Your ACC Car Choice Matters - But Not The Way You Might Think

Your ACC Car Choice Matters - But Not The Way You Might Think.jpg
The car roster of Assetto Corsa Competizione offers a great amount of choice for the GT3 afficionado: Different engine layouts and characteristics make it possible for everyone to find a good match in theory - and yet, even public lobbies are usually filled with the same two to three cars that are supposed to be the fastest at that point of BOP adjustments. However, a lot of drivers might leave their potential unfulfilled as a result.

As of version 1.8.11, an abundance of McLaren 720S GT3s and BMW M4 GT3s can be spotted on ACC's tracks. The two vehicles are acknowledged to be the fastest across all tracks, and because of that, players tend to flock to them, resulting in timing sheets leaving the impression of a two-make championship. This tends to change with major BOP updates - for a while, the Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo and the Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo were in much of the same position as the McLaren and the BMW are now.

While it may be easy to set relatively competitive lap times, ACC drivers might leave precious tenths on the line that way. The cars may be the fastest among the sim's roster, but extracting the small advantages of their performance is something only top-level drivers are able to do on a regular basis. As a result, many drivers could be faster in other cars that suit their driving style and skill much more.

Of course, this is always a very individual element - everyone has a different way to throw a virtual race car around a circuit. It might be worth your while to revisit cars you used to drive a lot, but do not anymore. Recently, after running the Porsche 911 II GT3 R for months and the Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo as well as the Aston Martin AMR V8 Vantage for a few endurance events, I figured I might give the 2018 Nissan GT-R GT3 a spin again, as I had mained the car for a year and a half.

This choice might seem counterintuitive, especially considering that the Nissan is not run anymore in GTWC and rarely in other GT3 series, due to it not being very competitive anymore. And if you were planning to enter a high-profile event or series as a top-level esports racer, you would probably be at a disadvantage against the best of the best. However, as I soon figured out, the car suits me very well somehow, and even though its understeery characteristics have not really gotten any better, I was able to set faster lap times than I had set with the other aforementioned cars immediately. It was also possible for me to push like I rarely had been able to with the other cars - meaning I felt right at home again. It will not be easy to find team mates to run an endurance race with the GT-R - the turbo brick seems to be a bit of an acquired taste.

While this experience is very subjective, of course, it is very likely that there are tons of ACC drivers who are doing well enough in one of the current "meta" cars but are missing out on a more competitive and more fun experience. There is truth to the rule of thumb that feeling comfortable in a car is the most important thing to do well in endurance racing. I recommend giving your old favorites another try and see how you stack up against the McLaren and BMW armada. You might rediscover something you did not know you missed.

What are your favorite cars in Assetto Corsa Competizione? Are you a fellow oddball vehicle enthusiast? Let us know your experiences in the comments!
About author
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

Comments

As sim racers we always crave more, more cars, more tracks, more features and yet we end up (at least for the majority) on the same configurations of track/car/condition (yes Monza im looking at you).

The "meta" cars are used by pros to gain the last tenth and even though a "meta" car can gain you a couple of places, ultimately, consistency is the name of the game. Consistency comes with confidence with what you drive, and confidence can be found in the setup screen (and with constructive practice) ! Obviously some cars, especially the freshly released ones, have been worked more and have setups updated to fit the current version of each game. That's why we usually see servers filled with the latest release (other than that its the new toy).

Personally ive been on a journey of monthly brand rotation :D It may be stupid but i find it very educational. After some time you"figure" the cars out and it becomes easier to find what you are doing wrong and how to correct it, either through the setup screen or with your driving habits.
And you get to use all the content you paid for :p
 
I still drive the Continental to this day simply because I'm more comfortable driving that car than any other front-engined cars out there. Am I losing time in some tracks? Maybe, but am I in control of my car all the time because I am aware of all the quirks of my setup? You can bet your bottom dollar I am.
 
