Places to Learn Drifting

I think it is propably a controller configuration issue than a driving issue. I have a dfpro and had troubles adjusting to the 900 degree steering. I simply wasn´t quick enough especially during weight transfer situations like you described (which is to me btw the absolute best moment in drifting, when you get that transition just right, mmmmhhh :drool:).

Another driving related issue for me was that I used to completely lift the throttle during the weight shift, because I was afraid of spinning out. Well that resulted in a weight transfer to the front, which actually didn´t help at all hehe.

I feel that it helps a lot to just lift a split second when the rear swings to the other side and then very quickly but gently apply throttle again to get some weight on the back. The transitions are the hardest part anyway, so I wouldn´t worry too much. It is imo simply a matter of getting used to a new controller and maybe adjusting the settings.

If you spin on initiation that is a totally different matter, which depends on a lot of factors (Type of car, type of corner, entry speed, e-brake yes/no, brakes yes/no, brake balance, etc).

But again, imo, if you have a new controller it takes at least a week of intense driving to really feel comfortable with it. In some cases less, in some more of course.

Yea, and I have been going at it as much as I can, though I'm limited by homework. But, anywhere from half an hour a day, to full on 6 hour stints.

Also, I'm still not used to the O button location so for whenever I do need the e-brake I get lost and can't find it, though I'd prefer not rely on it as my previous drifting with the DS3, I could drift without use of the E-brake.

This is another reason why I want a wide open parking lot added as a location to drive at. It's the best way to learn how a car slides. It allows you to focus on where the limits are, which technique works best for you, and there's no obstacles to worry about, just the slide.


A massive parking lot or just open area would be awesome. Maybe Concrete?

What you thinking? 1000mx1000m? It seems like it'd be big enough. I wouldn't imagine it'd take up too much space, being a flat square and all. And they could use it as Gymkhana whenever necessary.
 
1 square km is kinda big. I was thinking along the lines of like the parking lot in Live For Speed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEYlxTPSYuA&feature=related

And what you see is another reason why I'd like to see it. If PD had made a custom course creator like this, it would be great! All it is is a bunch of objects.

I could be satisfied with a 1km square with Polyphony's cones placed in. . . whatever arrangement. I personally like the on km square because it allows for a considerable amount more speed. Remember Gymkhana from GT4?

A modified Zonda on N1 tires. . . Not something you really want to deal with on a square that small. It sucked.
 
Tsukuba hands down.

A great combination of slow to fast narrow and wide turns just perfect for working on your drifting skills.
 
I too, do not drift much and am not great at it, but would like to get better. It is for things like this that I hope there is a rewind feature. That way you don't have to keep going around the whole track to learn a couple of good learning spots on the track. I know, I know, it's not realistic, but we could learn quicker.
 
The problem with drifting I have in GT5P is, that whenever I start to spin completely, the gas is cut of. This is so annoying. I use a G25 with sequential shifting. First I thought that it is the autoclutch. But it isnt. Its like the gaspedal is overridden by the game at a certain point of spinning. It simply doesnt work annymore. The revs are not going up and the visual indicator dont show any movement even though I am flooring the gaspedal.
 
I too, do not drift much and am not great at it, but would like to get better. It is for things like this that I hope there is a rewind feature. That way you don't have to keep going around the whole track to learn a couple of good learning spots on the track. I know, I know, it's not realistic, but we could learn quicker.

You don't have to do a full lap. I'm a big fan of just driving backwards on the tracks to repeat the same corner over and over again. I really don't want a rewind feature. Eww.

The problem with drifting I have in GT5P is, that whenever I start to spin completely, the gas is cut of. This is so annoying. I use a G25 with sequential shifting. First I thought that it is the autoclutch. But it isnt. Its like the gaspedal is overridden by the game at a certain point of spinning. It simply doesnt work annymore. The revs are not going up and the visual indicator dont show any movement even though I am flooring the gaspedal.

You sure the TCS and ASM systems are completely off? Cuz thats the only thing I can think of. Also I haven't played on arcade physics so idk if that'll have an affect either. Might be something to look into.
 
