Is using the driving line bad

[davepiredda]

Just wondering

 

[iainoflo85]

In the respect that it can give you bad habits, just like the other driving aids, then yes, I guess it is "bad". But it can help you learn tracks - which is invaluable sometimes.

Like all driving aids in this game, it has it's good points and bad points. But overuse will not make you a better driver.

 

[davepiredda]

In the respect that it can give you bad habits, just like the other driving aids, then yes, I guess it is "bad". But it can help you learn tracks - which is invaluable sometimes.

Like all driving aids in this game, it has it's good points and bad points. But overuse will not make you a better driver.

When my dad and I played v8 supercars on ps2 we didn't use driving line.... because there wasn't one. Also we only did 3 translate so it was easy to remember. But now I use it only for the reason of not knowing tracks. If only they added Bathurst !!!! Btw do you use the driving line

 

[iainoflo85]

When my dad and I played v8 supercars on ps2 we didn't use driving line.... because there wasn't one. Also we only did 3 translate so it was easy to remember. But now I use it only for the reason of not knowing tracks. If only they added Bathurst !!!! Btw do you use the driving line

Not anymore - I did in the beginning, but then like all the aids it took some time to wean myself off it. But now I really don't need it at all. Not even on tracks that I don't know that well, because I know enough about cornering in general and it only takes a few laps for me to learn a new/reverse course.

 

[DrBoyton]

I use the driving line only briefly to learn new tracks. I find that if you rely on the driving line all the time you never really learn it properly, whereas driving the track from memory, braking points included, will greatly improve your ability on that track.

 

[davepiredda]

Not anymore - I did in the beginning, but then like all the aids it took some time to wean myself off it. But now I really don't need it at all. Not even on tracks that I don't know that well, because I know enough about cornering in general and it only takes a few laps for me to learn a new/reverse course.

Well I've only had it for a month or so. I hope that I wean my way out of it myself. I want it to be a real simulator. Also sorry about the questions but do you use auto or manual

 

[iainoflo85]

Well I've only had it for a month or so. I hope that I wean my way out of it myself. I want it to be a real simulator. Also sorry about the questions but do you use auto or manual

Again I used Automatic in the beginning, and there was a few weeks in October I think when I got my DFGT and everything was turned off in stages except ABS and I switched to Manual transmission. Getting my DFGT was enough to make me realise that I don't need the aids, so I soon found that I didn't need them after I got used to them being off - now I can't go back to Auto, my fingers would be clicking away at the paddles and nothing would happen . It's subconscious now to just go up a gear or down when needed, and that's just something I've learned.

Its like driving a car in real life - you know when to change gear, so you just do it without thinking after a while.

 

[Aquarelle]

I think the driving line is a dirty cheating liar.

It does serve its purpose though, it gives you a rough idea of what's coming but once you learn the tracks I'd urge you to turn it off and run far far away

The driving line is more of a.. guideline. There are faster ways around corners 👍

 

[Stotty]

I used the driving line all through Prologue and I still use it occassionally in GT5 on tracks I don't know well... eg; I used it on the recent GT500 Seasonal TT until I got used to the braking points as I don't know the full Motegi track very well.

Nothing wrong with using it.

 

[Kitten]

I will give it respect if you just got the game but if you had to long the game and you still using it we have a problem....

 

[Motor City Hami]

I recommend using driving line only briefly on new tracks. While it is on, look for other reference points. Do not focus on the driving line, just use for general car positioning.

The flaw with using the driving line is that your eyes aren't looking far enough down the track. Getting your eyes up will make you much faster than relying on looking at those little dashes right in front of the car. It is pretty easy to see those in online rooms who are using driving line. They are the ones running everyone over in turn one because instead of watching the car in front of them they were looking down at the track. And, when following one of them, just wait a few corners and they are bound to miss an apex and open up an inside passing lane.

 

[byegad]

I use it a fair amount of the time, but ignore it on some corners as it's plainly not the fastest line, or braking point. An example would be the chicane just before the stripe at Madrid. The line takes you into the chicane from the extreme left lane on the road, it brakes early and makes for a clumsy exit onto the start/finish straight. So I use the right hand lane and brake just after the first arrow in the road (Depending on the car it could be slightly before the first arrow or even almost on the second arrow!).

The line I see as a guide to be ignored when you know the track. But, as we don't practice before a race and run on so many different tracks with so many different cars, I don't feel it's 'wrong' to have it on.

 

[PawnBoy]

I used the driving line for probably a month when I first got the game shortly after it released. When I finally sucked it up and turned it off I really felt like I really didn't know the tracks at all, I'd just been following the colored line and doing what it told me. I haven't used it since and won't use it again. It may have sped up my first 2 or 3 laps, but beyond that it never taught me anything, and didn't do me any good. In the end I had to relearn all the tracks anyway.

Cut the umbilical!

You won't get your hand held during your first few laps, but you'll be much better off for it in the end!

 

[Super Novi]

Use it as a reference. Don't rely on it, but don't take it for granted on the Nur, if you are using it.
But if you are drifting, don't use it. At all.

Well, that's what I do anyway.

 

[Guardian]

If you find it helpful or generally better to drive with the Driving Line on, then keep it on. 👍

Whilst I don't use the Driving line myself, I still use ABS, SRF and TC. And if anyone says to me "lol XD Y U use N00B aids? Lolol", I simply ignore them as I cruise past their ABS:0, spun-out wreck whilst enjoying myself.

Do what you like.

One thing I would say though; is don't rely on it completely. Especially if you're after faster lap-times.

 

[Tornado]

It depends on the context. You will be a better driver if you have it off, as you will learn to use trackside scenery for braking points. That's what those signs on the side of the track is for, and that is an important skill to have.

