- 3,177
- St helens, merseyside, England.
- crazybuttocks198
- Crazybuttocks19
6 months in I am still not sure what it does to benefit me. I have tried it but felt no difference in my handling. Any thoughts on this?
In a nutshell. How does brake balance benefit you
- Thread starter Crazy Taylor
- 23 comments
- 3,719 views
- 159
- UK
It depends on the car. Some will over rotate under heavy breaking for example so you need to tweak the balance to keep the car stable.
- 1,090
- Norwich
- TheNorfolkDad
It makes no difference (IMO) while braking in a straight line, you will only notice the difference when trail braking.
Try braking right up to the apex with +5 then -5 and you will definitely see the difference. When you have the BB set right, those last few metres before the apex your turning and braking at the same time will feel so much smoother.
Try braking right up to the apex with +5 then -5 and you will definitely see the difference. When you have the BB set right, those last few metres before the apex your turning and braking at the same time will feel so much smoother.
- 655
- United States
- FluffaRaptor
Keeps brakes from locking up in corners. I like rear bias because it allows me to brake more accurately. The braking distance is longer and therefore smoother and I can also be more consistent as the mph drops slower and i can pinpoint which speed i want to stop braking at with more ease.
heres a simple way to think about it .. with fwd cars theres understeer when you accelerate, with rwd there's oversteer right? well, with brake balance, you can kind of think of it like that except under braking .. bb to the front = more stable under braking but some understeer occurs when you are turning with the brakes on, to the rear and a tendency to slide when turning under braking increases
- 6,254
- Washington State
- OutlawQuadrant
Given how the default setups make turn-in such a chore, I usually default to some rear brake bias. With MR cars, though, I'll add front brake for both stability and to manage tire wear.
For cars like the Audi TT, I can't crank that dial all the way to the rear fast enough.
For cars like the Audi TT, I can't crank that dial all the way to the rear fast enough.
- 1,121
- Austin, TX USA
- Winnie847
when I first started playing GTS I didn't know the difference and even though I tried adjusting the BB I still couldn't tell the difference. Now that I am a much better driver and have a wheel that gives good FFB, I see the difference and agree with what many of the posters above have said.
Forward brake balance (-5) helps me stop the cars sooner, over a shorter distance, but it can hinder trail-braking. This was perfect for me when I used a DS4 with square as brake.
Rear brake balance (+5) takes a little longer to stop and can be a bit unstable on some cars, but it makes trail-braking feel like it should, and it's a pleasure.
Honestly I hadn't even thought of the point about BBon MR cars adding stability and helping with tire wear....if it works well that's brilliant and could lead to me using MR cars more.
I do find that these effects can differ greatly from car to car, as others have said.
Forward brake balance (-5) helps me stop the cars sooner, over a shorter distance, but it can hinder trail-braking. This was perfect for me when I used a DS4 with square as brake.
Rear brake balance (+5) takes a little longer to stop and can be a bit unstable on some cars, but it makes trail-braking feel like it should, and it's a pleasure.
Honestly I hadn't even thought of the point about BBon MR cars adding stability and helping with tire wear....if it works well that's brilliant and could lead to me using MR cars more.
I do find that these effects can differ greatly from car to car, as others have said.
- 1,466
- Canada
- mikethehockeyfan
When you turn into a corner while braking:
Easy peasy!
- If you car is understeering, put more brake balance towards the rear
- If your car is oversteering, put more brake balance towards the front.
Easy peasy!
- 1,121
- Austin, TX USA
- Winnie847
Also, something that helps is testing your changes in the right places. The changes are subtle, so try -5, 0, then +5 to easily see the difference, then fine tune from there.
Alsace is a great place to test BB. Turn 3 is a hard right hander with decreasing elevation and it's banked. Turn 5 is an even harder right turn with a deep inside corner.
Interlagos is another good one. This is where I first learned to fix the BB on my 911. Just play with the settings on the twisty parts of the track and try trail-braking to different levels of severity.
I prefer +2 on these tracks but often go with 0 on others. It helps to change it on the fly in certain situations, but you gotta know you're gonna need it ahead of time.
Alsace is a great place to test BB. Turn 3 is a hard right hander with decreasing elevation and it's banked. Turn 5 is an even harder right turn with a deep inside corner.
Interlagos is another good one. This is where I first learned to fix the BB on my 911. Just play with the settings on the twisty parts of the track and try trail-braking to different levels of severity.
I prefer +2 on these tracks but often go with 0 on others. It helps to change it on the fly in certain situations, but you gotta know you're gonna need it ahead of time.
- 634
- United States
With ABS it's hard to notice because lock up is avoided, but adjusting your straight line brake balance so the front and rear lock up at the same time will generally give you the shortest braking distance. Also giving a lower braking duration, i.e., faster to slow down. That balance depends mainly on the car's weight distribution and tire sizes.
Racing is always a compromise, so using less than full braking power on the front tires allows them to use some of their available grip for turning. This is where fine tuning brake balance comes in. You are giving up braking ability to gain turning ability or vice versa. More clearly, you are able to still brake as you turn in, which is trail braking.
Now to make things complicated, the best brake balance depends not only on the car and trail braking, but also tire wear, your driving style and your "goal." I've seen replays of some of the very best drivers changing their brake balance for different turns during a single lap. Of course those were aliens who can focus on such small details and see the benefit.