I'm in the same boat as you not too bad with a pad but just bad with the dfgt. like some people have mentioned its getting used to the 900 deg rotation that is causing most problems a thumb flick catches the drift with the pad. When I was learning with the pad I used the polyphony tuned cappuccino the Mercedes SL55 and the RX7 on Eiger and Fuji 90's (Mainly for the huge tarmac run off areas and good mix of corners ). I'm still trying with the wheel though ! I recommend watching people on youtube drift with the dfgt this has helped me quite a bit.
 
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The point with the wheel is, that you have to be a lot smoother with your steering input. With the pad you can go from lock to lock in a split second, sou you can correct little mistakes a lot faster.

With the wheel you have to try and avoid these mistakes (i. e. too much or too little opposite lock, to much throttle, etc.).

But then again it is the most rewarding as well. Lets face it, drifting with a pad has pretty much nothing to do with real life drifting.

With a wheel on the other hand it is much much closer to the real deal. Hence the problems getting used to it, it is a different technique.

I haven´t really tried GT5P that much with a wheel, but I have heard about the throttle cut thing. It is like those stability programs that you cannot fully turn of (like in most mercs) which I absolutely hate btw hehe.

Maybe it is just a controller configuration issue?

EDIT: Btw, about the controller settings, I don´t really have an answer to that, as I feel that I have to tune the wheel a little different for each game. In general I just try to get a setting that does not have too much dead zone, and is as linear as possible. Otherwise I just focus on being comfortable with the wheel and the settings.
 
I really don't understand some of the advice being given on here, or drifting as a whole in GT5P.

Firstly, choice of track. Yes, using big, open place like the back straight of Daytona and the Gymkhana course in GT4 is great for getting a feel of how the car breaks traction and slides, but at the end of the day you're doing nothing more than glorified doughnuts. Drifting is about getting the car round corners, so wouldn't a track with actual corners in it be a good place to start? When I first started I just flung the car into the same corner on the Eiger again and again until I learnt how to control the car using throttle, brakes and steering. Once you master that one corner, move on to the next and you should find it'll become much easier, until eventually you'll be able to have a decent go at drifting any corner on any track with little sighting.

Right, secondly, I don't understand the car set ups people are giving on here. Look at any top flight drift championship and you'll see foot wide, semi-slick tyres on the backs of cars with perfectly set up geometry to be able to grip when needed. Putting N1s on your car is basically making the car as un-controllable as possible! Not what you really need for precision drifting! I'd really advise putting S1s on the back and S2s on the front to start with, then work your way up getting grippier and grippier. Yes, it's harder to break traction with them, but the control you get whilst drifting is phenomenal! I now use R1s/S3s on the 600bhp Blitz Skyline. Absolute perfection, 100mph entries to Suzuka Turn 1 are easy! In fact, it's even possible to do shallow drifts with R3s all round!

However, I think it's Gran Turismo's fault that people tend to set up their cars like they do. Looking at the Leaderboards for drifting on any track and the cars all have N1 tyres on, which is totally the opposite to real life. This is because Gran Turismo rewards you for having as much angle as possible and spinning the rear wheels as much as possible, as opposed to speed and line which take a bigger precedence in real life.

Anyway, rant over. No matter what happens to to the scoring system in GT5, I'll continue being true to life and try to obtain as much grip as possible whilst still being able to drift.

Edit: In answer to the OP's question, I'd choose an S13 Nissan Silvia with 250bhp, stiff suspension, softer at the rear, slight camber all round, forward brake bias, S1 front tyres, N3 rears/S2 fronts, S1 rears (depending upon the speed of the corner you're attempting). Sorted.
 
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I really don't understand some of the advice being given on here, or drifting as a whole in GT5P.

Firstly, choice of track. Yes, using big, open place like the back straight of Daytona and the Gymkhana course in GT4 is great for getting a feel of how the car breaks traction and slides, but at the end of the day you're doing nothing more than glorified doughnuts. Drifting is about getting the car round corners, so wouldn't a track with actual corners in it be a good place to start? When I first started I just flung the car into the same corner on the Eiger again and again until I learnt how to control the car using throttle, brakes and steering. Once you master that one corner, move on to the next and you should find it'll become much easier, until eventually you'll be able to have a decent go at drifting any corner on any track with little sighting.