On the other hand, there are situations where it is much more beneficial to have it on, at least at first, than to have it off (specifically, if you race a lot of track generator tracks, those usually have very odd turns and no scenery, so you'll need something to help you figure it out consistently).

 

[RX-7_FD3S]

Just wondering

No it's not. You should use it to learn tracks, once you know them, try to find braking marks on the tracks (anything can be use, shadow, paint mark on the track, corner indicator etc...). When you have your braking points, turn it off.

 

[Morgoth_666]

A few others have mentioned this, but I'll just reiterate that the most important thing to remember about using the driving line is that you need to be driving the track, not driving the driving line.

It can be useful as a tool to help you learn tracks and perhaps some very basic cornering technique, but if you are focusing on following that line and doing what it tells you too much you won't be able to really learn what is going on. If that happens it can cause the problem someone mentioned of turning it off and suddenly feeling like you don't know any of the tracks and having to learn them all over again.

Use the line as a general guide to avoid getting lost as much as anything, and always be on the look out for the things you are driving past such as corner markers and permanent trackside features. Finding those things as well as getting a feel for the general timing of a corner will soon make the driving line redundant and inferior to your own personal line.

If you are confident in your basic ability to know where you are on a track and to drive your car through a series of corners, the line will be really just for keeping you off the walls until you find your reference points on a new/unfamiliar track. If I were to use it I'd aim to turn it off by the time I've run 10 or so laps on any given track. No sense in having it there as a potential distraction once you don't need it.

 

[Shawns]

driving line is a must at Nurburgring

 

[PawnBoy]

driving line is a must at Nurburgring

Best way to learn the Nurburgring IMO is to complete the AMG Driving Academy special events, without the driving line.

 

[MSTER232]

Just wondering

Well that would depend on what the definition of "bad" is in this case anyway. In the case of it giving you bad habits and being so addicted to following the line on the road, you don't notice anything else around you then that is 'bad' in my opinion.

Another case in which it would be 'bad' is when you're using it when you don't even need it. But using the racing line aid as a general guide to help you learn the lines on a new track to you isn't that bad, at least in my opinion.

 

[Venymous]

I used it briefly when the game first came out. Mainly to get used to the game physics. After that I never used it, even on new tracks.

As others have said, the driving line is not the fastest way around the corner/track. So using it to learn a new track is only going to help you learn the wrong way around it.

I recommend turning it off as soon as you get to grips with the game physics. For me, leaving it on was a distraction and you can become reliant on it to get around a corner. With it off you will start learning better braking and turn-in points.

Basically, once you start recognizing that you can drive much faster than what the driving lines tell you, turn it off.

 

[racefan88]

Driving line is by far not the fastest way around a track. I use it some times as on some tracks it is difficult to find brake points, other times I use it solely for reference (as if it were a 200m board... i.e. like half a second after the nose of the car passes the red part of the driving line hit the brakes). Sometimes I enjoy not using it at all as it can be distracting and sometimes I just want to enjoy the beauty of the track.

It is all preference and it is useful at times (Ill never forget the time I was doing the Nurburgring 24h and did a stint in the dark after a busy week where I hadn't raced at all, I forget where I was but I thought there was a sharper left turn when the track went right...pretty embarrassing haha).

 

[cletus 669]

In the beginning it is a useful tool but get rid of it as soon as possible. That said, I still use it on the TGTT because I always get lost on the crossover. When you do decide to turn it off the track will seem so much wider at first, well it did for me atleast. Keep practicing and happy racing to ya!

 

[poopity]

I use driving line on that stupid Top Gear test track. Cause by the second lap of a race nearly all the cones have been knocked down and are laying all over the place, you can't tell where the track is anymore.

 

[Outeke]

No, play as you like.
But don't stick to it......your drive style determines your driveline.....

 

[kleefton]

I use it when im tuning the cars. It helps me drive more consistently albeit at a slower pace.

 

[DGXR]

The driving line is only a *general idea* of the fastest way around a track and (as others have said) it is useful for learning a new track but should be turned off once you have any familiarity. The driving line is by no means the truly fastest way.

The few times I've bothered to turn the driving line on at a track I know well (just for giggles), I was crossing it left and right and realized my own fastest driving line is usually way off from the driving line. This is especially true at technical tracks like Trial Mountain, Cote D'Azur, and Deep Forest... I'm *way* off the line but I'm quite fast. This is probably because I put extreme emphasis on corner exit speed (this annoys others online). I regulary string together turns that seem completely un-connected.

 

[MSTER232]

The driving line is only a *general idea* of the fastest way around a track and (as others have said) it is useful for learning a new track but should be turned off once you have any familiarity. The driving line is by no means the truly fastest way.

The few times I've bothered to turn the driving line on at a track I know well (just for giggles), I was crossing it left and right and realized my own fastest driving line is usually way off from the driving line. This is especially true at technical tracks like Trial Mountain, Cote D'Azur, and Deep Forest... I'm *way* off the line but I'm quite fast. This is probably because I put extreme emphasis on corner exit speed (this annoys others online). I regulary string together turns that seem completely un-connected.

This. You should turn the driving line off immediately if you find that experimenting and choosing a different line to the driving line aid is faster.

 

[Bluntified]

As others have mentioned, the line they provide isn't typically the fastest line but rather a safer line. I used it a bit back in the day to learn they layout of the track, once I found where all the corners are and where I should be positioned, I turned it off.

To me, the better tool to use is the "gear indicator", it'll show you what the "ideal" gear is and you can break accordingly. This way will help you learn the physics way more than using the line, you need to find you're own braking points.

You'll eventually get to the point (depending on how long you stick with it) where you don't need anything on the screen (like me ). There's nothing like racing with a clear screen, nothing but the track and the car!