For most people, it's about making the car feel "neutral" so that you generally aren't plowing or spinning. The only thing beyond that I personally do is adjust to help even out tire wear.
Racing is always a compromise, so using less than full braking power on the front tires allows them to use some of their available grip for turning. This is where fine tuning brake balance comes in. You are giving up braking ability to gain turning ability or vice versa. More clearly, you are able to still brake as you turn in, which is trail braking.
Now to make things complicated, the best brake balance depends not only on the car and trail braking, but also tire wear, your driving style and your "goal." I've seen replays of some of the very best drivers changing their brake balance for different turns during a single lap. Of course those were aliens who can focus on such small details and see the benefit.
For most people, it's about making the car feel "neutral" so that you generally aren't plowing or spinning. The only thing beyond that I personally do is adjust to help even out tire wear.
Add as much your driving style allows on the rear (without locking the rear). The braking distance will be shorter and more effective.
That's how it benefits you.
- 204
- Lismore
- jonesy82360
I try and experimeent with each track and car combination...i find slow corners after a high speed straight benefit from front bias, but rear bias is much more fun to use.
You can also change your BB to make your tyre wear more even - eg if you are using front bias, and your front tyres are wearing out...you can adjust the balance to the rear to take advantage of that little bit of extra wear...though you should sort that out at the start of the race, not the end...and it all hinges on whatever is the fastest for you...
I think I remember someone saying IRL race cars have a dial on their wheel that pushes more brake fluid to the front or the rear. Is that how it works anyone?
You can also change your BB to make your tyre wear more even - eg if you are using front bias, and your front tyres are wearing out...you can adjust the balance to the rear to take advantage of that little bit of extra wear...though you should sort that out at the start of the race, not the end...and it all hinges on whatever is the fastest for you...
I think I remember someone saying IRL race cars have a dial on their wheel that pushes more brake fluid to the front or the rear. Is that how it works anyone?
- 15,126
- Melbourne
- ScottPuss20
- CheetahsMeow
I've never really screwed around with the brake balance so I can't say whether it provides a benefit.
- 2,321
- Wales
- TSR_GTWelsh
Use ABS-WEAK. It makes a huge difference. ABS-Default is so intrusive it almost makes brake balance pointless.
- 1,424
- Kansas City/MO/US
- BallPtPenTheif
- BallPtPenTheif
I usually set the brake balance back if the car keeps lurching heavily forward while trail braking. You can't have a car pitching forward and backwards while trail braking as it'll make the traction and steering unpredictable. If you have it set right the car should feel like it's laterally sliding from the middle of the car as it pivots into a turn, which in turn makes it easier to manipulate the car since you've made that fine line between oversteer and understeer a little bit fatter.
Now retaining that center weight balance while accelerating on the exit, that's a whole other thing.
Now retaining that center weight balance while accelerating on the exit, that's a whole other thing.
- 845
- Brazil 🇧🇷
- blacksky37
I'm not a specialist and I'm far from being an alien in this game.
But
- if I feel the car has "problems" (or I have problems) turning in, I put the BB in the rear.
- if I feel the car "turns too much" into the corners, I increase BB in the front.
Usually 3 is the magic number (either towards rear of front) for me.
Not sure how it works related to car types (FR, FF, MR, and so on and on) but that's the general feeling I get driving cars and adjusting BB.
But
- if I feel the car has "problems" (or I have problems) turning in, I put the BB in the rear.
- if I feel the car "turns too much" into the corners, I increase BB in the front.
Usually 3 is the magic number (either towards rear of front) for me.
Not sure how it works related to car types (FR, FF, MR, and so on and on) but that's the general feeling I get driving cars and adjusting BB.
- 164
- Toronto, Ontario
- bleepedy_bloops
Yep, this.
If the car dives or fishtails into a corner I notch it to the front brakes
If the car is cornering too wide, I'll notch it to rear.
- 946
- Netherlands
- Shottah072
Allot of good answers already in this thread.
Also keep in mind the track your driving on. Like for instance i will run BB more to the front on a track like Monza where there are allot of straight hard braking zones. You could even change it per corner or sector if you have the capacity and consistency to be able to benefit from that.
And some already mentioned but MR and RR cars you generally want a bit more BB to the front as well because they already have less weight of the engine pressing down on the front wheels with the engine placed in the mid or back.
Also keep in mind the track your driving on. Like for instance i will run BB more to the front on a track like Monza where there are allot of straight hard braking zones. You could even change it per corner or sector if you have the capacity and consistency to be able to benefit from that.
And some already mentioned but MR and RR cars you generally want a bit more BB to the front as well because they already have less weight of the engine pressing down on the front wheels with the engine placed in the mid or back.
- 2,647
Really helps with tire wear. Like with the Ferrari I have to put the bias all the way to the front else my rears would be so bad I’d be doing pirouettes by lap 2.
- 4,500
- Australia
Depends how thoroughly they regression test each update.
Setting bias to the front increases straight line stopping power but induces understeer under braking, setting it rearward reduces straight line stopping power but will result in oversteer.
However not long ago the brake bias setting had the opposite effect on handling on multiple cars. I don't know whether it has been fixed yet.
Setting bias to the front increases straight line stopping power but induces understeer under braking, setting it rearward reduces straight line stopping power but will result in oversteer.
However not long ago the brake bias setting had the opposite effect on handling on multiple cars. I don't know whether it has been fixed yet.
