I'll readily admit that without a full grid (and even then, it has to be reasonably competitive), the 'Ring isn't a great place to run actual races on. There's very few proper overtaking opportunities (and the average online player thinks any part of the track is fine), the length can provide frustration if you've bunged a lap early on (or, as I did with a Rivals run recently, on the very last turn of the lap

). But the history, the mythos - that's why I run a lot of cars there. Also, when I'm not hunting down lap times, I prefer it as a general 8/10ths sort of drive, and to also evaluate my car's tune from a bunch of different perspectives. The 'Ring is basically a giant test track for me, I suppose.
That said, I did have one of my absolute best online racing experiences this generation on the 'Ring, in GT5 - a few friends and I stuck ourselves in NASCAR vehicles on Comfort Mediums with no aids and did 3 laps. It was nuts, with 4th gear being the only one that could put power down cleanly at full throttle, but it was exhilarating, a constant battle with us always only a few car lengths apart.
I absolutely believe it should be present in as many realistic racing games as possible, along with La Sarthe, simply for their historic value, but I can think of plenty of other tracks I'd rather actually race on. Tying that all back on topic, though - the inaccuracies with the FM4 version means I can't enjoy it as much as I do in GT5. Which, ironically enough, means GT5 really has morphed into "the Nurburgring simulator" for me

. I only really enjoy driving that, Spa, some of my created Mt. Aso tracks, and the "Original 3" (Grand Valley, Trial Mountain, and Deep Forest).