Simulation selection

[DJ Stewart]

Hi, I am a long time racer who wants to get better at driving and thought I would try simulation. I have a low powered open wheeled formula car - no aerodynamics - and am primarily interested in only two tracks: Sebring Road Course (long and short versions) and Daytona Speedway road course. Can anyone give me suggestions on what simulation program would be best for me?

[Matt Clark]

Hi DJ.

That depends a bit on what you see yourself doing most. iRacing, rFactor & netKar are some of the best ones out there right now, but which is suited for you depends.

iRacing-
Best cars & tracks since they are actually laser scanned from actual cars/places. The online racing is awesome once you get thru the Rookie class, as many of them aren't the greatest. As of now, the only small formula car is a Skip Barber car. Yes, there are wings, but those don't do much. Almost all major road courses are/will be there, including Sebring & Daytona. The only real downside here is the price. It's a small monthly fee, and you purchase addon tracks & cars. That said, I've been a member from the beginning, and will continue to be for a long time.

rFactor-
More mods & other series than any other sim. There are many small series for download; Formula Ford, Skip Barber, Formula Vee, etc. Tracks are everywhere, all of differing quiality. It is a one time purchase of around $30, but the quality is far behind iRacing. Online racing is hit or miss, depending on the group you find to run with.

netKar-
Almost all small formula cars & very nice looking tracks. Tougher to use than the other 2 sims, but very realistic. Online racing is almost non-existant, really. Price isn't bad, but no North American tracks.

[Tiago Santos]

I think that as a training tool, iRacing can't be beat. Netkar is great, but it doesn't have the tracks you need, and rFactor is good, but just not in the same league, especially as far as track modelling goes.

There aren't a lot of choices as far as cars and classes go with iRacing, but what is there, is done very well.. But it does cost a bit of money and takes time to get through the licensing requirements, which some people can't be bothered with.

[Raido]

iRacing is probably the best/most focused sim out there, but (and this is a 'but' for many people) currently it's a paid online simracing service, not a standalone 'sim' as such.

Afaik it has no facilities for offline racing, or independent mod or track development (don't think Sebring and Daytona are in there yet). Basically, you're stuck with what you've been dealt with (and you'll keep paying for it, too, or get kicked off again). It's certainly worth a try as a training tool, and if it grabs you, I guess there's hardly anything better.

NetKar has a good reputation but it's seemingly verly limited in scope and not many mods or other development has grabbed the headlines in recent years. Also worth a try, but if the track and/or vehicle you want isn't in there, you might have to wait a looooong time for things to change.

The granddaddy of all serious racing sims, Grand Prix Legends or GPL, is still out there as well and has a small but very focused set of good car mods available for it. This sim comprises the origin of iRacing and it shows - its hypersensitive feedback while driving is still among the best. Can be run offline and has a great number of historic tracks available for it, with Targa Florio and the Isle of Man as the current non plus ultra. The F1 1966 Mod is currently the most evolved mod for it, (3L/2.5L F1 no downforce) but sports cars, Can-Am and F2 mods are also in the works.

GTR2/rFactor (same sim technology - different packaging) is probably the best if you like low cost racing with great variety.
rFactor is basically a basic toolbox to build mods, and in reality that means there are a lot of rather crappy mods and tracks out there and a small (but growing) number of good ones. Caterhams, Vintage Formula Vee, FFord and HistoriX (historic racing - also "Power & Glory Mod" for GTR2) are among the latter ones.

Basically, rFactor is a cherry picking orchard - there's a lot to choose from, and it's fun trying it all out, but in the end you'll likely end up with a small number of good mods/tracks you'll really like. Nevertheless, you'll also end up loving some outstanding cars and tracks you've never even heard of. (Like Schwabenland, Westwood, Goldenport or Turagua for instance, in my case.)

Hope it helps!

[Tiago Santos]

Both Daytona and Sebring are in there.. They're doing a pretty good job at adding most of the bigger North American tracks. They're not free though.

There is no offline racing, but you can practice by yourself. You still need to go through the website to launch the sim, but it's effectively running offline.

[DJ Stewart]

Thank you guys so much for taking the time to answer my questions. I'm very impressed with your concern and the time you took to help!!!

[DJ Stewart]

Both Daytona and Sebring are in there.. They're doing a pretty good job at adding most of the bigger North American tracks. They're not free though.

There is no offline racing, but you can practice by yourself. You still need to go through the website to launch the sim, but it's effectively running offline.

So with iRacing I could pay a monthly fee, select any available car, select Sebring track and practice by myself whenever and as long as I want? Do I have to be online when I practice only? What would you recommend to be a good computer system which would give me the most realistic feel? Any tips on where I might look to perhaps find a good used system? Thanks again for any help you can be.

[Matt Clark]

You pay a monthly fee, and you get a base pack of cars & tracks. Additional cars & tracks are extra ($10-15 normally). You do have to be online to access the program, but some guys disconnect after they get into the session. I wouldn't recommend that if possible.

As far as a computer system, what do you currently have? There are several options depending on what you have/would be willing to spend on an upgrade or new system. The steering wheel is really what makes the difference in feel. Cheapest you can go is about $50-70 for a Logitech MOMO (I have a brand new one you can have cheap)

[Matt Clark]

Something else I just found.... iRacing is having a FREE Fathers day promo valid until 07-19-10. Let me know if you need a code, and I will try to get you one.

[DJ Stewart]

Hi, I haven't purchased a computer system for simulation yet. I may be interested in your wheel; does it have pedals/connections etc. it needs to do what I need?

