The DFP...Can it help you obtain a REAL drivers license?

[schuey87]

Left foot braking is generally a lot quicker in racing if you can get the hang of it, even many of the top formula 1 racing drivers can't left foot brake well enough for it to be quicker than regular right foot braking. I'm learning to drive atm and my instructor did give me a reason why you shouldn't left foot brake on public roads but I can't remember why... it was something to do with getting confused with the clutch and accelerating and causing an accident, I can;t remember exactly but I remember thinking it was a bit bs.

So what about if you have one of these act labs performance pedals with clutch that I saw somewhere on here, surely that would help you learn to drive in real life a lot more, yeah your not going to learn any of the safety aspects but changing down when approaching junctions etc, with a clutch pedal changing down at the correct time when approaching slow corners etc could be comparable could it not?

 

[PMental]

I'm learning to drive atm and my instructor did give me a reason why you shouldn't left foot brake on public roads but I can't remember why... it was something to do with getting confused with the clutch and accelerating and causing an accident, I can;t remember exactly but I remember thinking it was a bit bs.

Sounds a bit bs to me as well since the whole point of leftfoot breaking (at least to my knowledge, I'm certainly not an experienced race driver) is that you're able to modulate both the accelerator and the breaks at the same time, to control understeer of a FF or 4WD (also used in rally techniques, but that doesn't apply to most of us I reckon, except maybe in Richard Burns Rally ).

So what about if you have one of these act labs performance pedals with clutch that I saw somewhere on here, surely that would help you learn to drive in real life a lot more, yeah your not going to learn any of the safety aspects but changing down when approaching junctions etc, with a clutch pedal changing down at the correct time when approaching slow corners etc could be comparable could it not?

To be honest I really don't think it would help much at all, even with a clutch and real shifter... learning to drive smoothly and shift is by far the easiest (ime at least), it's all the rules and regulations, where to be extra cautious in traffic etc that is the problem when getting a license. In GT4 all you have to be cautious about is not hitting someone in front of you, or letting someone pass... no worries about traffic suddenly coming from the side, kids running out from behind bushes or maybe in the winter that the road actually has spots of ice that are very hard to see.

And of course keeping an eye out for the police, if you have a tendency to speed like me

Note that speeding is not the same as reckless driving and trying racing techniques on the street... racing belongs on the tracks.

 

[jbrennen]

A lot of discussion here about pedal techniques, etc., but getting a driver's license comes down to basically two things:

- Can you perform the basic mechanical operations required for safe driving? Do you know where all of the controls are and can you operate them proficiently? Can you start the car, shut off the car, park it and then leave a parking spot? Can you accelerate and brake with proper pedal pressure? If it's a manual transmission, can you shift gears accurately and smoothly?

- Can you evaluate the situation around you and make the correct decisions? Do you see and obey highway signs, traffic signals? Do you pass other cars appropriately? Do you check your mirrors often enough? Do you accelerate and brake appropriately according to the situation? (When merging onto the Autobahn, you better use a bit more throttle than when driving through downtown Munich.)


IMHO, GT4, or any racing sim game, won't teach you much on either point...



OTOH, GT4 cannot fully prepare you for true competition driving. Two things you can take from it are how to find the racing line, and how to recover a skid; but even then, GT4 is only basic training, don't expect to be a real-life racing guru right away.

I've driven my Evo at Summit Point raceway -- after some hundreds of hours of playing GT3, etc., and it's sobering to realize how ill-prepared you are for a situation where mistakes actually mean something... And it's not the high speeds that were a problem -- anyone can handle 125 MPH in a straight line. But taking an off-camber corner in the rain at 60 MPH is downright scary.

 

[Curved]

I think that GT4 may teach you nothing about technique, but it may teach you alot of strategy when it comes to driving. A racing line, in addition to being the fastest route, is also the safest at any given speed. Most people on the road are pretty clueless when it comes to taking a more technical turn; if you can see the optimum line, which GT4 may teach you to recognize, you can take the turn much more safely at the posted speed. Also, GT4 may give you a better idea of what loosing control over your vehicle is like, and as such, may help you cope with a situation if it comes up.

I wouldnt say that GT4 is in any way good for teaching you how to drive, but if you are a safe driver already, it may allow you to be a bit safer.

 

[Jimmyg41]

I don't think the a videogame steering wheel should be a replacement for real life experience. I think that if it did provide any help it would be minimal at best.

 

[Carl.]

racing sims can help you to master situations that you usually don't train in driving school, like when your car starts to spin

Indeed. Most people don't know to react when they lose control of their car on slippery roads. If I'd never had played rally games I'd probably have crashed into a pole sideways at about 80 km/h a few years ago. Video games with good physics can teach you better reactions in emergency situations.

Otherwise you obviously can't apply much of what you learn in GT to real life driving, on public road that is.

 

[dolande]

A lot of discussion here about pedal techniques, etc., but getting a driver's license comes down to basically two things:

- Can you perform the basic mechanical operations required for safe driving? Do you know where all of the controls are and can you operate them proficiently? Can you start the car, shut off the car, park it and then leave a parking spot? Can you accelerate and brake with proper pedal pressure? If it's a manual transmission, can you shift gears accurately and smoothly?

- Can you evaluate the situation around you and make the correct decisions? Do you see and obey highway signs, traffic signals? Do you pass other cars appropriately? Do you check your mirrors often enough? Do you accelerate and brake appropriately according to the situation? (When merging onto the Autobahn, you better use a bit more throttle than when driving through downtown Munich.).

👍 👍 Ditto
I should add that on real driving you have to use your neck

 

[dnomarz]

I bought my DFP 2 days after GT4 came out, and I always wondered, can it REALLY help you learn how to drive a real car? I have a friend who owns a Mitsubishi Eclipse, and he had a steering wheel for GT3, (not the DFP) and he told me how it helped him learn how to drive in real life. heh, Im 22 years old, and I still dont know how to drive a real car.
When I play GT4 with the DFP, I drive kind of well, but not perfect. So I was thinking maybe I can progress the same with a real steering wheel.

So..... I would like to hear some of your opinions, can it be the first step learning how to drive a real car?

The only way your going to learn how to drive is by doing so in a REAL CAR in the REAL WORLD!! I suggest, if you really want to learn how to drive, is to ask a friend or relative, who does drive, and let them take you out on paved, lightly used roads away from traffic with a REAL CAR!! Good technique can also be taught in a very large (unused) parking like and there you can learn maneuvers such as U-turns, parking, backing up, the technique of swaying or swerving, etc, yada, yada!!

GT4 is a great little tool to practice racing lines and learning how to accelerate out of the apex or even overtaking and various braking techniques to get the upperhand out of corners....................but if your driving in the real world, the techniques used to win races in GT4 ARE NEVER USED, unless your a rager and like to piss people off with a driving style best suited for the racing circuit!!

 

[sideslider]

I'd like to think so yes, don't take my comment out of context though, I meant that there really isn't any need for heel-toe in day-to-day driving... on a racetrack, certainly, but not when driving your kids to school if you follow?

And if you want to rev-match when shifting down (under normal driving conditions, like going shopping), there's no need to do it under hard breaking (which is why you need heel-toe normally, to break, use the clutch AND the throttle), you could just as well break and engage clutch, shift down and after you've slowed down sufficiently from breaking, blip the throttle and release the clutch.

Make any sense?

cool gotcha 👍