Aris of Kunos Simulazioni Releases "Go Faster" Driving Tips Video

[Paul Jeffrey]

Kunos Simulazioni's Aristotelis Vasilakos has released a nice video tutorial aimed at giving driving tips to players of Assetto Corsa.

Vasilakos is one of the key physics engineers at Kunos and as such has a deep and involved understand of how the Italian development team realise car physics generation in Assetto Corsa. As well as proving himself to be a remarkably talented physics creator, Aris is also a dab hand behind the wheel of both his virtual creations and those of the real world, regularly posting videos and telemetry from his various on track escapades at a number of local real world racetracks.

Making the most of his considerable experience, Aris has produced a very handy 40 minute video using Assetto Corsa that aims to help impart some of his knowledge to the sim racing faithful, with the hope that some of the tips shared in this tutorial will help develop the skills of sim race drivers and make it just that little bit easier to find those missing tenths of a second when out on track. You can watch the video from Aris in full below:

Using the stock content BMW M235i Racing edition around the British Silverstone International layout, Aris takes players through a number of key driving tips and techniques that should form part of every real and virtual sim drivers skill set. From finding your reference points around a circuit to ensuring you know and adhere to the racing line, the video covers of some key basic tips that often get overlooked by new and experienced drivers alike. Although Aris doesn't go into the more advanced techniques some of the more experienced players may make use of during a racing situation, it is nevertheless extremely valuable to reaffirm some of the things Aris discusses in this video, as everything he covers during the 40 odd minute presentation are details that every sim racer, either new or old, should be following to help ensure you are driving to your fastest possible speed.

The video is well presented, interesting and informative and Vasilakos does a very good job maintaining an entertaining show whilst imparting some valuable information. Well worth a watch for any experience level...


Assetto Corsa is a racing simulation designed by Kunos Simulazioni and is available for Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC.

Check out the Assetto Corsa sub forum here at RaceDepartment. We have a great collection of mods to download, a thriving Racing Club and Leagues forum where events are regularly filled to capacity, a dedicated area where modders can discuss their creations a busy forum where you can join in the discussion with your fellow Assetto Corsa sim racing fans and a special area of the internet where you can share and download setups with other users of the simulation.

Did you enjoy the video from Aris? Did you learn anything useful? Have any driving techniques you wish to share yourself? Let us know in the comments section below!

 

[melanieuk]

...

<mod-edit: can you try wording things different please>
as already revealed that YOU, don't have a powerful enough PC to run Live for speed let alone assetto corsa or rFactor 2 for that matter, you've been invited to play rFactor 2 many times by rFactor 2 players, and you have constantly made up excuse for not joining them in a race in rFactor 2, also revealed on said site, no wonder your steam profile is set to private, so that we can't see that you have not even played Assetto corsa, rFactor 2 or even any of the Modern sim racing titles currently available.

Oh and how would you know how these sims feel when you have also admitted to not owning a wheel or a pedal set, you play these sims with a keyboard and mouse, anything you say about all these sim titles should be ignored and or taken with a pinch of salt.
Please buy some modern updated pc hardware and wheel/pedal set, so we can take you seriously.

 

[Fernando Deutsch]

...

Why would we care for you to take AC seriously? seriously???

 

[StefanoCasillo]

oh dear

 

[AndrewBo]

Keep this thread friendly

 

[Leynad777]

Not that I disagree with the sentiment, the problem is that most set-ups are highly personal.
I've tried taking some of the set-ups supplied by alien(esque) drivers, and I simply can't drive them.
They're much too fickle for my standards.
I assume it's great if you have the skills and reaction-times to drive it, but not so great in my case.

I think most people have a wrong impression of set-ups.
There's isn't a golden set-up for each combo that'll suddenly make everyone faster.
But if you can make a set-up that makes the driver comfortable, that will in turn mean he's able to push harder because he trusts both the car, and his ability to handle it.
And what makes you fast is getting as close to the limit of the car that you can.

I agree and disagree. High aero-settings does make the driving especially in GT-cars very comfortable, but on the most tracks it´s to slow to compete against good sim-racers. A good setup needs to find the best grip with the lowest drag. For example: With the Porsche GT3 Cup car i was far to slow in SRS with my setup and downloaded a setup on thesetupmarket.com, which immediately made me 2 sec. faster around VIR full plus better traction, handling and good top-speeds. Instead of high positive toe at the back, it was slightly negative, ARBs both at max, aero quite high. So he replaced the high-toe default with a low toe, high-ARB-setting resulting in better grip, but less tyre friction/drag from the toe. I don´t know if it would work in the real car, but sounds plausible.