[Tiago Santos]

What kind of computer are you using right now? It may very well be enough to use iRacing satisfactorily.. As far as "gaming systems" go, iRacing is really light on requirements. If you're buying a computer just for this, then give us a budget \

[Matt Clark]

Yep, my black MOMO is both the wheel & pedals, with the shifter built into the steering unit. It seriously is brand new, never even out of the box.

And like untexas said, can't give you computer recommendations until we know what you are starting with

[mario_zgb]

you're probable already busy working around your race car... might not be good idea getting stuck too much in sim racing... i know other guys won't like me but you might be very happy with Toca Race Driver 3... there is plenty of open wheel classes (go-cart, formula ford, formula 1000, formula bmw, formula palmer audi, formula 3 and different f1 cars)... there are no tracks that you're looking for but there are at least 30 different tracks around the world and north america that you can practice on (from off road to oval ones)... you'll also have chance to try different car setups... i think that can be very helpful in drawing some conclusions in real racing... settings that you can change are gear ratio, front and rear downforce, front and rear antiroll bar, brake bias, tire compound and height, shocks, springs, ride height, camber and tow... it takes less than a minute to change settings if you don't like it, so most of the time you'll be driving... you can drive it online too but there's no need for it... default opponents are pretty tough and you can set difficulty up to 110%... what do you need for it?... i run it on ps2... very stable... no need for fancy video cards... just plugged into older 38" tv... since it's in my basement i have enough room for complete car seat... i use affordable logitech steering wheel and pedals... fitness rubber strap is used to keep it tight on my lap hehe... and that's it... how much... i think you can find used ps2 for less than $150, steering wheel from $30 to $250 (i use cheap ones), for car seat check on scrap yards hehe, and tv $50 if you don't have one... results of all that you can check here http://www.youtube.com/results?searc...=yucrocan&aq=f , graphics are way better in reality, i used lowest quality for upload purposes... if you wish i can upload some formula ford races... that might be the closest one to what you're driving... i wish you have lot of fun with whatever you go for

[Matt Clark]

To each their own, but that is not even close to the same. I've done them all. I'm not going to bash anyone or anything, cause I enjoy both sides of the coin here. If you are looking to actually learn something from virtual racing, it's an easy decision.

If you're looking just to play a game, console stuff is good enough to kill time. The setup changes do not even translate realistically. Yes, iRacing on a PC is pricier, but is worth the difference in price.

[Raido]

Agree with Matt there. If you want to race sims, there's hardly any better than iRacing (though it's pricey). ToCA3 is a good game with definite sim leanings and quite a broad selection of cars, but not quite a real sim, and most definitely not up to today's standards.

Problem with iRacing is that it's a paid online service as much as it's a sim and that business model just isn't everyones cup of tea. If it is, though, there's just no comparison if you'd want to use it as a serious trainer tool.

I guess rFactor is somewhere in between, though it's a sim it's not quite up to iRacing's standards - in general. It quite depends on which mod/car you'd want to race - there's a HUGE lot to pick from these days (compared to iRacing where you'll have to stick with the few ones you're dealt with) and not all are equally good.

However, the best mods and tracks made for it are quite decent - personally, I count the Formula Vee and FFord mods among my favorites, alongside the Caterhams and Historic Touring Cars aka HistoriX.
(I hear the Legends Cars mod is quite good too, although I found the cars themselves rather twitchy. On the other hand, these days there are also new Street Car mods appearing including popular cars like the 2006 MX-5 Miata and the RX-8, Renault Megane, Audi TT, BMW Z4, Nissan GT-R and Mustang GT500).

Maybe it's best to put rF/GTR2 more in the 'casual sim' category (good for racing the AI or online in just about any kind of Formula or tin-top car you'd like) while iRacing is more a 'hardcore/pro'-type of sim (with its 'pay up or get kicked off'-model and limited car selection currently as its big drawbacks). ToCA doesn't quite belong in the same league as either, though.


PS. If you haven't purchased a computer to race on yet, you *can* also include a Mac in your list of puters to choose from, today's Macs will run iRacing and rF/GTR (as well as ToCa); also, just about any USB racing wheel and other peripherals will work.

[DJ Stewart]

Again, thank you guys so much for the info. I presently have a 2002 model dell pentium 4 laptop with windows XP and 256MB RAM. I have a budget of about $2000 and want to do this right the first time so from what you guys have said I'm thinking I will probably end up with iRacing (remember my main goal is to practice only with a low power formula car at Sebring Raceway).
Also, however, from what you guys have said rFactor is a one time purchase of approximately $30 for a disk? If this is true it sounds like a reasonable investment to try. Do you think my present computer system will handle it?

[DJ Stewart]

Yep, my black MOMO is both the wheel & pedals, with the shifter built into the steering unit. It seriously is brand new, never even out of the box.

And like untexas said, can't give you computer recommendations until we know what you are starting with

Hi Matt, how can I contact you about your MOMO?

[Matt Clark]

I hate to say it, but I don't think you will get much fun out of that computer with any games. If you have a $2000 upgrade budget, you can get a VERY capable system from one of these places, both who specialize in performance PC at prices you almost cannot do it yourself for;
http://www.oneilpcsystems.com/
http://www.mainperformancepc.com/
If I was in the market for a new PC, these are the places I'd go without hesitation. Not only do they build the system, the tune it & test it before it gets sent out.

As far as my wheel, just send me a PM when you get a chance.