Right, secondly, I don't understand the car set ups people are giving on here. Look at any top flight drift championship and you'll see foot wide, semi-slick tyres on the backs of cars with perfectly set up geometry to be able to grip when needed. Putting N1s on your car is basically making the car as un-controllable as possible! Not what you really need for precision drifting! I'd really advise putting S1s on the back and S2s on the front to start with, then work your way up getting grippier and grippier. Yes, it's harder to break traction with them, but the control you get whilst drifting is phenomenal! I now use R1s/S3s on the 600bhp Blitz Skyline. Absolute perfection, 100mph entries to Suzuka Turn 1 are easy! In fact, it's even possible to do shallow drifts with R3s all round!

However, I think it's Gran Turismo's fault that people tend to set up their cars like they do. Looking at the Leaderboards for drifting on any track and the cars all have N1 tyres on, which is totally the opposite to real life. This is because Gran Turismo rewards you for having as much angle as possible and spinning the rear wheels as much as possible, as opposed to speed and line which take a bigger precedence in real life.

Anyway, rant over. No matter what happens to to the scoring system in GT5, I'll continue being true to life and try to obtain as much grip as possible whilst still being able to drift.

Edit: In answer to the OP's question, I'd choose an S13 Nissan Silvia with 250bhp, stiff suspension, softer at the rear, slight camber all round, forward brake bias, S1 front tyres, N3 rears/S2 fronts, S1 rears (depending upon the speed of the corner you're attempting). Sorted.


Not really glorified doughnuts. I like the EA21R on either N1 or N2 tires. Even when drifiting with th DS3, which I can do quite well compared to the DFGT, I noticed that in lower powered cars, higher grip tyres can be snappy. Thats good once you're used to it, but as many of us are still trying to master that sustained slide lower grip tyres are more useful. Eiger and Suzuka are great places to drift, but you'll be stuck more often sitting still or correcting yourself as opposed to on track. The Daytona area, I don't just try a single drift and make a massiv glorified doghnut, though when I was learning I did. I'll go in drift towards the inside wall, then as I come up on it transition back towards the outside, then as I come up to the outside wall, transition back, making a return trip and repeating. Its basically an over sized over extended figure 8. I actually did manage to pull it off a few times. But I'm still trying to get a feel for the balance of the car, let alone getting it through a corner, and I don't want to make that harder by worrying about hitting walls or sliding off into the sandtrap. Spinouts? Coo. Start driving the wrong way, drift in that direction, whatever. As for the Gymkhana, its whate you make of it. Personally I don't just drift in one way and say I've learned.

GT5P wise, I'll say I've learned once I can keep the car sideways for the entier run at Suzuka short, or London. . . err Reverse. I think its the longer more enjoyable one. I think.

it's not an easy thing to control i'm trying to learn drifting 1 month and i haven't learn it properly

I've had my DFGT for about 3 weeks now. I was pretty good with the DS3 and I'm somewhat ish starting to get an idea of how to work with the wheel, but I'm thinking the learning curve may be closer to 2 or 3 months depending on your learning curve. Each person is different. Just takes a lot of time and effort.
 
Not really glorified doughnuts. I like the EA21R on either N1 or N2 tires. Even when drifiting with th DS3, which I can do quite well compared to the DFGT, I noticed that in lower powered cars, higher grip tyres can be snappy. Thats good once you're used to it, but as many of us are still trying to master that sustained slide lower grip tyres are more useful. Eiger and Suzuka are great places to drift, but you'll be stuck more often sitting still or correcting yourself as opposed to on track. The Daytona area, I don't just try a single drift and make a massiv glorified doghnut, though when I was learning I did. I'll go in drift towards the inside wall, then as I come up on it transition back towards the outside, then as I come up to the outside wall, transition back, making a return trip and repeating. Its basically an over sized over extended figure 8. I actually did manage to pull it off a few times. But I'm still trying to get a feel for the balance of the car, let alone getting it through a corner, and I don't want to make that harder by worrying about hitting walls or sliding off into the sandtrap. Spinouts? Coo. Start driving the wrong way, drift in that direction, whatever. As for the Gymkhana, its whate you make of it. Personally I don't just drift in one way and say I've learned.

GT5P wise, I'll say I've learned once I can keep the car sideways for the entier run at Suzuka short, or London. . . err Reverse. I think its the longer more enjoyable one. I think.

