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BACK IN SCHOOL
Sections Covered:
- "Driving In My Mind" : Motion Physics Analysis
- "Need a Ride?" : Chassis Selection
- "Fill'er Up" : Gallons of Gasoline
- "Them Rubber Ballons" : Tire Pressure
- "Canted To Me" : Camber
- "The Pigeon Toe Walk" : Toe In/Out
- "Are You Planted?" : Springs
- "Walk Gracefully, Please " : Dampers
- "Do You Need Sole Inserts?" : Spring Rubbers
- "Wind Me Up Please" : Gearing
- "Don't Lean On Me" : Anti-Roll Bars
- "Turn For Me Now!" : Steering Box Ratio
DRIVING IN MY MIND
Before you jump right into GPL, or for any other racing simulation out there, it is very imperative that you think what the car is doing in the corners. If you don't, you are really going to be lost. You just can't drive the sim and expect results. In order for you to be successful, you are going to have to think on what the car is doing. So let's analyze on what the car does going in and out of a right hand turn.
As you approach the corner, you apply the brakes and then sooner or later you downshift. Correct? So what did the car just do?
- When you slow down, the weight transfers to the front of the car. The front springs, rubber, dampeners and the tires receive this load.
When turn the car to the right, how has the suspension reacted?
- The weight has transferred to the "left" side of the car. Now the left side of the car is loaded. The left front tire is receiving the entire load. So this tells you that the left sides of the car is a matter of importance in a right turn, makes sense?
- So now, the left front wheel assembly is now compressed more than the left rear assembly. The right front assembly is uncompressed more than the right rear.
- The right side of the car is unloaded.
When at the apex of the corner, what is next?
- The is where the weight of the car is now evenly transferred to both left side tires. And the right side of the car is equally unloaded.
As we exit the corner.
- Weight is applied back to the right side of the car; thus the weight is being applied to the right side, equally to the left side of the car. (The right sides of the car start to compress and the left sides start to uncompress.)
- As you apply throttle, the weight moves to the rear. The front assemblies uncompress and the rear assemblies compress.
Let me get some terminology out of the way:
- Understeer, tight: Is when the front tires of the car, no longer respond to a turning command. The car proceeds to go straight.
- Oversteer, loose: Is when the rear tires lose traction and the rear of the car decides to come around to the front of the car. Now go picture it over and over.
NEED A RIDE?
In GPL, you have several F1 manufacturers that raced in 1967. They are the following; Brabham, British Racing Motors, Coventry, Eagle, Ferrari, Lotus, and Murasama.
It's imperative that you pay close to the specifications of each chassis. They are not similar! In GPL, it lists the specifications in the following format; track front/rear, wheelbase, weight, and engine horsepower. Each chassis has it's own characteristics and attitudes. Some of the chassis do have advantages over another, such as the Lotus as being the lightest of the bunch, yet, the most twitchiest. The Brabham has characteristics of a better handling car, yet lack of horsepower. The Murasama, the heaviest of the bunch, but is very forgiving, chassis specification wise. Has the horsepower, but the weight is it's drawback. Also, keep in mind, that there will be a chassis better suited for a particular track.
So if you do plan on changing chassis during your testing, expect to drive at least 30 or more laps to get the feel of that chassis.
NOTE: When switching to another chassis, your setup for the chassis you started with, will no longer be available for the new chassis. You can rename the setup file though to its proper extension.
FILL'ER UP
Formula 1 in the 1960s-late 80s, weren't heavily dependent on pitstops. Formula 1 teams would use the amount of gasoline to run the whole race!
TIP: Put as much gallons of petrol, to make to the end of the race.
THEM RUBBER BALLONS
Ahh, those "rubber" hides that create friction onto the tarmac. Your attempt here is to have "equal tire temperatures across the tire, longevity and grip" in extracting the most out of your tires.
Currently, the only way for you to gauge the performance of your tires is by the following: your feel of the car in transition from entry/exit of the turn, and the tire temperature - which is located in the "Garage" area on the simulation. Your goal is to have the each tire in its "optimum operating temperature range". Which is roughly between 200�-230� in "past" Papyrus simulations.
In GPL, it's really going to be chore to get the temps up in the front tires, because how the cars are laid out. If the tire temperatures are less than what is mentioned, the tire(s) have will less grip and has more of a tendency to "slip" due to the lack of "heat" built up onto the tire. Thus creating more "wear" onto the tire.
If the tire temperatures are "higher or overheating" than the optimum temperature range, the tire will exhibit more wear characteristics quickly. The tires here will have more of a tendency to slip more. Please keep mind that are other variables the help tire wear and temperature. They will be noted later in this guide.