And running low-downforce at tracks like Monza or Highlands need especially in AC a few tricks. I lower the spring and ARB in the back as well to stabilize the rear and avoid oversteer-spins. I never read this in a guide even it´s common in real racing as well, because less downforce means less stiffness from the springs required to deal with the additional aero-weight.

 

[Phoenix77]

Mod-Edit: Off-Topic removed

 

[Leynad777]

I´ve >1600 hours on my Steam-AC-account, even quite some percentage just running the menu in the background, it´s fair to name some shortcomings i personally have with this title to share some thoughts for further improvements.

The physics overall are awesome/second to none. Nothing to rant about apart from details, but driving with slick-tyres in AMS is for me more satisfying IMO. I feel more what´s happening with the tyres and suspension, need better throttle-control to prevent flat-spots (obviously), need throttle-blip in sequential shifting cars etc. In iRacing i felt more surface than the car and tyre-load is a guess-work, AC is a lot better, just AMS nailed it. If it´s Porsche Cup vs Boxer Cup, Dallara vs F3, Lotus 72D/Ferrari 312T vs Formula Retro and certainly all F1-cars: I prefer AMS, sorry. But the Ultima GTR Road sucks in AMS and seems they don´t have much clue how road-tyres should work. The road-tyres in AC are certainly the best in sim-racing and TM10 improved them even more IMO.

 

[MarkR]

in order to understand what they are trying to achieve and evaluate the qualitative result of their work themselves.. numbers are essential but can only paint a restricted picture once something like car dynamics is the topic, there are still so many unknowns that direct experience is, again, not an option.. and the work of those who think so really shows how wrong they can be.

Intended as a friendly question, how do you equate your view to the world of a test pilot and the design/engineering team? It's highly unlikely the designer or engineer have any sense of feel for the aircraft and for that they rely on the test pilot running a specific set of procedural tests and giving detailed feedback. The designers and engineers go on to design some truly incredible aircraft as a result. Admittedly a simulation doesn't have an expensive prototype aircraft at stake so allowing the engineers to take the helm comes with no real risk. Bringing this back to cars on track, after many years experience on track my far more experienced race hardened instructors can pick up on issues with, most often, my driving and sometimes the car far more quickly than I can. This is similar to the way the test pilot senses the issues the engineering data failed to reveal. I agree with the software engineer being able to get a sense that the car feels generally as intended by the data. For on the limit and beyond the limit I think the race hardened veteran would still have something to offer over and above the engineer.

 

[ClimaxF1]

Not that I disagree with the sentiment, the problem is that most set-ups are highly personal.
I've tried taking some of the set-ups supplied by alien(esque) drivers, and I simply can't drive them.
They're much too fickle for my standards.
I assume it's great if you have the skills and reaction-times to drive it, but not so great in my case.

I think most people have a wrong impression of set-ups.
There's isn't a golden set-up for each combo that'll suddenly make everyone faster.
But if you can make a set-up that makes the driver comfortable, that will in turn mean he's able to push harder because he trusts both the car, and his ability to handle it.
And what makes you fast is getting as close to the limit of the car that you can.

I totally agree, downloading setups is not the way to start. Not one driver is the same as the other, they all have different strengths, weaknesses and everything else that makes a driver. Now why would that be any different with sim racing or games.

Great video by Aris, once you really know your track only then will you start feeling one with the car and start to understand how different setups can work.

There are no short cuts if you really want to get the most out of your car and driving style.

I have many saved setups but hardly use them because they don't work for me. Not every day is the same. My driving style does not change but my setups aren't always exactly the same for the same track with the same car. There's time's where I feel that a few things could be tweaked depending on the day and the way I feel the most comfortable with the car.

Spend some time reading about the different car parts or settings and functions in the setup area that Kunos gives and try them out for yourself.

Over time and testing all the settings you will start to understand how each and every function or component works. Soon within two to four laps, depending on the track also, you will be able to setup your car almost perfectly and only gets better from there.

Sounds like the long way round but over time it's the quick way round. Just my personal opinion, every one has there own style or preference. I prefer to understand what I'm setting up than just loading it.

