Why am I rubbish?

[Kek700]

I am just about passable at Assetto Corsa, bit rubbish, but ok, but Assetto Corsa Competizione I am totally rubbish.
Some 4 to 5 seconds off the pace at Imola.

Admittedly I don't practice much, but assumed it should be an easy jump from AC gt3 to ACC gt3.

I don't expect an obvious answer, nothing in life is that easy, but you never know.

 

[Frank]

I am not sure that it is about practice Des, 6 seconds of the pace at Imola is more than just practice.
The biggest reason is that I just do not understand exactly what I need to do, or what I am doing wrong. just bashing around the circuit trying to go faster, when I am at my limit already is not the answer.
There is not that much wrong with my basics as far as I can see, certainly not reflected in 6 seconds off the pace.
I’ll have to think hard about what to do, or give up, now that sounds like a sensible solution.

Had another go this evening, managed a 1-44-0.8 think I am sort of getting it, slowly,

thought I would give my replay if anyone wants to give me some help,
the last few laps, it started to sink in, I think.

trying to sort it ?

I checked your replay and just your fastest lap, a few things I noticed. I won't go into detail on the corners as you have some other things to take care off:

• The gearshifts are way to early, not utilizing the torque of the car at all. It's almost like the car is doing shifts automatically,
• You aren't using downshifts to help on braking, you want to be more aggressive on downshifts. you might be autoshifting?,
• Your mid corner speed is too low, keep the car rolling,
• Release your brakes earlier to compliment above,
• Go on throttle earlier when you reach the apex, but DON'T fluctuate your throttle through the corner as you are causing understeer pushing your car out and compromising your exit. Keep it steady or completely released until you can push down your throttle completely and never let go ;-),
• Use the track, you lose a lot of exit speed by not utilizing the kerbs and all of the track. In the Porsche you can't kerb ride like a Merc or Lexus, but as long as you avoid the yellow "buns" as much as possible you should be OK.

Other then that your lines seem fine, but you mostly just need to practice.

 

[Interslice]

I'm in the same boat as ernie. I've messed around with different cars which hasn't helped me get a feel for the sim, but i just find it hard to jump in and race well. Which is a pity because the public multiplayer system is great.
There is alot of little pieces of knowledge about the game mechanics and setup/settings to pick up. Engine maps for example was an evenings research in itself...

PHYSICS - ECU maps implementation

V1.1, ECU and throttle maps updates on all cars. Specifically: tl;dr not much changes in the way you drive. ------------------------------------...

www.assettocorsa.net

DRIVERS GUIDE - ASSETTO CORSA COMPETIZIONE

docs.google.com

 

[Des Pearce]

I am not sure that it is about practice Des, 6 seconds of the pace at Imola is more than just practice.
The biggest reason is that I just do not understand exactly what I need to do, or what I am doing wrong. just bashing around the circuit trying to go faster, when I am at my limit already is not the answer.
There is not that much wrong with my basics as far as I can see, certainly not reflected in 6 seconds off the pace.
I’ll have to think hard about what to do, or give up, now that sounds like a sensible solution.

Had another go this evening, managed a 1-44-0.8 think I am sort of getting it, slowly,

thought I would give my replay if anyone wants to give me some help,
the last few laps, it started to sink in, I think.

trying to sort it ?

I think that's a second quicker than I manage, I feel like that too, I suspect my issue is a combination of braking to early, not trailbraking enough, not utilising all of the track, low mid corner speed and poor throttle application. Apart from that I'm good.

For me I think practice will improve things as I need to get a feel for when I'm getting it right.

 

[Des Pearce]

What would be great is if some of the quick guys on here were to mentor people who want to improve but are either struggling due to limited time or because they're stuck at a certain level and can't see where they're going wrong.

Sign me up for that please!

 

[Kek700]

A thank-you to @Des Pearce , @Interslice and @Frank for your help, so much to learn after time on AC.

Will put some time into it today, wrt @Frank comments, and see if I can go quicker.

Not 100% sure what he said about gear changing though, pretty sure it is not in auto shift mode.

 

[Des Pearce]

Not sure I can help in making you faster but I'm happy to be around as moral support, maybe we should form our own self help group "slow and frustrated"

 

[Frank]

A thank-you to @Des Pearce , @Interslice and @Frank for your help, so much to learn after time on AC.

Will put some time into it today, wrt @Frank comments, and see if I can go quicker.

Not 100% sure what he said about gear changing though, pretty sure it is not in auto shift mode.

If it's not auto shift then the fix is:

• Shift at higher RPM to utilize your torque more, currently you shift between 8500 and 8800, you want to be between 9000 and 9250 (If I remember correctly),
• Shift down more aggressively under braking to utilize your engine to help slowing down your car.

 

[akephoe]

My 2 cents.
Coming from rf2 and not being really fast in rf2 for sure i have to fight even more to get a solid mid/backfield pace and feel in acc.
Consistency was/is ok, but the overall pace is just slow.
I took a step back this week just to review why and where i'm missing feel and pace and driving skill.