I always found very strange that everyone chose only one two cars.
I'm in simracing because I like to drive sport cars / road cars / hyper cars / old cars. All of them.
Every time I start ACC (rF2, AC, AMS2) i pick another car. Just for the pleasure to learn it to drive it, to look at it :geek:
I think the "problem" is the competitiveness we can found in every (sim)racer DNA. It looks like I'm missing this gene ;). Sure, I like to win but that is not what make me to go out on track on multiplayer server or on a single player race. I like racing with other people. Somedays I found people I can race in the middle of the pack, other days I found peple to race at the back of the pack, and rarely (for me) I race at the front of the pack.
I'm happy when I have a good race :thumbsup: (which is possible if we all show some respect for the other racers around)
 
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I kind of hate myself sometimes to have made the Audi R8 GT3 my 'favorite' car. It is nice to drive as long as you're not pushing it to its limits. You have to be very precise in your inputs, easily overdriven: Understeer leading to oversteer, 4-sheel drift, you name it.
It is not a car that gives you good laptimes in a short amount of time. Contrary to the BMW M4, Aston and McLaren. Hence the latter are more accessible and hence staples of most simmers in ACC.

I am a Motorsports-Enthusiast first, then Simmer. So I tend to choose cars I find interesting, good-sounding, nicely shaped, etc. Even the cockpit design is on my list of why and why not to choose a car to race in ACC.
Of course I am fuming when it doesn't go as planned with race pace. I should maybe train more. There are some folks that are pretty quick in this car. That said, seeing some esport talents moving away from the Audi as of late might hint at a mediocre BOP for the Audi in the 1.8 iteration of ACC.

But then again I am not expecting to be able to win races (in the league I am participating in).
In the end Sim racing is a hobby for me, a past-time, I want to enjoy myself. I need to remind myself here and then that it is about having fun, indulging myself in make-pretending to be a racing driver and I am not pursuing an esports career....
 
Everytime I drive acc I tend to gravitate towards cars that seem rarely used. Special snowflake and all that. So the emil frey jag is definitely the usual choise for me. Great sound, rude and fun handling, brutal traction control, rewarding setup fiddling and often times there are no other jags in a race. Sometimes I go for the m6 because it has insane top speed. Or the v8 aston because it is so easy to drive fast. Although I tend to pick the nsx sometimes too. I think I mostly drive the bad cars. I like using the car as excuse when I don't do well and when I do well it's all me... Haven't driven the game couple of months tho.
 
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Premium
I enjoy all cars , and becaus3 of that i l like to attempt the various challenges offered into the game.
I sometime has very good surprises.

I currently drive all Gt4 on donington, to learn the track and make comparisons.
It is nice to see how different reacts each car, how some are good on some part of tge track, and others on another part.
It is nice to drive cars i would never have driven at first sight.
It means that we can take every car we like and enjoy something different every day.
All base agressive setup are great to enjoy the drive without much complications.

Laptime are different for sure, but not so different i could have imagine.
 
During the early ACC-days the Lambo was the weapon of choice and now it's finally also handling well. Otherwise I've only tried the M4 recently and it's nice as well, but GT3-cars I find generally a bit boring. GT4 without TC is now finally driveable and IMO more fun, but 0 people online and I would rather like to drive more powerful cars like the new GT2-class that is also running in the SRO group. The Lambo Super Trofeo is probably my favorite car in ACC.
 
When I first got ACC two years ago, I drove every car and chose the one that clicked most with my driving style ... which was the Mclaren 720s.

During every rise of a popular meta car, I tried it, decided against switching cars and continued with the Mclaren.

Well with respect to this article, what do I do, now that my car is the meta?
 
Staff
Premium
Looks like your patience paid off, then :D By no means I want to say "you should not drive the meta cars", if you click with them, they are perfectly fine - just like any other car people prefer to drive.
 
I'm a Porsche guy and always be one. After putting over several hundred hours in ACC, I think I drove one hour in other cars than Porsche.

But when I got into motorsport and went to the VLN at the Nordschleife in '07 and seen the 997 Porsche Cups, Cup S, GT3R and RSR I've instantly fallen in love.

And when I take the "old" 991.1 GT3R or the Porsche Cup around the track in ACC, I really get that "raw and somewhat unpolished" feeling of the Porsche's.

Don't wanna miss out one bit. And as long as I can be happy with my driving, I don't care if I get P1, 7 or 26.
 
