?​

What other F1 seasons would you want to see represented in Automobilista 2? What are your favorites that are already in the sim? Let us know on Twitter at @RaceDepartment or in the comments below. Please also post about what elements you would like to see added to this guide in the future. Happy racing!

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About author
Yannik Haustein
Yannik Haustein
Lifelong motorsport enthusiast and sim racing aficionado, walking racing history encyclopedia.

Sim racing editor, streamer and one half of the SimRacing Buddies podcast (warning, German!).

Heel & Toe Gang 4 life :D

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Comments

R.Man
pai said:
Why would you do a standing start at Daytona? It will happen with every car (RWD at least) on every sim. And if it does not happen in a sim, something with its physics is wrong.
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Again typical AMS2 fans arguments....Every other sim are incorrect only AMS2 is correct even real life is incorrect...Every sim don't do that needless to say in real life car also don't do that. Player can do whatever start style they want rolling, standing, etc.
 
M
R.Man said:
Again typical AMS2 fans arguments....Every other sim are incorrect only AMS2 is correct even real life is incorrect...Every sim don't do that needless to say in real life car also don't do that. Player can do whatever start style they want rolling, standing, etc.
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Bug is there since PC2. Needs correction but has nothing to do with the physics at large since we know that in any case at zero speed the standard physics (and FFB too) gets stopped (in all sims) and strange things may happen.
Hopefully at some point it will be fixed.
 
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P
R.Man said:
Again typical AMS2 fans arguments....Every other sim are incorrect only AMS2 is correct even real life is incorrect...Every sim don't do that needless to say in real life car also don't do that. Player can do whatever start style they want rolling, standing, etc.
Click to expand...
Don't be silly mate, that's not what I'm saying. Standing start on Daytona is asking for trouble, in any simulation.

Edit: specially on a light and high powered RWD open wheeler.
 
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P
R.Man said:
Again typical AMS2 fans arguments....Every other sim are incorrect only AMS2 is correct even real life is incorrect...Every sim don't do that needless to say in real life car also don't do that. Player can do whatever start style they want rolling, standing, etc.
Click to expand...
There are AMS2 fans, it's true, they like their simulation which has very good physics. The best physics? It's silly, but personally my favorite physics is that of Assetto Corsa. Now I drive in VR, I feel a lot more things than on a flat screen, even the triple 3 notch appeals to me much less, even if it is much more immersive than the simple screen. It's subjective, everyone has their own pleasure and also according to their financial means.
On the other hand I don't understand the anti fans, idiots who spend their time on the forum of the simus they don't like, just to shout their grotesque hatred? These people are sad sires, have a nice day.
 
Kevin Troschinski
Premium
Kevin Troschinski said:
Yeah the content is really great but somehow especially the open wheelers are making absolutely no fun for me in AMS2.

Cant really explain why. Iprefer the AC ones, the originals and especially some well known mods.
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I must quote myself here. After the last updates i came back and spend some time with AMS2.

I have to admit the game made huge steps forward and i have fun with it.

Last week it was my most played game and i have to say this as a absolut AC Fanboy with 3500hours playing time. And thats the best compliment to AMS2

ps: I still prefer the touring cars in ams2
 
M
Kevin Troschinski said:
I must quote myself here. After the last updates i came back and spend some time with AMS2.

I have to admit the game made huge steps forward and i have fun with it.

Last week it was my most played game and i have to say this as a absolut AC Fanboy with 3500hours playing time. And thats the best compliment to AMS2

ps: I still prefer the touring cars in ams2
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And when all cars will be revamped to v1.5 it will be even better
 
John B. Ellis
Premium
sEBq78 said:
Its pity that new F1 classic gen 3 (1990) dont have proper skin pack ...
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To my knowledge, the same outstanding group of modders who have released the 1991 F1 livery set (among many other sets) is working on a proper 1990 F1 set. The flip side of their work being so good is that the rest of us simply have to wait longer for the 1990 set to arrive.

It’s a bit like the Old Mechanic’s adage: You can only pick two of the following: good, fast, or cheap.
 
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M
Premium
Great article .
Thanks again.

Just add the real race condition on every events , and it would be perfect to set our own events !!
 
kpcart
have tried so many times now to get into ams2, and the f1 mods, but after playing assetto corsa and its f1 mods, these just do not feel SIM worthy. The driving physics of AMS2 just doesnt feel right at all after playing more realistic sims.
 
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Yannik Haustein
Staff
Premium
manu68 said:
Great article .
Thanks again.

Just add the real race condition on every events , and it would be perfect to set our own events !!
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Glad you enjoy it!


And thank you for the suggestion :) Probably an enormous task, but certainly one for a future update to the guide. Real Weather works well in many scenarios, but is a bit off sometimes - and it only goes back to 1970, so the F-Vintage classes are not necessarily coveredy bit.
 
F2020
Just got the 1990 skin pack uploaded, looking forward to setting up a custom championship with these cars for the weekend :)
 
Cote Dazur
Thank you for this guide, it is a great help when trying to re-enact racing older F1 events. Thank you to the modders for providing the much needed skins to help with the illusion. To have access to this prestigious type of racing cars is one of the many nice features AMS2 brings to the table. The passion of Reiza for mechanical sport is a great asset for our sim racing community. Looking forward for more historical content from past F1 glory.
 
M
Premium
Yannik Haustein said:
Glad you enjoy it!


And thank you for the suggestion :) Probably an enormous task, but certainly one for a future update to the guide. Real Weather works well in many scenarios, but is a bit off sometimes - and it only goes back to 1970, so the F-Vintage classes are not necessarily coveredy bit.
Click to expand...
My comment was more just to know if it was a sunny day or rain, temperature, such info.
Of course everybody can search by itself, but your guide is already fantastic, also why not having all information directly !
 
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E
Already useful guide just got better, thank you! Reiza's way of naming car classes is confusing but this guide helps a lot and makes choosing vintage F1 cars and tracks easier and more fun.
 

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Table of contents

Overview 1966/1967 - Formula Vintage Gen 1 1969/1970 - Formula Vintage Gen 2 1974 - Formula Retro Gen 1 1978 – Formula Retro Gen 2 1983 – Formula Retro Gen 3 1986 – Formula Classic Gen 1 1988 – Formula Classic Gen 2 1990 - F-Classic Gen 3 1991 – Formula Classic Gen 4 1992 - Formula HiTech Gen 1 1993 - Formula HiTech Gen 2 1995 – Formula V12 1997 – Formula V10 Gen 1 2000/2001 – Formula V10 Gen 2 2011/2012 – Formula Reiza 2019 – Formula Ultimate 2019 2022/2023/2024 – Formula Ultimate Gen 2 View full article

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