GOAL: Even tire temperatures on the surface of the tire in the "optimum tire temperature" range.
CANTED TO ME
Uhh, the necessity in making the car turn in/out in the corners. This setting is very valuable as it can also lead to drastic tire wear, if not set properly.
If the top of the tire is tilted from the centerline of the tire inward to the centerline of the car, this setting is to be known as "negative" camber. The aggressive the angle, the more tendency for the tire temperatures to be uneven. The inside of the tire, the area closest to the centerline of the car, will read higher in temperature than that of the outside of the tire. For "positive" camber, it is exactly the opposite. The outside of the tire becomes "hotter" and the inside is "cooler". What needs to be emphasized here, is "even" tire temperatures.
Adjust properly for the correct solution. Keep in mind, that with excessive camber, the car will not track straight, thus creating more tire wear. You will have to make steering corrections on straight-aways. For the rear camber settings, you will not be using as much camber as you did for the front settings.
THE PIGEON TOE WALK
In the life of weight transfer, turning, there is no "zero toe setting". As the transference of weight moves about in the car, via the suspension, the tires do not stay do not stay at the angle you have set. It's constantly moving.
So keep that in mind with all "steering adjustments". Remember, "camber"? Same thing applies. By moving forward in a straight-line, weight is moved to the rear, thus, the frontend load of the front tires alleviated. If this setting was set to "zero", the tires would face outward. So you need to adjust the toe in/out properly to compensate for the change.
What is "toe"? By looking for the top of the car and using the forward most part of the tire, if you leave the tires in a straight plane, this would be "zero" toe. If you tilt the tires "inward" to the centerline of the car, that would be "negative" toe-in. If you tilt the tire "outward" from the centerline of the car, that would be "positive" toe-out.
ARE YOU PLANTED?
"Wow, Four coiled thingies!" The purpose of the springs is to help in transfer of "weight" to the tires. The "higher" the spring rate, the "stiffer" the ride, and the "quicker" weight transfer. The responsiveness to the chassis and tire wear will be quicker.
For the "lower" spring rate, the "softer" the ride and the "slower" weight transfer. The chassis response will be more "forgiving".
The imperative usage of springs is needed to get the proper "feel" weight transfer going in and out" of the corner". More on this in the "Advance" section of the guide.
WALK GRACEFULLY, PLEASE
"What in the hell are these?" Dampener is the proper engineering terminology of the more known name, "shock absorber". The purpose of the dampener is to govern the rate of the oscillations and weight transfer to the tire.
Dampener are made or adjusted to be at different rates. E.g."50/50, 70/30, 90/10... etc." "Rebound?" Rebound of the dampener is the action of the dampener coming "off" of the curb. Think of it like, "expansion".
"Bump? What bump?" Bump is the part of the dampener that goes up the curb. Or in other words, the dampener is being "compressed". More on dampeners in the "Advance" section of the guide.
DO YOU NEED SOLE INSERTS?
Spring rubbers, a.k.a. "bump rubbers", are located in the coil springs. The purpose of adding the spring rubber, is to fine-tune the spring rate. Since spring rate come in "set" rates.
More on spring rubbers in the "Advance" section of the guide.
WIND ME UP PLEASE
GPL has several types of chassis and engine manufacturers. The goal for you is to set each gear accordingly in the engines "operating range". If you notice there are several options in the gearing department.
What you have available to you are: "final drive, ramp angles and clutch". Final drive is the final differential gearset. This setting influences all gears! The other noted settings will be discussed in the "Advance" section of the guide.
DONT LEAN ON ME
There are front and rear sway bars. These suspension devices prevent the suspension in "rolling or leaning" in the process of turning and they also apply pressure to the inside wheel or transfers weight through the bar as the car rolls to the opposite side.
Usage: ARBs are used in every aspect of the turn. The only time that the rollbars are not in effect is if the car is going in a straight line. If the car is exhibiting an "understeer" problem in the turn, "decrease the front ARB". OR "increase the rear ARB". If the car is exhibiting an "oversteer" condition, "increase front ARB" OR "decrease the rear ARB".
TURN FOR ME NOW
This setting is usually driver's preference, but there is a need to make a comment here. In GPL, it gives you from "12:1 to 18:1" in steering boxes. The 18:1 setting is biggest setting of the bunch. This setting is twitcher and yield "less" turning of the steering wheel. With the lower settings, you will physically turn the steering wheel more.
Keep in mind, the more steering ratio you use, the more tire wear is prevalent. Though, tire temperatures do come up. You will have more fine-tuning in the corners versus with a "lower setting".
 
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