Break Balance - a newbie question

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United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Hi all,

Had GTS for a couple of weeks now and I've been loving it and starting to understand some of the nuances. One thing I don't understand however is break balance.

I understand in races with tire wear you can balance the tire wear out through break balance, however I'm unsure on what's best when it comes to daily races with no tire wear (eg Race B at Catalunya).

I've seen Super GT use -5 in the Audi, I wondered if there was a general rule to follow when it comes to break balance in such cars? Is there a way to understand whether a balance towards the front or rear is required, does the drive of the car have a big effect?
 
Very simplified, MR - front bias
Other cars - up to to you (for me mostly rear bias)

It's about how much rotation you want while trail braking.

Front bias = better straight line braking but understeer on turn in.
Rear bias = worse straight line braking but more rotation on turn in.

MR has a lot of weight in the back which will make the car rotate anyway under braking.
 
Very simplified, MR - front bias
Other cars - up to to you (for me mostly rear bias)

It's about how much rotation you want while trail braking.

Front bias = better straight line braking but understeer on turn in.
Rear bias = worse straight line braking but more rotation on turn in.

MR has a lot of weight in the back which will make the car rotate anyway under braking.

Completely agree. I think front bias stops faster, in general. I usually go by what's happening in the car. Driving style has a lot to do with this. If the car is going sideways as you enter the turn on the brakes, go with more front bias. If you're having trouble with turn in, go more to the rear. You will find that as you get better, what you want for brake bias will change, and what you can adapt to will expand. Typically with no tire wear, I run most FR cars at -1 or -2, and only run rear bias on cars that like to push going in, but after running FIA for a while, I've gotten used to driving almost everything at +1 or +2 for more even tire wear, though it's not usually my preference when tire wear isn't an issue. It does depend on how the car rotates, though.
 


Tidgney's Driving School is the definitive source on this in my opinion -- especially the 100% rule. I think weight transfer doesn't get enough discussion when it comes to talking about brake balance. Brake balance being forward allows the front brakes to have more stopping power, but less turning power. I'll let him explain the rest, but watching his videos and practicing WILL make you faster :)
 
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I have a question on the warm up lap before a daily race . Is it to pass time or can it be beneficial to see if your car change in handling after line up.
 
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