rec.autos.simulators

by Jo » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

I need some help setting up an F3 car for Watkins Glen. I can't seem
to get the power other racers have (I can't get above 1:25, which
leaces me unable to keep up to the pack in online races). I seem to
lose time on both straights and turns. I've tried both taller and
shorter gears and it hasn't made much of a difference either way.

How do I get this car to go faster? Are there some good F3 setups
online? I'm not much good at this setup stuff, I don't have the
patience for it (which is why I went to F3 cars in the first place).

Joe

by **Trip** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

What car are you driving in F3? Some chassis may be unable to beat a
1:25 at the Glen.

You'll find some setups here:
http://www.retrievers.com/GMSS/f3/f3setups.htm

Good luck,

Trips
D. Bell on VROC

> I need some help setting up an F3 car for Watkins Glen. I can't seem
> to get the power other racers have (I can't get above 1:25, which
> leaces me unable to keep up to the pack in online races). I seem to
> lose time on both straights and turns. I've tried both taller and
> shorter gears and it hasn't made much of a difference either way.

> How do I get this car to go faster? Are there some good F3 setups
> online? I'm not much good at this setup stuff, I don't have the
> patience for it (which is why I went to F3 cars in the first place).

> Joe

by Jo » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

>What car are you driving in F3? Some chassis may be unable to beat a
>1:25 at the Glen.

I was driving a Coventry ... I thought all the F3 cars were identical,
is that not the case?

Thanks!

Joe

by **G. Patric** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

>:I was driving a Coventry ... I thought all the F3 cars were identical,
>:is that not the case?
>:Joe

No, not identical. While the differences aren't as pronounced as in
F1 racing, they are there. Many feel the Ferrari is the best
all-around F3 car but I have hit 1:20xx in a Repco and currently run
an Eagle.

G. Patricks

by **Graeme Nas** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

I thought the same but even after limited testing with the F3 cars I
could see the difference. The Lotus was around 2 - 2.5s a lap quicker
around the Glen than the Honda, for example.

--
Cheers!
Graeme Nash

http://www.karisma1.demon.co.uk
ICQ# 11257824
________________________________________________________________________________
"Sorry, my eyes were on screensaver"

(Calvin & Hobbes)

by **G. Patric** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

Sorry, at Watkins Glen
G. Patricks

by **Trip** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

> >What car are you driving in F3? Some chassis may be unable to beat a
> >1:25 at the Glen.

> I was driving a Coventry ... I thought all the F3 cars were identical,
> is that not the case?

Joe, the F3 cars all have identical power, but the weight, weight
distribution, and suspension differ some. Try the Ferrari, it's a great
all-round car for F3.

Trips
D. Bell on VROC

by **Rick Sweene** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

Where do you get the F3 cars?

> > >What car are you driving in F3? Some chassis may be unable to beat a
> > >1:25 at the Glen.

> > I was driving a Coventry ... I thought all the F3 cars were identical,
> > is that not the case?

> Joe, the F3 cars all have identical power, but the weight, weight
> distribution, and suspension differ some. Try the Ferrari, it's a great
> all-round car for F3.

> Trips
> D. Bell on VROC

by **Mark Seer** » Wed, 05 May 1999 04:00:00

Joe.
Email me and I can give you a Coventry setup that has got me into the 1:21
bracket.

Mark

>>What car are you driving in F3? Some chassis may be unable to beat a
>>1:25 at the Glen.

>I was driving a Coventry ... I thought all the F3 cars were identical,
>is that not the case?

>>You'll find some setups here:
>>http://www.retrievers.com/GMSS/f3/f3setups.htm

>Thanks!

>Joe

by Jo » Thu, 06 May 1999 04:00:00

>Joe, the F3 cars all have identical power, but the weight, weight
>distribution, and suspension differ some. Try the Ferrari, it's a great
>all-round car for F3.

Thanks, I've downloaded some Ferarri setups and will give it a go.

Joe

by **Trip** » Thu, 06 May 1999 04:00:00

> >Joe, the F3 cars all have identical power, but the weight, weight
> >distribution, and suspension differ some. Try the Ferrari, it's a great
> >all-round car for F3.

> Thanks, I've downloaded some Ferarri setups and will give it a go.

After driving several of the F3 cars, here are my impressions:

Ferrari: Great handling, decent top speed, quick acceleration.

