Originally posted by Trailer01
Thank you RUF,
Just checking, but there's no way to adjust one's downforce unless you've performed the racing upgrade on your vehicle, is there? Some of the cars don't seem to have this available....
Okay, my next question then is, is it wise to adjust your gear ratios or better to simply keep the ratios as is and adjust the final ratio and/or 'autoset' setting?
If adjusting the individual ratios sometimes helps, how does the setting affect shifting? Higher ratios do...what? Conversely, lower ratios....???
Argh, my head spins!
OK, lessee here...
Yes, you must first perform a racing mod to get adjustable downforce, and you must first have performed Stage III lightening. Unfortunately, no, some cars cannot be race-modded.
Gear ratios: usually the only time you need to mess with them is if you've done serious power mods....although some cars just have very poor gearboxes (as far as high-performance driving is concerned).
Higher ratios (numerically larger) provide better acceration through torque multiplication (e.g., 3.000:1 provides 3x torque multiplication, 4.000:1 is 4x, etc.). Lower ratios allow the car to travel at higher speed, but cannot provide the same acceleration. The autoset is usually good enough....tilt it to the "sports" setting for tracks that require much accelerating and decelerating (twisties, usually) and set it further toward "wide" for any track with long straightaways (Super Speedway).
The final drive is just that; the last step in torque multiplication. A low final drive provides a higher top speed at the expense of acceleration, a high final drive, just the opposite.
It's a delicate balancing act, one that requires much trial and error. I still have quite a way to go myself, even after playing GT for four years. Obviously, a small displacement, high revving motor needs relatively high gear ratios to compensate for the lack of torque. A big beastly V12 should use lower ratios both to keep the torque in check (minimize the chances of wheelspin
) and to allow it to attain the higher top speeds they are so very capable of.
Hope this helps a bit.
