Advice on throttle use

[Xerophthalmia]

I bought a Thrustmaster T300 a couple of days ago and really enjoy using it. I've played all the GT titles but only with a controller and never online. Since I've played with the controller all these years it takes a little getting used to but I'm doing okay.

I'm trying to improve my laptimes on the Nürnberg GP track in the Beetle Gr.3 at the moment and I'm struggling when driving without TC. Earlier today I drove 1:58.113 with TC on 2 in Time Trial. Default settings, racing hard tires and no other assists save for ABS. I felt like I could do better so there's definitely room for improvement, but it almost feels like cheating since I can just floor the pedal with TC2. I find that TC1 is almost like no TC so it seems like there's a big gap between 1 and 2. Anyway, when driving on TC1 or 0 I have to be very careful with the throttle. It's not that I can't manage to keep the car under control but when I do I always drive a couple of seconds slower. I drove 2:00.787 without TC today and while I can do better with my current skills I would like to further improve driving without TC.

I suppose that managing the throttle is my problem so I just need more practice, but I would like to hear your thoughts on the best way to improve. What to look out for. In GT5 and GT6 the LSD seemed to have a bigger effect. You could see the temperature of each wheel in real time (turned red) and adjust the LSD accordingly. So for instance when the LSD acceleration was too strong/high the outside wheel turned hotter and you got wheel spin. Without low LSD the inside wheel was spinning more and you got understeer. You could then adjust the LSD so both wheels had equal traction when cornering. When changing it in GT Sport it doesn't seem to change much as far as I can tell. In the other games it was a way to combat spinning out with TC turned off. Maybe this is irrelevant because you can't change it in the Daily Races?

I don't know if my laptimes are bad but in either case it's good to push yourself to do better. Any advice is appreciated.

 

[seadog777]

Looking forward to the rest....

 

[PerformLAB1]

I bought a Thrustmaster T300 a couple of days ago and really enjoy using it. I've played all the GT titles but only with a controller and never online. Since I've played with the controller all these years it takes a little getting used to but I'm doing okay.

I'm trying to improve my laptimes on the Nürnberg GP track in the Beetle Gr.3 at the moment and I'm struggling when driving without TC. Earlier today I drove 1:58.113 with TC on 2 in Time Trial. Default settings, racing hard tires and no other assists save for ABS. I felt like I could do better so there's definitely room for improvement, but it almost feels like cheating since I can just floor the pedal with TC2. I find that TC1 is almost like no TC so it seems like there's a big gap between 1 and 2. Anyway, when driving on TC1 or 0 I have to be very careful with the throttle. It's not that I can't manage to keep the car under control but when I do I always drive a couple of seconds slower. I drove 2:00.787 without TC today and while I can do better with my current skills I would like to further improve driving without TC.

I suppose that managing the throttle is my problem so I just need more practice, but I would like to hear your thoughts on the best way to improve. What to look out for. In GT5 and GT6 the LSD seemed to have a bigger effect. You could see the temperature of each wheel in real time (turned red) and adjust the LSD accordingly. So for instance when the LSD acceleration was too strong/high the outside wheel turned hotter and you got wheel spin. Without low LSD the inside wheel was spinning more and you got understeer. You could then adjust the LSD so both wheels had equal traction when cornering. When changing it in GT Sport it doesn't seem to change much as far as I can tell. In the other games it was a way to combat spinning out with TC turned off. Maybe this is irrelevant because you can't change it in the Daily Races?

I don't know if my laptimes are bad but in either case it's good to push yourself to do better. Any advice is appreciated.

I haven't mastered this yet, but I am working on it just like you are. What I did at first was run at 2, but as if it was off, I.E. trying to get that red light flashing as little as possible, so while it would save my bottom every once in a while, it was also teaching me the limit of wheel spin, without actually compromising my races. I am at the point now where 50-60% of the circuits in the game I no longer need TC.
Honestly, just keep at it, and it will become natural. It may take a few weeks, but you will soon be beating your controller times.

 

[coltsjugg]

The throttle control is kind of stupid in this game. 50% on my foot gets 50% in the game. Once I push from there it just exponentially jumps to 100% and my foot isnt even all the way down yet.
It's not my pedals, i know that.

 

[Xerophthalmia]

I haven't mastered this yet, but I am working on it just like you are. What I did at first was run at 2, but as if it was off, I.E. trying to get that red light flashing as little as possible, so while it would save my bottom every once in a while, it was also teaching me the limit of wheel spin, without actually compromising my races. I am at the point now where 50-60% of the circuits in the game I no longer need TC.
Honestly, just keep at it, and it will become natural. It may take a few weeks, but you will soon be beating your controller times.

