Just got my road D class license, now what?

[GX390]

So yeah, I've just got my D class licence. I was wondering what sort of series I'll now be able to do and what you guys recommend I'd try out?

 

[MagpieRacer]

The Mustang is fun when it goes official. Skip Barber and Spec Ford are both fun and well populated as well and the Global Challenge with the Kia and Cadillac is also popular and fun.

 

[GX390]

The Mustang is fun when it goes official. Skip Barber and Spec Ford are both fun and well populated as well and the Global Challenge with the Kia and Cadillac is also popular and fun.

Thanks, I'll check them out now

Also, how much would it cost to purchase all the tracks required for each series?

 

[MagpieRacer]

Depends on which series to be honest. But expect somewhere in the 60-80usd region.

 

[GX390]

Depends on which series to be honest. But expect somewhere in the 60-80usd region.

This is the only problem I have with iRacing the pricing is ridiculous.

 

[left888]

It's only expensive until you own all the content. Most of us get the "Black Friday" half price top up for $49.00 USA dollars per year.

 

[GX390]

It's only expensive until you own all the content. Most of us get the "Black Friday" half price top up for $49.00 USA dollars per year.

It's still ridiculously priced compared to other sims like Assetto Corsa and rF2.

 

[Imari]

It's still ridiculously priced compared to other sims like Assetto Corsa and rF2.

It's true.

But then, the quality is very high as well. Particularly for tracks. And as far as purchased cars, you can expect continued development after your purchase. Which may or may not be the case for rF2 and AC.

The content is expensive, but bulk purchases and seasonal credits can make it more reasonable.

Still, with iRacing it's not so much that you're paying for the content as much as you're funding the whole system that they provide.

 

[left888]

It's still ridiculously priced compared to other sims like Assetto Corsa and rF2.

It's true.

But then, the quality is very high as well. Particularly for tracks. And as far as purchased cars, you can expect continued development after your purchase. Which may or may not be the case for rF2 and AC.

As Imari said, with iRacing it has continuous support, as in "week 13" No other racer on the planet is supported like iRacing. The thing to keep in mind is that iRacing is designed for grownups, that have disposable income.

There are some youngins' that use the service but usually their folks pay the bill. If you are struggling to pay, then just stick to one series like the MX-5 until you find the funds to move up.

$49 per year is so cheap I don't even bat an eye at it, cheap, cheap, cheap.

 

[Roush_fan_99]

Compared to $2k for a set of tires that are burned up in 2 months.... 👍

 

[cuges77]

i posted this on the forum a couple of minutes ago
Here is a 2013 Guide for Rookies looking at the options for their D Licence on the Road.
Before I start I would highly encourage rookies to partake in the inRacingNews Challenge when Eligible after rookie 3.0. This is probably the best introduction to multi class racing featuring the Mazda MX-5 Roadster (Right Hand Drive) and the Pontiac Solstice (Left hand drive). All the races feature content that you own in the base package and features some of the fastest drivers in iRacing.
There are these options in the D-Class
• iRacing Global Challenge MC
• Skip Barber Championship
• iRacing Grand Touring Cup MC
• Mustang Challenge
• Spec Racer Ford Championship

Although you can just do 4 Racers and meet your minimum participation rating (MPR) and progress to a C Licence I and most experienced Racers recommend trying to compete in a full session. This will give you the chance to compete for points and make solid progression in the car. C Class offers a larger challenge and there is no need to rush. Once you reach your D- Licence the driving standards do improve and it is the best licence to learn race craft and actually race without the constant threat of a first corner pile up.

When choosing which series to run there is a few thing to consider
• What type of cars do you like
• What cars do you see yourself driving in the future (progression)
• Multiclass Racing or Single Class
• Budget (Purchasing Cars and Tracks Available)
• When you race (Time of the Day and Day of the week)

These should all be considered when making you decision of which car to drive. There is no point you driving a car that you don’t like. Luckily iRacing gives an abundance of choice of our D- Licence

iRacing Global Challenge – (Cadillac CTS-V, Kia Optima)

This a new series introduced at the start of Season 2 2013 and it features multiclass races. It is iRacing version of the Pirelli World Championship with both cars featuring in the 2012 and 2013 series.
The Cadillac is a free car and the Kia Optima is the latest car in the service. The Cadillac boosts large horse power with RWD handling that tends towards oversteer. Throttle Control in this car is important but it is probably the closest thing horsepower wise to a C- Class car. The art of lapping the slower cars are also put to the test when lapping the KIAs.
The Kia Optima is the slower of the two with the FWD steering tending towards understeer. Close racing is a given and it is quite unique compared to the other cars. This would be the perfect car to practice for the release of the upcoming Honda Civic BTCC. Participation is solid with SOF races available in US, European and Australian Time zones.

Skip Barber Championship (Skip Barber Formula 2000)

The Skippy is the most popular D- Class car and the first available open wheel car in your iRacing Career. The light and nimble car is very rewarding when tamed and has a very competitive championship. As a learner Race Car in real life it does bite hard when mistakes are made yet it feels controllable. Setups for beginners are available for the forum and the people are always willing to help. SOF racers are available in US and Europe and most if not all of the racers goes official in most race time slots. This is one of the most fun and competitive series to drive in)

iRacing Grand Touring Cup (VW Jetta, Pontiac Solstice, Mazda MX-5 Cup)