 

[StefanoCasillo]

Intended as a friendly question, how do you equate your view to the world of a test pilot and the design/engineering team?

it's pretty simple actually, aerodynamic is a very well understood subject compared to race cars

 

[Marocco2]

Setup can earn about up to 5 seconds each lap, driving skills up to 4 seconds each lap. Good setup and great driving skills are enough

 

[Lars Hansen]

I agree and disagree. High aero-settings does make the driving especially in GT-cars very comfortable, but on the most tracks it´s to slow to compete against good sim-racers. A good setup needs to find the best grip with the lowest drag. For example: With the Porsche GT3 Cup car i was far to slow in SRS with my setup and downloaded a setup on thesetupmarket.com, which immediately made me 2 sec. faster around VIR full plus better traction, handling and good top-speeds. Instead of high positive toe at the back, it was slightly negative, ARBs both at max, aero quite high. So he replaced the high-toe default with a low toe, high-ARB-setting resulting in better grip, but less tyre friction/drag from the toe. I don´t know if it would work in the real car, but sounds plausible.

And running low-downforce at tracks like Monza or Highlands need especially in AC a few tricks. I lower the spring and ARB in the back as well to stabilize the rear and avoid oversteer-spins. I never read this in a guide even it´s common in real racing as well, because less downforce means less stiffness from the springs required to deal with the additional aero-weight.

We agree more than we disagree.
You were lucky enough to find a set-up that apparently suited both your style and talent.
And in that case, downloading a set-up is obviously of benefit.
However, to use another example we ran the R3E Club ran FR US (Indycars basically) at Salzburgring last week.
So working up to it I went on the leaderboards to compare times, and I was roughly 1,5 seconds off the top guys pace.
No surprises there, that's where I usually end up. Varies a little from class to class, but about 2 seconds off the pace is pretty normal.
Then I overheard some of the leaders talking set-ups, and they ran very high downforce, something like 16-18 clicks on both wings. Whereas I was running 6-8 clicks.......
So I tried one of the leaders set-ups, and I was now 3,5 seconds off the pace.
Why?
Simple. The 'fast' set-up lost a little time on the straights due to drag, but was much faster through the twisty sections.
But.....I don't race open-wheelers very often, and I'm in general very uncomfortable in high-downforce cars.
Which meant that I never took advantage of the extra grip the 'fast' set-up had because I didn't trust it.
Instead, I only lost time on the straights due to higher drag.
So, was the 'fast' set-up the 'correct' set-up for that car/track combo?
Probably yes.
It just wasn't the best for me.

 

[Nick Hill]

Mod Edit >snip> * Read our Terms of Service AGAIN !! *

Look, I said it myself in this very thread: AC is a "secondary" sim for me (meaning, there is/are other sim(s) that I play more often than AC...I'm intentionally avoiding naming names because this thread is neither the time or the place for that).

That said, anyone with even an ounce of objectivity has to acknowledge AC is one of several highly credible racing/driving simulators on the market today. In my opinion, it has strengths and weaknesses...just like every other sim ever created (going all the way back to Revs)! Whatever sim(s) you choose to play is going to be a reflection of how you personally weigh those strengths and weaknesses - which is all highly subjective!

Yet, an astounding number of people manage to turn this into a dogmatic situation: everything sim X does is gold; everything sim Y does is ****.

For starters, the endeavor of simulating the experience of driving a car at speed is way, way, WAY too subjective of an undertaking to support such dogmatic attitudes. But, even if we put this aside (for academic purposes) and say "ok, ok, you're right - sim Y really is ****", why does it bother people so damned much that others may actually like sim Y?!?

I don't get it. I make myself feel better by saying we're just a passionate, persnickety bunch and the internet makes people forget their manners sometimes...but I fear that the more realistic take is that people suck.

End of rant. Keep the videos coming - I loved it. It was a real eye-opener for me personally because, while I didn't technically learn anything from the video (i.e. I already "knew" all of this), it forced me to come face to face with the uncomfortable truth that "knowing" and "doing" are 2 very different things!

I love the engagement this sort of thing engenders. My message to Kunos would be to ignore the haters and keep up the good work. Speaking for myself, a few more videos like this (created by someone with the level of credibility Aris has) is the sort of thing that could tip the balance between AC being a "secondary" and "primary" sim.

