I agree with a lot of people saying on here.
I have a clean driving records in almost 10 years on public road and a 1-2 years with autocrossing/track experience including driving on Willow Springs, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca where I push my cars all the way to the limit. Alright, enough with my background. I only discover GT6 recently and when I first started out GT6, I am way slower than many many folks on here. My problem isn't crashing like crazy in the game, it is rather UNDER-DRIVING the car hence slower than most folks.
When I start racing with real people online, I learn that these folks, a lot of time, driving the car at the very edge of the limit or even over-driving it. I have been actually both shocked and amazed by how these fast people drive in GT6 because I do not dare driving like that in real life. Watching the top 10 re-plays, these guys drive perfectly at the very limit throughout the entire lap. I keep wondering, though, can they be that good too in the real car on the real track? Who knows?
Sorry to say this to GT fans that GT6 is not quite realistic. Based on my actual driving experience on Willows Springs, and Laguna Seca in real life vs. in game. I found the following similarities and differences between real life and GT6:
Similarity:
1. The layout and elevation changes is very realistic. I'm very amazed by this.
2. Braking point is very similar.
Differences (so so many):
1. The available traction in many cars (even with stock tires) in GT6 is too much. Technically, the g-force in many tire models are unrealistically high. In another words, many cars in GT6 drive A LOT BETTER than the real life ones. A lot of times, I can corner a lot faster with many cars than I can with my actual ones. Simply put, the cars in game have way higher limit than a comparable cars in real life.
2. Where is the brake fade??? In game, brake works perfectly regardless of how long you drive or how aggressively you brake. You can brake late every lap for infinitely many laps. In real life, brake system, no matter how good, will start to fade if you heat it up passing its temp limit. We need cooling in real life but not in game.
3. The tire models in game is very inaccurate. My high performance summer tires (Hankook V12, Michelin Pilot Super Sports etc) in real life performs at the level somewhere in between comfort medium and comfort hard in game. Semi-slick tires perform like sport hard. I have not driven on racing slick tires in real life yet but in game, anything beyond sport hard are unrealistically grippy and offer too much traction. Personally, I think nothing in real life can or ever will match racing medium and racing soft in game because they are God-like where you can corner in a speed that is beyond physics.
4. I find a lot of modding options in game unrealistic as well. From my experience, ride height, camber...give wrong effect. 0 camber in game seems to be the best, at least, for my driving style in game which doesn't agree with performance alignment outside. Higher front than rear in game makes cars drive better by reducing understeering which seems strange.
5. Lack of G-force.
6. Lack of hearing feedback from engine, and exhaust sound. The sound in real engine and exhaust vary a lot in different gears throughout different RPM but in game, it sounds the same in almost all range.
7. Lack of sense of speed and depth of field. This is the biggest challenge I find driving cars in GT6. This makes me either braking too early or too late. I cannot feel it the way I feel in my actual car.
8. Lack of sense of danger.
9. The gas, the brake, the steering wheel gives the same feedback no matter what cars I choose in game. In reality, different cars give you totally different feedback to your feet and hands.
10. Sorry to say this too but GT6 virtual drivers, majority that I see online, are too aggressive, just way too aggressive to the point of being dangerous. Driving like you stole it is an understatement because it is more like driving like you kill yourself.
11. It cost a lot more to track outside than in game. tires: 1000+, brake pads: 200+, helmet: 200+, gas: 60, oil change: 65, track admission: 150 each event etc vs. game $40 dollars + $200 wheel where you can use many years.
12. Racing in GT6 environment seems to have no rule whatover. It is like whoever finish first wins. In real life, you have a lot and a lot of regulations. If you race the way you do in GT6, you will likely get kicked out and banned from the track in no time lol.
Alright, enough for all the long-winded discussion above, the bottom line is GT6 is still a game. It is very good to get a sense of track layout and braking points. It is also good that you can test and over-drive car without injuring anyone. I actually improve my driving skills because I am able to get some virtual seat time and do something that I don't dare doing in real life as well as be able to drive on many tracks that I haven't done such as Nurburgring
Anyways, skill in GT6 is virtual racer skill and it is completely different than skill in actual driving/racing.