Did you enjoy the Mazda Cup or the inRacingNews Challenge. This is a multiclass championship with lower horsepower cars for 25 minute races.
The VW Jetta is a front wheel drive car that tends towards understeer. With its superior straight line speed with its diesel engine you have to manage the art for battling the battling fellow Jetta whilst holding off the faster MX-5 drivers in the corner. A good starting point for learning FWD cars.
The MX-5 is the same car you graduated in from the Rookie series. A momentum car that is fun and easy to drive at all circuits. You can adjust setups now you are in the D Series to optimise lap times and driving style. If you enjoyed the MX-5 then seriously consider this
The Pontiac Solstice is a fun car which is personally one of my favourite. Tends towards neutral understeer it is a car that is completely different for the MX-5. This car is also free and the baseline setup is more than competitive with most of the alien drivers using the baseline to set their blistering times. Racers tend to go official in most time zones and SOF racers are available in US and European friendly time zones

Mustang Challenge (Ford Mustang FR500)

You want close racing then drive the mustang. An easy car to jump into and pull competitive lap times in the stag. Tends to understeer a lot as I would describe driving it like driving a ‘Tank’. Some of the closest racers are in this vehicle. Usually has official racers in Euro and US times this is a car to learn the art of tin-tops at a low horsepower level. Easy to make setup adjustment to your liking and a very competitive baseline setup that can get results make this fun tight and competitive racing. Looking to drive tin tops then don’t look further

iRacing Spec Racer Ford Championship (SCCA Spec Ford Racer)

The SRF is a free car available in the basic package. It along with the Skippy are very rewarding when you get it right is satisfying but can also hit you when you don’t expect it. A unique car requires some throttle input to keep it stable and if your off it will snap loose because of its tendency in oversteer. Boosts competitive skilled racers and a helpful community there to give advice and help for the newcomers. Setups are available weekly by drivers in the forum and SOF Racers are available in both US and European Time Slots. Probably one of the funniest cars in the sim to drive when in control


So there are the five championships available for D Classes drivers. I hope this helped distinguish the differences between them. You can always drive more than one series if you have the time and passion. Remember have fun, learn the new cars and tracks and race safely and cleanly.

(If this is useful let me know because I might go into a C Licence Breakdown for Road and an Oval version for D and C.)

 

[JohnBodin]

So yeah, I've just got my D class licence. I was wondering what sort of series I'll now be able to do and what you guys recommend I'd try out?

I'd strongly recommend reading through this thread:

Link: Rookie Race Tip: License Levels and Promotions

Also, keep in mind that you own the Spec Racer Ford already -- it's part of the free base content, and it's a D-Class car. It's a beast to learn, but once you learn how to handle it, everything else in iRacing will be much easier to deal with.

 

[left888]

I only wish I could find more races with the Spec Ford, last season I found 2 races. Hardly any offical races to be found. Unless I missed a secret start time I always tried around 7:30 Eastern.

 

[chuckl]

I was thinking of getting iRacing but it all sounds so confusing really.

 

[Imari]

I was thinking of getting iRacing but it all sounds so confusing really.

It is and it's not.

There's a lot of stuff going on and it's completely confusing if you try and tackle it all at once.

But you don't have to tackle it all at once. The structure of the service is that you start small with one or two series and build up.

Say you want to be a road racer. You start in the MX5, and after getting a few clean races under your belt you'll be eligible for the rookie multiclass with the MX5, Pontiac Solstice and Spec Ford. But unless you're an alien with superb racecraft you'll probably be with the MX5 for a while learning how to race clean enough to move on.

There's a similar thing on the oval side, if that's your thing. You can do both.

There are a limited number of tracks, so you won't have too much to learn early on. No tuning, that comes later. There are regular races that almost always have a good amount of people.

Really, it's very easy to get started. It's hard to get out of rookie, but it's mostly a mindset thing. Once people learn that you go faster by not trying to go so fast they generally get out of rookie pretty quick. It's good for you.

It's very different to console racers, if that's what you're used to. But it's not that hard to pick up, and most people are generally pretty helpful. See Mr Bodin here as an example.

Pick up one of the discount deals and give it a go. See here: https://www.gtplanet.net/forum/showthread.php?t=131900

It's worth trying it for a month for $5. You're not going to miss $5.

 

[chuckl]

I've only been console racing for about 1 year but I really like it. I have been reading the iracing forum here for a while now. I just don't think I am ready for it yet. Thanks for all the information Imari, if I ever try iracing I will be asking you lots of questions.

I don't have a wheel yet, from what I have read I guess you should have one for iracing? Is there a preference on what you guys like and I don't have a lot of money, so maybe about 100-150 dollars. I can use my older brothers computer, he has a pretty good one. I think another year of GT5 and Forza before I make the jump to iracing.

 

[Zathra5_]

You really should have a wheel for iRacing (and GT and Forza for that matter). $150 should get you a DFGT which will work on PC and PS3 (but not xbox).

If you are used to clean racing in GT, getting out of rookie in iRacing is pretty easy especially if you take it "easy" and not race hard.

 

[Jason115]

I highly recommend starting with the skip barber series, because not only is it a very fun series, but it will teach you many things about racing as well.

 

[Patrocles]

It's only expensive until you own all the content. Most of us get the "Black Friday" half price top up for $49.00 USA dollars per year.

It's still ridiculously priced compared to other sims like Assetto Corsa and rF2.

It all depends what you are looking for in the games. Yes, iRacing is more expensive thank AC, rF2, FM4, GT5, etc. etc.

I am into these games for the racing experience. However, what you won't find in any of these other games is a 24/7 structured clean online pickup racing service. I am too busy to join a league and be restricted to their schedules so iRacing is worth the cost and more!

 

[fatkrakr]

My advice would be if you are still planning on running in the rookie series, as most do, you should get your IR to atleast around 1800 by running in some D class races. If you go back to rookies with a low IR your going to be put in the lower splits. You wont have very much fun going back to the lower rookie splits. There is good racing in the rookie series, you just need to be in the top 2 or 3 splits. The top split in the MX5 is FAST. Atleast for me, I cant keep up with them in that car.