I did some reading the last days about what it takes to be fast, what are the main keyes to get better and where are the common faults which are made by guys like me.
Not only in acc, because many of my faults in simracing are fundamental in every sim i believe. But acc shows, maybe because i'm not used to it like rf2, more of my mistakes.
So, long story...
First, the ACC rating system helped me to analyse what i'm doing.
I could see a big up and down on cn and cc in the rating graphs. Some car/track combinations do work, others are way off. In general i had a good to high cn but low to bad cc with always not being very fast.

Together with watching replays from me and videos from "good fast drivers" and a lot off explanations on the web about driving technique, some points are now more clear for me being slow.
One of my problem is that i drive to hard, pushing to harsh. Braking to late and long results in not carrying enough speed in corners. I overdrive cars and tyres on one side and i'm not using the potential of cars and tyres on the other side. Not using the tyres well is always a problem for me. I'm able to double stint in rf2 on one set of tyres when other guys are not able to do one stint....
Also my track management is not good, the racingline is often off, using not enough curbs, wrong braking points, bad car placement on track, etc etc

Okay, time to work.
First step was some back to back running in wheel/ffb settings, just to see if here is possibly one reason for the problems.
Result: its not, the settings are good, the feel for the car and tyres is ok.
Its just the "driver" who is not good. Surprise....

Time for the next step.
I took a car that i didn't like since driving acc because it felt tricky and unpredictable for me (F488EVO) to a track i know well and did some racing the last days (Spa).

I started with a full tank and the default safe setup and just did lap after lap, just to stay on track and trying to get a feel for the car and tyres.
After 5, 6 laps indeed i got a better sense for the car and tyres. I could now feel beginning oversteer and understeer, could feel overdriving as a result of driving to hard, when pushing i could see where i lost control and lost time etc.
After 10 laps i did a break, watched the replay, made some small adjustements to the setup and went out again for another 6-8-10 lap run.
And again, the faith in the car was growing with every lap while the laptime slowly starts to drop.

After more than 2hours and more than 50 laps i did steady 2:22 with full tank, after doing 2:26-2:25 in the beginning.
But more important is that i saw some progress in understanding what i did wrong and what i did right while driving.
Thats the first time in many years that i did this kind of basic testing.
And i'm sure i will do more sessions as it helps to understand what i'm doing wrong or right to improve.

 

[Interslice]

When to shift is another issue, not helped with the bloody rev guage stuck in the bottom right of the screen... the flashing shift indicator built into it is also incorrect on some cars, like the amg where it comes on very early.

(I'm on a single 27" monitor so maybe more applicable to this situation)
I've started to use the HUD dash. You need to be in the 'dash cam' view then hit pause and go into view settings to activate it... ... Then into controls to setup either keyboard or wheel buttons to cycle the few different HUD options for the car. Essential on the likes of the nissan where it gives you a speed guage on the stock HUD. The rev guage can even still be a ball ache, by disappearing to a flashing shift mode where you can no longer see the exact rpm.

... it's again another area that needs time put in... I can usually jump into a car in AC, set the onboard view and sidekick app position and be good to go in less than 30 seconds.

 

[Kek700]

@akephoe , good explanation, what you said pretty much goes with what I think I am doing wrong ++++.

Problem is when I make adjustments, based on your comments, I go slower, which is a bugger,

I have now got my time down to 1-44-00. still as hard as I try, cannot creep into 1-43- so that gives me some hope.

This time tried the BMW and Mercedes, I don't appear to have the 2020 version??, I can get to low 44's in all of these cars. tried mid-engine Audi, could get nowhere with that one.

Yes, I agree Brian, I have a 49" display, everything is totally out of my view

 

[Interslice]

Braking distances/tyre grip seem to go from longest on lap 1 to shortest on lap 3 slowly getting longer again before dropping off sharply after about 20 minutes. Alot to thing about compared to AC where on you could have tyre warmers on from the start and not have to think about tyres loosing grip for 25 minutes.. even then, in AC, it seems to mostly affect the traction on exit and not the braking distance and mid corner grip.

Just thinking out loud observations here

 

[Des Pearce]

@akephoe , good explanation, what you said pretty much goes with what I think I am doing wrong ++++.

Problem is when I make adjustments, based on your comments, I go slower, which is a bugger,

I have now got my time down to 1-44-00. still as hard as I try, cannot creep into 1-43- so that gives me some hope.

This time tried the BMW and Mercedes, I don't appear to have the 2020 version??, I can get to low 44's in all of these cars. tried mid-engine Audi, could get nowhere with that one.

Yes, I agree Brian, I have a 49" display, everything is totally out of my view

You have to get the latest DLC for 2020 versions of the Merc and Ferrari.

I'm going to stick to one car, the Lexus, until I get to where I want to be. I'll use Motec and run lots of laps at different circuits and see where I am in a few weeks.

I really enjoy my sim racing so I'm going to invest more time into it.

 

[Richard Dastardly]

Usually I find people brake too late & too hard, thus end up rolling through the apex too slowly because they can't switch from brake-mode to go-mode in their head quickly enough. The other thing is not using all the track. Thirdly, work on a setup to make you *comfortable*, that'll be what will make you quickest in a race at first. I find the 911 horrible to set up - it's fast, but either you leave the front end solid like the default setups ( look at the bunpstop range ) and put up with the power-on push, or you have to change literally everything.