Thing is though, it's easy to drift when you've nothing to tell you where to go. That's the hardest part about drifting, learning to correct your line and angle, sometimes multiple times per corner, whilst still maintaining speed.
Fair enough, spend some time at Daytona, but you really need the confines of a proper track to perfect your technique :)
 
Eiger Nordwand is where I learnt. Most fun track ever, the first 4 corners are downhill so you can maintain speed easily, the 5th corner is long and swooping slightly up hill, so thats a little hard to keep going. The 6th corner (kinda like a chicane) is horrid and I still haven't mastered it, and the final corner is really nice and smooth too.

Took me about 3 days to learn how to get my points above 10,000 on Eiger, most I've had is over 14,000
 
Trial Mountain , long sweeping corners , Great range of camberd turns , Perfect for linking drifts , demands real car control throttle , oposite lock , feeding in precise movements , Helps to know your suspension set up because you will bottom out in Trial mountan
 
When GT5 comes out, that's when we really get to know what is best for drifting. I'm talkin' tight corners like Eiger & high speed corners. Hopefully we get a open space to do some online gymkhana.
 
Thing is though, it's easy to drift when you've nothing to tell you where to go. That's the hardest part about drifting, learning to correct your line and angle, sometimes multiple times per corner, whilst still maintaining speed.
Fair enough, spend some time at Daytona, but you really need the confines of a proper track to perfect your technique :)

True. In lower powered cars, RX7 and below, I'm managing to drift a moderate piece of London without tail slappin the wall. Although I'm also wondering. . . I've heard many say that much like GT4, GT5P doesn't properly simulate the diff. I've also heard that the kiosk demo so far does quite a better job. Could that have anything to do with it? Personally, I may stick to Eiger and London when it comes to tight circuits. Oh and High Speed Ring, which is a nice transition from backstretch Daytona to Eiger or London.
 
For me, a "good place to start drifting" is anywhere you're comfortable driving. If you'll ask me, I started drifting on GT5 at Suzuka Long Course or something like that with the Mazda RX-8. The RX-8 has power, no doubt. Its engine is also N/A so you get all that throttle response you need. Start with N1 tires then work your way up to the N3 or S1 tires. :)
 
True. In lower powered cars, RX7 and below, I'm managing to drift a moderate piece of London without tail slappin the wall. Although I'm also wondering. . . I've heard many say that much like GT4, GT5P doesn't properly simulate the diff. I've also heard that the kiosk demo so far does quite a better job. Could that have anything to do with it? Personally, I may stick to Eiger and London when it comes to tight circuits. Oh and High Speed Ring, which is a nice transition from backstretch Daytona to Eiger or London.

Yeah, that'll have quite an effect on a cars ability to drift. Obviously the difs do lock up to an extent, otherwise it'd be impossible to skid, but in GT4 you could tune the loads of acceleration and decerleration that the diff locks up at. I'd recommend setting it to as sensitive as possible, so you've basically got a locked differential.
Yeahh, just stick to what you're comfortable with whilst you're getting a hang of the basics. And obviously, the tighter and twistier a track is, the easier it is to transition between corners. You'll also have to do it a lot more than say, Fuju, which is all good practice!
Have you tried manji'ing down Fuju's straight actually? I find that that helps a lot, teaching you how to 'catch' the car before it spins using just the throttle.
 
Yeah, that'll have quite an effect on a cars ability to drift. Obviously the difs do lock up to an extent, otherwise it'd be impossible to skid, but in GT4 you could tune the loads of acceleration and decerleration that the diff locks up at. I'd recommend setting it to as sensitive as possible, so you've basically got a locked differential.
Yeahh, just stick to what you're comfortable with whilst you're getting a hang of the basics. And obviously, the tighter and twistier a track is, the easier it is to transition between corners. You'll also have to do it a lot more than say, Fuju, which is all good practice!
Have you tried manji'ing down Fuju's straight actually? I find that that helps a lot, teaching you how to 'catch' the car before it spins using just the throttle.

With the DS3 I can Manji the whole straight in pretty much any car. With the DFGT, I've only been able to get about the straightaway of Suzuka before either gaining to much grip, spinning or dropping a tire into the sand and destabilizing the car.
 
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