Alrighty, just did 2 hours of testing various combos used recently in FIA:
- 650S Gr.3 @ Barcelona (Manu R10)
- 650S Gr.4 @ Laguna (Manu R9)
- GT-R Gr.2 '08 @ Spa (Nations R7)
The Gr.3 car definitely is easiest to feel changes. Straightaway on first corner I locked up the brakes (BB -5) despite having ABS on Default! Weight transfer feels a lot more pronounced. The chronic understeer is gone and the front end bites better into the corners now. Also the weird low speed oversteer with MR cars is much reduced. On the other hand, riding kerbs is a lot more difficult now (possibly side effect of the more sensitive weight transfer) - I almost lost the car in that uphill chicane before Campsa and the final chicane. From my fuzzy memory this is a lot closer to how the cars drive last year before the "understeer" patch.
Gr.4 and Gr.2, it's harder to feel changes. I would say the general trends are similar to above, but if you hadn't told me there's an update I probably wouldn't have noticed. These combos are also lot older than the Gr.3 one so I can't say for certain I still remember the handling nuances of the previous physics.
Fuel consumption wise, I didn't notice any difference. With the same shifting pattern I'm still hitting the target consumption as per my notes for the races.
FF tyre wear - I tested at Bathurst online lobby with 50x wear on RSS tyres. Previously the RCZ Gr.4 fronts are down to 30% after 1 lap, now it's only down to 40%. It's a small change so FF cars won't become OP overnight, but hopefully enough to not make them totally useless in high wear races (Tidgney, time to go back to Audi
).
Also tested driving in the rain (650S Gr.3 @ RBR, Manu R3). From corner entry to apex you can feel grip a lot better now, but accelerating on corner exits is still like treading on eggshells. Still a far cry from ACC rain simulation.
Also tested Lewis Hamilton challenges. The chronic understeer on throttle is GONE folks! I beat my previous best at Suzuka by 0.2 secs and matched my Bathurst time on first try in a messy lap
Also tried Brands and Willow, but those are still difficult even with the reduced understeer. Also the car is a lot more unstable under braking now, especially when braking with some steering angle and/or over bumpy road (which Brands/Willow has plenty of). So I guess it's easier one way, but harder in another. But at least I believe with practice LH is within striking distance now.
Tuning wise, I tried the new Fiat @ Brands TT. Reverse rake setup seems to be not as good at eliminating understeer anymore. But I'm not an expert at tuning so don't take my word for it.
Slipstream - haven't tested. Will need full race conditions to understand this (also whether they reduced the dirty air effect). But seeing pantherjag's video above gave me hope 👍
Penalties - who knows if they changed anything or it's another stealth update again.
New Supra - haven't driven yet. Only one new colour (that aqua shade with black rims). More power and 10kg more weight. Can still fit into N300 when detuned. Ride height is 3mm lower and LSD are 5 clicks higher all round. Everything else is the same.
The next set of FIA races are still not up as I post this. It's gonna be a busy night of testing tomorrow for some folks
Looking forward to hearing others opinions, especially those much more talented than I am