Best way to reduce your lap times!!! Guaranteed!!

[TrackStarGT]

This is going to sound simple and maybe even stupid to some of you...for the rest you, you will benefit greatly from this simple action. When you do this, it forces you to look ahead and find proper brake and turn in points. You will become more consistent and will learn to push your car to the limit resulting in your best times you have ever run!!!

To achieve this, turn off your racing line. Many of us have not graduated to the road and stick with that all wonderful and very SAFE driving line that PD provides us with. That line is no more than a guide line, it IS NOT THE FASTEST LINE around the track, it is definitely the safest, but that is not where extreme times come from.

That pretty blue line is often too far to the inside on turns, your position should be as wide as possible and that means getting really close to the dirt/grass. This is why that line is too far inside, to protect you from the edge of the track. If you want fast times, then you need to have your car in the widest and straightest possible line.

This also forces you to watch for the apex, not the pretty blue and red line, which will help you to hit the apex consistently. And instead of breaking when Polyphonic tells you to, you learn when you need to brake and when you don't, as well as how late you can brake.

Sure, this will be difficult in the beginning, but lap after lap it will get easier and you will be pushing your cars to new limits you never knew they had. The right turn in, apex, and track out is the equation for your fastest time. And turning that line off will bring you one step closer to making the driving experience more realistic and engaging, I promise you will love it all over again, give it a shot, and come back here and tell me how much better you are at racing in this wonderful game!!!

 

[HurlingDervish]

I like your enthusiasm, and I agree, but...

paragraphs are your friends!

 

[Threads_427]

I only use the driving line to get a "heads-up" for my next brake point. I usually don't pay attention to the line itself. However, it bothers me that I still have the line on since I didn't use it when I played GT4. I'll probably turn it off once I get used to the courses.

 

[Sidstyler]

I like your enthusiasm, and I agree, but...

paragraphs are your friends!

Yea! He also forgot to indent when he first started typing! I like keeping the racing line because I then know where the AI will be beforehand, then I can avoid being rammed or sideswiped when taking the best path.

 

[TrackStarGT]

Yea! He also forgot to indent when he first started typing! I like keeping the racing line because I then know where the AI will be beforehand, then I can avoid being rammed or sideswiped when taking the best path.

You don't need the line, I'm telling you...that is just an excuse, you don't know the freedom you're missing. There is a dark line through out most tracks which indicates where most cars travel, this is generally the line and where the AR(artificial retards) will be traveling as well.

 

[rkk01]

wonderful and very SAFE driving line that PD provides us with. That line is no more than a guide line, it IS NOT THE FASTEST LINE around the track, it is definitely the safest,

Really?

I keep the line on so I can stay safe - by avoiding it!!

The blue line tells me where to expect bumper car AI...

 

[StrokerAce]

The line does slow you down.. and for those complaining about the AI? You just dont race well. I think the AI is amazing.

 

[TrackStarGT]

Really?

I keep the line on so I can stay safe - by avoiding it!!

The blue line tells me where to expect bumper car AI...

once you turn off the crutch, you will know where they are and will be in due time. The best guys turn it off, Im telling you folks, it will only hinder you, for those of you looking to push it to the max.

 

[alucard83]

The best way to reduce your lap times:

Watch the video's in this thread:
GT planet Racing School thread

Maybe even buying the book and reading it(I definitely enjoyed it and learned a lot from it):
Going Faster! Mastering the Art of Race Driving

 

[TrackStarGT]

The line does slow you down.. and for those complaining about the AI? You just dont race well. I think the AI is amazing.

You hit it on the nose, buddy!!

 

[cygnus_zero]

The line does slow you down.. and for those complaining about the AI? You just dont race well. I think the AI is amazing.

Have you ever played a racing sim outside of GT? The AI is not amazing, they're completely brain dead. Pretty much every review mentions this.

 

[rkk01]

I think the AI is amazing

I think you've just undermined any credibility you might think you have...

for those complaining about the AI? You just dont race well.

And to address this hollow retort - go and check my post in the B Spec thread - where driver ability is removed from the equation and the game engine (including AI) performs for all to see..

 

[RedSuinit]

The line does slow you down.. and for those complaining about the AI? You just dont race well. I think the AI is amazing.

Amen. Most of these people think that the AI should just part like the Red Sea. What most of them don't realize is that you have to run proper lines and use proper overtaking procedures in order to understand just how good the AI is in this game. People seem to thing that they should be able to brake late, stick their nose into the line the AI is already taking, and that the AI should just move out of the way.

I think you've just undermined any credibility you might think you have...



And to address this hollow retort - go and check my post in the B Spec thread - where driver ability is removed from the equation and the game engine (including AI) performs for all to see..

Exactly, and without the wankers driving like morons, the AI is clearly fantastic. Very few racing incidents, and some close and very tight racing!

