Am I just slow?

[csdilligaf]

I've been playing in around in practice mode to get the hang of SimRacing after building up a rig and buying a Fanatec V2.5 bundle. I have been focusing on one car on the Monza track. So I figured out how to do the short races against AI. Its a drag race down a long straight at the start to the first Chicane and I run it hard to the rev limit and brake late but I cant seem to catch them. Then I figured out how to drop the AI performance level to the minimum of 80% and they still beat me to the first corner and then I never see them again. Am I just that slow?

 

[ouvert]

perhaps you are braking too late for that chicane and than you are loosing time on exit .. hard to say without video .. monza is a lot about setup not sure if AI is using players default or some less downforce setup

 

[csdilligaf]

It's not that I loose speed in the corner, they simply out accelerate, beat me to the first corner and are through the chicane before I get to the first corner. Its like they have more horse power and grip right off the line and leave me in the dust.

 

[Tberg]

Well, if you're just getting into simracing, it's normal to either be slow or overestimate own level of skill.
Turn on your pedal-app, check if you actually have full throttle (correct calibration), then record a video and post it.

 

[ouvert]

so you are loosing on start .. hmm so perhaps too much throttle on start? or high level of TC that is accualy slower than good start with low TC or no TC .. are you slipping clutch a bit? really hard to tell without video .. are you able to catch with them latter or have similiar lap time in next laps ?

 

[Pavement Pirate]

Depending on how long the race is you might consider lowering your fuel load too. If you have enough fuel for 20 laps and its a 5 lap race you are at a disadvantage.
Other things to condider

• Can you lower your down-force and drive the car without issue?
• Are the tires heating evenly?

 

[csdilligaf]

Well, I'll start working on things like that. In the Ferrari P4/5 at Monza I do laps around 1 min 47 seconds and thought I was doing pretty good and the AI just pulls away in the straights.

 

[guidofoc]

The first thing you can do to exclude a hardware setup issue is to run the pedal app (you can find it by moving your mouse to the right edge of the screen while in driving mode, it's one of the default apps). Check if when you fully press the gas pedal the bar goes full up (there is a small indicator on top of the bar that lits up when you are at 100% throttle). Also, check that the brake or the clutch are not engaged while you accelerate (red and blue bars). If you see issues, go to the controller settings and check the values, also calibrate your pedals before driving (fully press all the pedals a few times).

If everything is all right with that, then your car may have 1) too long gears 2) too high traction control. In the first case, if the car allows to adjust the gears, shorten the gears. In the second case, run the electronics app (also default app) and check if the TC is on. Adjust the traction control pressing Ctrl+T, a higher number indicates less traction control.

Another possibility is that if your car has turbo the opponent cars are using more turbo than you are. Use the numeric keys on the main keyboard to adjust the turbo (if available), 1 is 10% and 0 is 100%.

Another possibility again is that if your car has DRS and you are in the DRS zone you are not using it. Assign a button on your wheel to the DRS and press it when the indicator in the electronic app lights up.

There are other possibilities yet.. you should at least post a video with an example.

Of course, AC is a rather realistic sim so you'll need some practice to be fast. You can try the career mode from the start, you'll drive slower cars at first to get the hang of it.

 

[guidofoc]

Well, I'll start working on things like that. In the Ferrari P4/5 at Monza I do laps around 1 min 47 seconds and thought I was doing pretty good and the AI just pulls away in the straights.

Checking the laptimes on RSR, 1.47 at Monza in the P 4/5 Competizione is even too fast! Are you sure? In any case you can check RSR to have more or less an idea of the laptimes.
http://www.radiators-champ.com/RSRL...controller_type=all&community=all&friends=all

 

[csdilligaf]

Wow, Now that RSR site it killer. I am sure I have done lap times that would put me in the top ten at least. I've been practicing the P4/5 on Monza for 3 weeks now. Once I figured out that that car stuck like glue more than anything else it is my go to car. I run 1:55 in the 962 long tail and just checked that on RSR and that is no where near as good. At the top is 1:40 with the 962 so what's up with that? With the P4/5 its like it just won't go off the track and I have it in paddle shift mode. I did get the P4/5 from someone, Could it have been tweeked a little? No wonder its my favorite.

 

[guidofoc]

The P4/5 is one of the standard AC cars. Maybe you are driving another version that is not the original one? The times on RSR are done using the original car.

 

[csdilligaf]

Yes, I did get it from someone else. not from AC.

 

[ouvert]

Yes, I did get it from someone else. not from AC.

so you cant compare it ... try p4/5 that is in game with 'realistic' physics and see what is your time .. who knows where physics on that mod you have are ..