Staff
Premium
Personally ive been on a journey of monthly brand rotation :D

And being forced to in some of the RD rFactor2 events :whistling:

Regarding the article, I usually go with cars that are unpopular, solely because I think the grid looks much much better when there is diversity on the grid. I mean, me, @Daniel Monteiro and a non-RD guy ended up using the Jaguar in ACC for an 8 hours race at Paul Ricard. Only Jag in the field, but we were fighting for a podium until there was a mistake made :)
 
And being forced to in some of the RD rFactor2 events :whistling:

Regarding the article, I usually go with cars that are unpopular, solely because I think the grid looks much much better when there is diversity on the grid. I mean, me, @Daniel Monteiro and a non-RD guy ended up using the Jaguar in ACC for an 8 hours race at Paul Ricard. Only Jag in the field, but we were fighting for a podium until there was a mistake made :)
This german ACC-alien recommended the Lexus for top-speed in general and Paul Ricard. I certainly would prefer that compare to the Jag...
 
i run the nissan gtr on a daily basis and have some great close racing online.also like the lexus and porsche 911 gt3r when i want a change in car styles.
 
And being forced to in some of the RD rFactor2 events :whistling:

Regarding the article, I usually go with cars that are unpopular, solely because I think the grid looks much much better when there is diversity on the grid. I mean, me, @Daniel Monteiro and a non-RD guy ended up using the Jaguar in ACC for an 8 hours race at Paul Ricard. Only Jag in the field, but we were fighting for a podium until there was a mistake made :)
It was 9 hours ;)

And yes, mistakes were made, and fun was had :) 9/9 would recommend to a friend! Good memories @oscarfaraday

 
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Great piece that underscores the importance of putting in the time to find which vehicle works for you. I've enjoyed the McLaren and BMW as much as anyone since the last tweak, but I would select neither for a serious race. As a beginner I was fond of Bentley and later Lexus, which gave me my best competitive performance (that ain't saying much.)

But now - Porsche. Which I stayed away from forever. I was/am very much a novice, and all the chatter was how different and difficult the Porsche could be. When I finally decided to put in some practice, guess what? It fit me hand-in-glove. I don't think I've had a single off since driving it seriously. A huge part of the joy of ACC is discovering your own driving style and matching it with the right equipment. We're all different. As much as I like it in real life, you'll never catch me in a Merc. I still like throwing the Bentley around and I find the McLaren slidey and fun. But the Porche is where I feel rapid.
 
In the ACCSS league on Simracing.GP, which has just finished its 11th 5race season and will start its 12th season in three weeks, I do a new car each season but avoid the older ones (old macca, old nissan, old Audi etc.) because I usually lose a sec or two using them. Like someone above said: I paid for each car and so I want to use many different cars, and a five race championship is great to get some experience but leave before it gets old. Final one on my list is the Lambo Evo and then I will do the M4, introduced long after I started my cycle. In IRacing's GT3 series I did some seasons switching between the three GT3 cars I had a licence to from one week to another, really enjoyed that, too. But I am not a good player, neitrher time nor talent on my hands, so I really have no chance of winning on merit, probably makes it easier for me to switch again and again and just enjoy a good fight midfield or towards the rear.
 
BMW M6 GT3. Only car I drive in any of the sims. I do this for a couple of reasons

  1. No one else drives it
  2. I find it not as much of a squirrel as other cars
  3. Like the straight line speed
  4. Looks better than that ugly BIOTCH M4 GT3
 
Everybody knows the real aficionados only drive the reiter lambo in acc. I do consider myself as one as I really spend a lot of time at one point trying to make it work. The ultimate snowflake mobile. By default iirc it has issues with terminal understeer but some of that can be alleviated with setup tuning. More tuning is then needed to make it work over kerbs. In my insanity I tried to get it to work on spa... The lack of front downforce combined with the understeer just kills it in any kind of higher speed corners. It is a total rocket ship on straights tho. Always a meme into turn 1. You pas 10 cars with your top speed and then lose the 10 when you need to brake earlier to make it into the corner at slower speed than others.
 
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