 

[magburner]

To achieve this, turn off your racing line. Many of us have not graduated to the road and stick with that all wonderful and very SAFE driving line that PD provides us with. That line is no more than a guide line, it IS NOT THE FASTEST LINE around the track, it is definitely the safest, but that is not where extreme times come from.

I couldn't agree with you more! The only thing you need, is the flashing red gear indictor. Wait for it to come on, choose your line, then when it flashes, do your corner thing and... POW! Considerably better lap times! 👍

 

[TrackStarGT]

^^^Another one who understands.. Id like to see the average time on a specific track and car, of the guys who say the AI is horrible, and the average time of the guys who say the AI is good...that would be interesting

 

[Lucas180]

Yeah after the first day i tuned it off..i know my own corners!

 

[J-PaP]

I keep the line on but I don't really follow it especially when braking. I keep it on mostly because it lets me concentrate a little less and reminds me there is a braking zone coming up as it stands out more than the flashing gear select prompt. Following the line isn't the fastest though and won't suit all driving styles.

E.g. Final hairpin at tsukuba or fuji suggests a tight line but I like to brake late and cut across giving me more top speed on the straight.

 

[blue_thunder]

I'm surprised people on this forum use the racing line at all to be honest. In any racing game the first thing I do is turn the line off, even if I don't know the track.

I am pretty good at driving racing lines (in a game atleast) and it's never too hard to work out what the best line to take is. I hear people ask "If that's the case, how come you're not the fastest guy on the GT5 leaderboards?" (If there were some). Well my answer is this: driving the best racing line, and driving the line like a proper racing driver are two very different things.

Plus, its ugly as hell.

 

[vfrmaverick]

^^^Another one who understands.. Id like to see the average time on a specific track and car, of the guys who say the AI is horrible, and the average time of the guys who say the AI is good...that would be interesting

It wouldnt make a difference, in any case the ones complaining are driving more agressive and in some cases maybe faster. I like the ai in this game, they are agressive yet they follow predictable lines. I rank it up there with Rfactor ai. Ive seen some AI cars driving so hard they are all over the place with huge clouds of smoke coming out and having to save their cars, never seen that in any other game. Now if only their cars werent made of undestructanium and wouldnt push you off as easilly if you attempt a block. Thats about my only complain with AI.

 

[StevenDunn99]

It is a valid point but not a major discovery. Not following the racing line to go faster has been discussed on here for years (trying to gold licenses will soon prove it to you). Sometimes, only sometimes, does it work for a car.

 

[imaROBOT_]

I only use it when I get onto a new track I either forgot or have never been on yet. Since GT5 for whatever dumb reason does not allow practice laps... WHY PD?!?!

Anyway you're right the line should only be used as a guide, don't follow it completely. However for some people I highly doubt turning it off will help. Just because the "good" guys use it doesn't mean it will reduce lap times for other people when they also have it off.

 

[TrackStarGT]

good point, I was just trying to get more people on this side of the fence, especially with GT academy coming up

 

[Senojelyk]

I only use it on tracks I'm not familiar with, once I get more time to practice at those courses I'll have it off for good

 

[fardoche]

I think the issue is that there is no fear of crashing from the human player, this result in very late hard breaking, situation where the car is clearly out of control but manage to get back on the racing line. Stuff you never see in real life.

And as far as I am in the game (level 14), it seems that the AI simulate the behavior of real human with fear of crashing.

Sometime I cut somebody before a corner after breaking late without touching any car, but I would never attempt that in real life racing.

 

[Dragon_HKS]

wait, whst is a driving line I never used it in any GT games

I wish it was never implented

 

[witham]

The lines rubish I use it to learn a tracl then its off I can break halfway through the line on most courses.

 

[markoc84]

The AI does not act like humans at all. All they do is stick to the racing line as fast as they can manage. I wnat to see the AI blocking me when i make a dive down the inside of a corner. Or atleast giving reasonable room when i do make the dive down the inside and leaving enough room between the apex of a corner and the AI so that i dont get bumped onto the grass.

However I do agree with the OP about the point of the thread, the racing line shown is sooooo off is some points. Once you learn the breaking points you will get much better apexes and exits from corners once you stop sticking to the racing line shown on the track and start concentrating on the line your car is taking and make sure that you do the best that you can at that particular time.

 

[Mugenjin]

The very first thing I did was turning off the race line ;D

 

[GT4.5]

To those who state that we all stink at driving and the AI is amazing, I've love you to explain the outbreak of AI PIT maneuvers since GT5 was released.

Or, is that just us driving into them??

 

[YZF]

Best way to improve your laptimes - Enter hotlap competition.

Against humans.

And turn on your ego.To the max.

You will be amazed what kind of laptimes you are capable of achieving.