Next up - what race type are you doing these times in? Friday practice is noticeably slower than a Sunday session ( assuming no rain ), for instance.

Random Imola lap from when I was helping with a setup for the 12hrs. I'm not very good there ( no track time in ACC there yet ) & it's over 100L, but I do tend to explore the track limits...

Note me doing the whole "braking too late" thing.

 

[Des Pearce]

Usually I find people brake too late & too hard, thus end up rolling through the apex too slowly because they can't switch from brake-mode to go-mode in their head quickly enough. The other thing is not using all the track. Thirdly, work on a setup to make you *comfortable*, that'll be what will make you quickest in a race at first. I find the 911 horrible to set up - it's fast, but either you leave the front end solid like the default setups ( look at the bunpstop range ) and put up with the power-on push, or you have to change literally everything.

Next up - what race type are you doing these times in? Friday practice is noticeably slower than a Sunday session ( assuming no rain ), for instance.

Random Imola lap from when I was helping with a setup for the 12hrs. I'm not very good there ( no track time in ACC there yet ) & it's over 100L, but I do tend to explore the track limits...

Note me doing the whole "braking too late" thing.

You're much quicker through turns 1 and 2, 6, 7 and the chicane after aqua minerale and use more of the track on exit. Braking points look similar so maybe I'm too hard on the brakes and not carrying the mid corner speed, that in turn would lead to less kerb on the exit.

Plenty for me to start working on just from that video

 

[Kek700]

Well, I notice you making your apex's cleaner, and you take them full on with little effect to the Bentley, not
only is the Bentley more confident over the curbs. But some of that is getting the nose to attack the curb lumps straight on.
The Porsche is not very tolerant of the lumps on the curbs, one lap it fine, next lap it is a disaster.

Does the above make sense.???

Cannot see what you mean about the Braking, looks fine to me. I notice you using the brakes to help turn the
car in some corners, that's about it.

 

[Richard Dastardly]

You're much quicker through turns 1 and 2, 6, 7 and the chicane after aqua minerale and use more of the track on exit. Braking points look similar so maybe I'm too hard on the brakes and not carrying the mid corner speed, that in turn would lead to less kerb on the exit.

Plenty for me to start working on just from that video

How you come off the brakes is the secret. Stiff brake pedal helps *so* much. Also don't hit a kerb-bump with a loaded wheel or the car will not be happy, so if you can see the car going for some lump in the track on the outside lift off whatever pedal you're pushing a bit.

Well, I notice you making your apex's cleaner, and you take them full on with little effect to the Bently, not
only is the Bently more confident over the curbs. But some of that is getting the nose to attack the curb lumps straight on.
The Porsche is not very tolerant of the lumps on the curbs, one lap it fine, next lap it is a disaster.
Does the above make sense.???

Cannot see what you mean about the Braking, looks fine to me. I notice you using the brakes to help turn the
car in some corners, that's about it.

The Bentley defaults tend to put the car in the air going over kerbs like that, had to start with the philosophy of "someone's going to go over the kerb, let's make sure it can handle it" as it was an endurance race - so fairly high, not too much ARB, making sure fast dampers let the suspension extend quickly etc. I'll actually see if I can make the 911 work. I do know what you mean about kerb hopping in it though.

Edit: 911 can absolutely ride kerbs, I'm terrible at setting it up though, I can never get it comfortable.

Second part of Villeneuve ( not a huge deal when the next braking zone is just ahead, and that was more that the car wasn't settled on the apex to exit ), Piratella, 2nd part of Minerali - that was pretty bad, mostly coz of drifting onto the kerb on the left & not compensating, and both parts of Rivazza - you can hear the tyres overworking a little - were slightly too late, ended up a little behind the car.

 

[Kek700]

Help......

Where can I find a MoTeC data file for a 1-41 is'h lap of Imola in a 911, or any car really?

I need to see where I am loosing most of the time, am I expecting too much?

PS.
Did what you said with the 911, could not get the fast damping to help with an overzealous curb attack.
if taken, especially the first corner curb two, the back just jumped, putting the nose into the next yellow thing, car gone.

 

[Des Pearce]

Help......

Where can I find a MoTeC data file for a 1-40 is'h lap of Imola in a 911, or any car really?

I need to see where I am loosing most of the time, am I expecting too much?

Maybe some of us have limits that we can't get beyond, I'm not suggesting you're there but it might be that practice (hundreds of hours) is the only answer once you've identified your technical weaknesses.

 

[Kek700]

I fully understand that Des, all too aware of my many shortcomings, and there is a lot, let alone in sim racing.
But I was never a "give upper", not until its bleeding obvious, nearly there though.

I wish there was an opposite of an Alien, then I could proudly wear that badge of honour.

 

[Kek700]

Jumped ship, and decided on Richards Bently, it rides the kerbs so much better, adjusted fast damping which improved matters, still not hitting my apexes, but now down the 1-43-0.6 which this sad old me is happy with.

I can now directly compare his lap to mine, ie same car.