Brabham: Terrific top speed, decent acceleration, not the best handling F3
car (lacks grip)

Lotus: Great handling, decent top speed, good acceleration (very similar to
the Ferrari, doesn't accelerate quite as well for me)

Coventry(Cooper): Great handling, easy to drive, acceleration and top speed
lacking.

Theses are just my quick impressions, driving style may influence your
choice.

Trips
D. Bell on VROC

by Jo » Thu, 06 May 1999 04:00:00

>Theses are just my quick impressions, driving style may influence your
>choice.

I've only played for a bit but so far I agree with your impressions.
The Coventry handles very nicely but is just too slow. The Eagle is
quick but handles like a skateboard. The Ferarri seems like a nice
balance, I'll try sticking with it for a bit.

Joe

by **Ron Ayto** » Thu, 06 May 1999 04:00:00

Hi Joe, what Trips said is basically correct, but i find all the F3
cars are competitive. It depends on your driving style which chassis
combination suits you best.
Ever since GPL was released, we have been running the F3 cars in
competition in our league and have been doing a lot of setup testing
and Marque testing at all the tracks and the only Marques that are not
right up there on the pace are the Murasama and the BRM, mainly due to
the power to weight ratio. The Coventry is a bit of a dark horse. It
doesn't have the pickup or top end of the top four, but can almost
parallel the times achieved by the others, through it's excellent
handling and braking characteristics. It is also quite torquey, which
comes in handy in the F3's..
The Repco and the Eagle have the quickest terminal top speed, by 1 mph
over the Lotus, followed by 1 mph over the Ferrari, with the Coventry ,
Murasama then BRM tailing at the end of the field.
This does not in any way reflect the choice of Marques to go for.
The Repco is a dog to drive competitively around any circuit other than
Spa and Monza and even there, the entry and exit speeds to the slower
corners are well down on the rest of the Marques.
The Eagle can achieve exactly the same top speed as the Repco, with
just a little tweaking and is a better choice to go for if you really
have to have that extra 1 mph over the Lotus/Ferrari etc..
(see, i have to have a lotus in f1 cause it is the fastest, syndrome)
The Ferrari is undoubtably the best of the F3 cars for all round
performance. What it lacks in top speed, it more than makes up for in
acceleration and handling, even at Monza, if two good drivers with
equally good setups were using a Ferrari and a Repco, the actual lap
times at Monza would only vary by less than a few tenths of a second
per lap.
The Lotus, while being a whole 1 mph or so quicker than the Ferrari is
hard pushed to stay with the Ferrari in acceleration and handling, but
is the closest of all the Marques to achieving Ferrari equality.
The Coventry is the best of the slower F3's, with excellent handling
and braking characteristics, but is let down a little by it's relative
power to weight ratio, compared to the top 4 in the F3's.
Forget all about the BRM and the Murasama in F3's if you want to be
competitive.

I have noticed a trend for new-comers to F3 racing to go with the
Repco, probably because of the vaunted performance over the other F3's.
(once again, see the f1 lotus syndrome)
This is a bad move. The F3 cars are not easy to drive fast, they
require good setups and a different approach and departure from corners
than the F1's do. The Repco is the lightest of the bunch, and also the
hardest to drive competitively. It has no grip, and looses traction
easily under acceleration or under brakes.
As i said, the performance of the F3 cars is as close to even as even
can be, with the major differences being in the handling
characteristics and the way they put power to the ground.
I personally have tested all the F3 Marques over the last 6 months or
so, and if you are interested in competitive F3 racing, then the choice
i would go with is:
1st: Ferrari, great acceleration, fair top end, great handling/grip.
2nd: Eagle, great acceleration, great top end, fair handling/grip.
3th: Lotus, good acceleration, good top end, good handling/grip.
4th: Repco, great acceleration, great top end, bad handling/grip.
5th: Cov, fair acceleration, fair top end, excellent handling/grip.
Forget the BRM and the Murasama....

That is a simple run down of the testing i have done over the last few
months, and the different handling and power/torque findings that have
come to light.
The only reason i place the Repco down in 4th spot, is because of it's
less than desirable grip levels in the F3 series. The Repco is the
quickest, but only by a very small margin, that is, if you can keep it
on the track, that's a big if..
At places like Monza and Spa, the Repco will have a slight advantage,
due to the power to weight ratio, but once you leave these two tracks
behind, any of the top four can and will be equally on the podium.
Hope to see you in a F3 somewhere..
Cheers,
Ron

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