Good to hear that I'm not the only one. I actually think that I'm doing just as well with the wheel. The biggest difference is when changing TC levels. I will try out the other Gr.3 cars to see how they differ. I wished they had a TC setting between 1 and 2 to practice on. 2 seems so easy and 1 is almost 0. But again, maybe this differs from car to car in Gr.3. Gr.4 is a piece of cake without TC because of less power to the rear wheels.

The throttle control is kind of stupid in this game. 50% on my foot gets 50% in the game. Once I push from there it just exponentially jumps to 100% and my foot isnt even all the way down yet.
It's not my pedals, i know that.

It would've been nice with a sensitivity setting for the throttle.

 

[Alpine_chap]

Similarly, I've always played Gran Turismo with the controller, until GT Sport came out and I decided to invest in a wheel and pedals. Only a T150 but it does the job and I find it a much more fun and immersive way to play.

Anyway, until recently, I used to always play with TC set to 2 and would mash the throttle accelerating out of corners without any fear of spinning, but as my DR and SR rating increased and the opposition of the online races became tougher, I decided if I wanted to be more competitive I would have to try without TC. If you look at all the really quick drivers, they're mostly, if not all, running without TC. There's a limit to my own ability of course, with or without TC, I'm not saying running without TC will make me as quick as the very best, but within my own capacity, I think it's made me quicker.

So, at first, after being so used to just mashing the throttle, I found it really difficult to accelerate out of corners without spinning but with practice improved to the point where I don't use TC at all now on any cars. That's basically all it is, just practice, practice, practice, until you get used to it. It takes a while but you just have to train your foot (if using pedals) to apply the throttle more smoothly and progressively until it becomes second nature. There are some things you can do that will help. Don't just mash the brake pedal as hard as you can when braking - learn to control your braking as much as your throttle. If you're mashing the brakes 100% into corners, then you're not leaving your tyres any capacity for turning and you're just going to understeer straight on. This means you can learn to carry more corner speed, so you then also don't have to feel you need to mash the throttle as much on the way out of the corner. You can be smoother with it and less prone to spinning out. Also, I found it improved my cornering lines. With TC, if I didn't take the optimum line through a corner and maybe then found myself exiting a bit tight with a little more steering angle than ideal, with TC you could still mash the throttle and get away with it, without TC, not so much. So running with no TC meant that I took more time and effort to improve my cornering lines, so I was straight-lining them as much as possible, therefore I could get on the throttle sooner and more smoothly because I was pointing straighter with less steering input. So this too, helps improve your lap times too of course, apart from the just running without any TC. One last thing to add, the golden rule, obviously, wait until you've completely straightened up before applying full throttle. For example, when coming out of a slow hairpin, even if you've not yet got the car pointing exactly in the direction you want to go, just get the wheels straight, apply full throttle smoothly, then you can steer and move the car in the direction you want to go, once you know you safely have traction.

 

[Venster]

I too changed to a wheel for gran turismo sport, I started with a t300 now a TGT. I agree the throttle is terrible, shouldn’t be completely linear but more than it is.

I took a different approach, went straight to no TC. It took a long time to get used to it, like a real long time after years of controller and still learning. It’s a steeper learning curve going this route but having any TC on imo doesn’t help learn not having it.

Don’t use TC on anything now, throttle control is just as much about steering angle as it is about throttle position. You can pretty much get full throttle on exit from the steering wheel from 10-2 angle if that makes sense. Just need to be smother on exit with both, you need to plan your exit on entry to get the right line for the quickest exit.

 

[coltsjugg]

Only a T150 but it does the job and I find it a much more fun and immersive way to play.

Same, but I got it for a different game. Horrible FFB in gt sport, but still better than a controller.

 

[vvise]

The best 2 tips I can give:
1. Throttle input + steering input = 100%
Meaning that as a guideline at 100% throttle you should have 0% steering and vice versa. Obviously there are other factors but this is a pretty good start.

2. Throttle application needs to be smooth. You can't just put your foot down, the slower you apply the pedal the more grip the tires will maintain.

 

[Rexracer702]

The best 2 tips I can give:
1. Throttle input + steering input = 100%
Meaning that as a guideline at 100% throttle you should have 0% steering and vice versa. Obviously there are other factors but this is a pretty good start.

2. Throttle application needs to be smooth. You can't just put your foot down, the slower you apply the pedal the more grip the tires will maintain.