 

[hitm4k3r]

<Snip>
I for one spent the last evening driving the 787b a bit for more than two hours and I am currecntly a bit puzzled by the tires of that car. First of all the medium and the soft slick both last for a full stint, with the medium being alot slower over the distance than the soft tire. I could explain that with relatively low temperatures, that I had set, but they still feel very similar in terms of wear. What I find a tad more interesting though is the fact, that the medium slick decreases in temperature rapidly, when I increase the tire pressure and that it has it's optimum window between 40-50 degree for me (stone cold for a racing slick). On the contrary side, when I lower the tire pressure, it stays at comfortable 65 degree (green) but gives worse performance due to the tire squishing. All in all the car is understeering like hell, no matter how much I work on the setup (with a default camber at over 3 degree allready, full front DF and front ARB at full) and cranking the wheel or locking them has surprisingly allmost no influence on the temerature of the tire (like 5-10 degree difference), same like corners with extreme load on the tires like Eau Rouge or Blanchimont. Some explaination by some Kunos engineer would be welcome, especialy regarding the wierd temperature falloff with increased pressures. It's like the normal behaviour is inverted

 

[smasha]

Tips are great but when you have depression and low self esteem,it doesn't matter how much you try,you will never improve as much as you want too as I have found out.

One day ,I will be happy driving just having fun but the next day,I will have anxiety about even turning the sim back on.

And when I drive,I feel miserable.

Happens to me in everything.

Can't even sit and watch a movie,need to jog or exercise.

I think the biggest part of becoming good at anything in life is patience but when you suffer from things like depression or anxiety,that part is stripped away.

The other side I guess is when I watch iracing streams ,the elite drivers are very catty and every brush is met with some bad comments on the chat and generally drivers are more narcissist,the better they get.

I get insanely jelly of you aliens as I struggle with basic things in simracing like setup which I will never understand as my mind wanders like a jet engine and it just can't get the info in.

I usually just do lap after lap after lap until I'm very tired but nowhere near the aliens.

I am about 8-15 seconds behind depending on the track.

As for RBR forget about it,crash every corner,using the park brake,lol ,no idea at all.

That is the benchmark sim for deciding who is real or pretending I feel.

If you are good at RBR ,you can race anything.

I found a great article on the subject of gaming and depression.

https://www.mentalhealthforum.net/forum/thread139610.html

Podcasting I wouldn't be able to put two words together lolz.

 

[smasha]

Sure, Mercedes would rather hire someone for their simulator who can drive on the limit, but doesn't understand numerical analysis, resulting in incorrect behavior and even exploding cars when entering real data.

In other words, please hire some proper simulation engineer to rewrite AC's physics engine, so that I can take it seriously. Thanks in advance.

Odear.
Even though I suck at every sim,I love the feeling of Assetto Corsa.
Yes ,I have rf2 also.
Suck at that too.
But only because my engine between the ears only runs on two spark plugs so everyone else is cheating haha.

 

[Boby Kim]

On a holiday in the far east i met a monk who sat beside me and out of the blue he shared his wisdom:
Whatever u do dont though the brakes...just slam that throttle at u will go faster that light...boy.
U will be a flashing crack in the dark nite that thunders and roars beating the silence and when u cross that checkered flag you will understand what i just told you.

I never understood the monk so thanks for the video

 

[Nick Hill]

Following Aris's tips, I'm within 0.5 of his time in the video - still some work to do finding time and (perhaps more importantly) getting more consistent, but I'm still very pleased (and having a blast).

So, as I sit there patting my back a bit, it occurs to me that some months back I did a league event at this exact Silverstone layout in the Porsche GT4 cup car. I recall practicing pretty diligently but struggling to stay even with the midfield during the actual event...Hmm, I wonder if I would be any faster armed with Aris's tips?

Load up the GT4 @ Silverstone and after 6 laps (and still not quite getting a handle on the more aggressive handling feel of the GT4 vs the M235i) I'm already 2.4 seconds faster!

Have you ever been simultaneously enraged and elated at the same time? I have - it happened to me about 10 mins ago playing AC!

I really only see one logical solution - before every event I drive, I'll just send Aris the car/track combo and then he can whip up a 40 min video teaching me how to drive. Yeah, that oughta work!

In all seriousness though, these tips are of course transferable to any car/track combo. The trick is to be disciplined enough to apply them and not let the bad habits creep back in.

 

[David Dominguez]

All in all the car is understeering like hell, no matter how much I work on the setup (with a default camber at over 3 degree allready, full front DF and front ARB at full)

I guess you mean rear ARB?

 

[ronniej]

Fantastic! Thanks a bunch Aris, always great to hear from you guys!