Just by 962 Longtail times being 15 seconds slower you can see you perhaps wont end up in top 10 ... or you will with different car .. who knows ..

just out of curriosity why would you use mod for car that is already in game presumably with correct data and fairily realistic behaviour ?

 

[guidofoc]

Wow, Now that RSR site it killer. I am sure I have done lap times that would put me in the top ten at least. I've been practicing the P4/5 on Monza for 3 weeks now. Once I figured out that that car stuck like glue more than anything else it is my go to car. I run 1:55 in the 962 long tail and just checked that on RSR and that is no where near as good. At the top is 1:40 with the 962 so what's up with that? With the P4/5 its like it just won't go off the track and I have it in paddle shift mode. I did get the P4/5 from someone, Could it have been tweeked a little? No wonder its my favorite.

Yes, I did get it from someone else. not from AC.

Ok, nothing bad in having some mods but for your learning experience it is better if you use a standard car so you can easily compare with others. It is a sim after all, so using mods from unknown sources means that sometimes the behavior of the car is totally not realistic.

 

[csdilligaf]

Well I guess this is what happens when you wait until 53 years old and start gaming. I should stick with the AC cars and work on tuning within AC. After all it is the realism that I am after. I drive my real Cayman S on Buttonwillow CW13 for track days and when I run AC Cayman S on the Simtrax Buttonwillow CW13 I do the same lap times. Even the shift points and MPH are a direct match. I have found the car set up guide for AC in this forum and will begin to read it and get the hang of it. I have a feeling that if I get a car set up for a track that I can save the set up for that combo. I just need to figure all these things out.

 

[Deleted member 379375]

Have you looked at the engine power curve? If the power is produced lower down the Rev range then reving it hard to the red line will lloose you time. You need to gear the car and drive it so the engine spends as much time as possible where most powerr is produced. You may also need to consider wing settings.

 

[RasmusP]

My best bet are two things:
- start: auto clutch, pedals wrong, auto-blip, traction control or even stability control are slowing you down. Or purely reaction time but that I doubt if you're able to drive with your real Cayman safely around a real track.

- corner exits: you're just a noob, as 99% of people are. I thought I was pretty fast back then, got last in my first club race here... Now I get mostly into top 10 without even practicing (because I practiced effectively on my general driving errors for a year and we have 30min practice and 30min qualy before the races).

To dismiss technical problems, please take a Kunos car to the 2000m drag strip and tell us your time (do a race so you start with the start lights etc).
We will then do the same and we will be able to get closer to a solution
Better way would be to record a video. Replay + smartphone camera would be enough!
But I get if that might be too complicated for now!

PS: with "noob" I don't mean to insult or anything. Especially if you have real track experience I imagine it to be very difficult to adjust to a simulator. While you're probably quite fast and very safe in real life, pushing a car in a simulator is like endangering your life in the real thing. You just don't drive like that in the real world. At least not if you're not a professional!
Also when you're at the limit of being safe in real life, you are probably still a few seconds off from simulator times. No real forces, no real fear. A kid that won't be able to even drive around safely at a trackday might beat us by a second in the sim because he learnt how to do it, runs low FFB and just practiced for weeks.
It takes time, patience and some good advice every now and then to really get fast

 

[Paul Bennett]

@csdilligaf , Started PC sim racing in 2012 was slow then an still slow now an same age as you, no pressure then !

I may ask why you are starting in PC sim racing testing a car such as the P4/5 , not exactly a daily driver ? an been it's a mod it's not helping.
We see this kind of thing often on forums , newbies take the fastest car I wonder why there are not breaking land speed records. Maybe just do some hot lapping with the Mazda Mx5 Cup car , learn the tracks an build up speed gradually an dial in your wheel an pedal settings

Edit : re-read posts see you have track experience with a Caymen , but have herd it said some times real race drivers take time to transition to simulators.

 

[csdilligaf]

Thanks for the help guys. I can see the error in my ways. Its just so hard to go backwards and start with slow cars and build the sim skills I need. I will work on it more though cause I am having a ball and its so easy to get in the rig and do when ever I want. I work at home and just love being able to drive my dream cars.

 

[Kek700]

It's a state of mind, I now find I prefer slower cars they give me more time to spot
my errors, mx5 , rs1600, fiat abarth. They seem to punish mistakes more. Helping observation.
It is not so easy to exploit, as say a GT3 car, making it better for getting nearer the front of the field.
(The faster driver are very good at exploiting the acceleration and grip of a down force car.)
The only problem is that they are not so well supported on line, maybe the mx5 is the exception.
Another plus is they are often fixed set up so it is much easier to see the difference in time between yourself and the fast guys.
This makes setup easier to relate to,