What he said. I've raced with no TC since before GT3 and those 2 points are key. That being said, I still mash the throttle often with no TC. Sometimes it bites me, but I've figured it out for the most part. Once you learn the cars you'll be able to figure out how aggressive you can be. Race cars, GR3 for instance, have a lot of downforce as long as you have some roll speed. In lower gears you have to be more careful, but most GR3 cars will take full throttle in 2nd if going relatively straight, and (Important!) you get the weight to transfer first. Coming out of a hairpin I might ease into the throttle to shift weight to the back, get the car turned enough so I can get a straight line to the outside curb 50 yards down track, then mash the throttle and accelerate. Now the tires are stuck and I can ease into the steering angle to make sure I don't go wide. Mid or rear engined cars you can be more aggressive with. In the case of one of those I might literally mash the throttle to the floor, but in a FR car the "Mash" might take .25 seconds instead of .05, to allow the tires to load up and grip.
As you try different cars and corners, you'll figure out how much load you can put through the tires, and how the weight transfer works. Some cars spin easy, some get great traction..some, like the 911's have great traction but if you get too aggressive and have steering angle, can snap spin.

Also remember that if you go off road, the tires get dirty, and it takes a while (a whole lap maybe) for them to grip. My biggest mistake in a race with no TC is to go off, for any reason, then get back on track and loop it because I've got dirty tires. I've done that more times than I can count.

 

[Groundfish]

If you use wheel a quality set of pedals is worth its weight in gold.

 

[Xerophthalmia]

Thanks for all your helpful advice. I will keep on practicing. Do you usually practice in time trial one track and one car at a time?

 

[Xlxy90]

Thanks for all your helpful advice. I will keep on practicing. Do you usually practice in time trial one track and one car at a time?

Practice in daily race time trials. Do 10-15 qualy laps, find some consistency and then have a go at the race.

 

[Woodybobs]

Thanks for all your helpful advice. I will keep on practicing. Do you usually practice in time trial one track and one car at a time?

Use time trial to practise and improve your technique. Do some offline races so you're used to getting on the power when you don't have the optimal line.

 

[Rexracer702]

Thanks for all your helpful advice. I will keep on practicing. Do you usually practice in time trial one track and one car at a time?

I like to pick a car that I know works well, and is a bit forgiving. In GR3 the SLS is one such car...good power, good turn in, very stable. Then I run laps until I have a good idea of the proper line, have brake points, and can be relatively consistant. Then I try cars. I usually only have to do 2 or 3 laps to get a feel for the car, and how fast it might be. If it's slow, I move on, if it's fast but unstable, I may do more laps to figure it out. Any time after the "track learning" laps in my first choice car I might race, but I usually like to get up to speed first. I have friends in the game that I am usually competitive with, so if I am close to their times, I race, but if I'm way off, I may not.
Nothing brings the lap times down better for me than following, or beating my ghost, and running lots of laps. You can see where you are gaining or loosing to your ghost, and figure out faster lines that way.

 

[Xerophthalmia]

I like to pick a car that I know works well, and is a bit forgiving. In GR3 the SLS is one such car...good power, good turn in, very stable. Then I run laps until I have a good idea of the proper line, have brake points, and can be relatively consistant. Then I try cars. I usually only have to do 2 or 3 laps to get a feel for the car, and how fast it might be. If it's slow, I move on, if it's fast but unstable, I may do more laps to figure it out. Any time after the "track learning" laps in my first choice car I might race, but I usually like to get up to speed first. I have friends in the game that I am usually competitive with, so if I am close to their times, I race, but if I'm way off, I may not.
Nothing brings the lap times down better for me than following, or beating my ghost, and running lots of laps. You can see where you are gaining or loosing to your ghost, and figure out faster lines that way.

Very interesting. I usually get detracted with the ghost car, so I turn it off and look at the time difference, but maybe I should try and turn it on again. I've been practicing in daily races on the Autodrome Lago Maggiore and it's interesting to see that TC is less of an issue since you drive at high speeds in a lot of sections. So on this particular track I don't benefit from TC2. It still makes it easier, but I can lap in just as fast or faster without. There's more throttle management on some tracks like the Nürnberg GP.

I hope they add a throttle sensetivity setting at some point because it seems like it goes from 50% to 100% very fast and that is when I spin out of control. Do more expensive pedals manage this better? Is the pedal's travel distance bigger so you have more to work with or how is it an improment over the standard Thrustmaster T300 pedals?

 

[Xlxy90]

Very interesting. I usually get detracted with the ghost car, so I turn it off and look at the time difference, but maybe I should try and turn it on again. I've been practicing in daily races on the Autodrome Lago Maggiore and it's interesting to see that TC is less of an issue since you drive at high speeds in a lot of sections. So on this particular track I don't benefit from TC2. It still makes it easier, but I can lap in just as fast or faster without. There's more throttle management on some tracks like the Nürnberg GP.

I hope they add a throttle sensetivity setting at some point because it seems like it goes from 50% to 100% very fast and that is when I spin out of control. Do more expensive pedals manage this better? Is the pedal's travel distance bigger so you have more to work with or how is it an improment over the standard Thrustmaster T300 pedals?

T3PA pro pedals provide more resistance on input, making it easier to manage smaller adjustments.