08C Monza

Spa is now behind us and Monza ahead. I started on a setup locally so I could run the 8a-3070. I have what I believe to be a pretty good setup. Try it out and see what ya get. Post any other setups here. I got a 31:6 with this setup.

edit: Times are preliminary and based on about 30 laps or so.

I did some more on-track power testing.  I think the problem for us is an aggregate of issues, only one of which is our power deficit.  They are all intertwined though.  At Spa we ran higher wing, at least I did.  We run helos, which cannot dig out of La Source like they can, and can have stability problems at very low downforce.  And finally, there is the power deficit.

I can already tell Monza is going to be worse than Spa.  The helo's main weakness is stability, moreso than power application.  Monza is likely lower downforce than Spa and has more curbs that destabilize that have to be used.

I managed to get a 31.3, but with my current approach I don't think there is much for me beyond 31.0.  They are already into the 30s, and Josh (a guy on an SDL who has not applied) is down to 30.4.  Matt is down to 31.0, with a deviation so high that he probably only turned a couple laps to get that time.

However, I think our engine is the right engine for us over the whole season.  It's drivability is key for the helos, and a side bonus is our starts.  On harder to pass tracks later in the season, starts will be more important, and I think our less peaky engine allows us to gear better for starts.  They need to gear tighter, which makes it much harder for them to tradeoff well for starts.  At Spa I ate them alive on the starts, but at Spa it did not matter since they had a long straight to take it back on.

I was disappointed to see Suzuka taken off the schedule. Though, I know there are others who were happy. Yeah, Monza is an exercise in top speed and low wing. I had tried the wing down very very low and settled on the above setup because as the wing got to like a 2/1, I had diminishing returns. Gotta love Monza though, and we'll just get more drivers inthe points then "the other guys".

Suzuka will get back on for 2009A, and its still on 2008C as a special event, matching up with the real-life Suzuka weekend.

I usually don't publicly promote tracks from out of the blue, but you have to try GP-200: http://www.rfactorcentral.com/detail.cfm?ID=GP%2D200%20International

And I thought Mid-Ohio was good (well, it is, but GP-200 is right up there).