Why do the best drivers not drop down gears?

[TheNorfolkDad]

I’m usually 2-3 seconds off the pace of the aliens on any given hot lap but I’ve noticed one really odd thing.

Say for example I put down a qualifying time of 1:55.XXX and want to shav a few more seconds I’ll watch a top ten replay and see how they do it better. I’ll notice they’re never in the same gear as me coming out of a turn, even if I match that speed and pull away in third, they’ll be in fourth.

Why is this, because watching my own ghost at the same speed as me if I don’t drop down into my ghosts gear it will pull away.

 

[Da_dietn]

Because they use 1 gear higher then recommended for that turn.. that way your car is more stable into the corner because of the higher gear and lower rpm.

 

[cleanLX]

A gear change is "time".
Coming off a corner at 7000rpm in a car that needs shifted at 7500-8500 is nearly pointless... the time it takes to shift, more than eats up the advantage of the lost rpm "jump" you get from the lower gear.
Sidetrack...
And, often times grabbing that lower gear as a crutch for braking, will do the same, with the rev's so high at mid corner any slight lift of throttle will drag corner speed down... whereas the higher gear, a slight lift will not be near as effective in slowing the car. That is also why you will sometimes see slight brake taps going through corners, the brake is much more delicate way to balance the car without scrubbing a tonne of speed... at high rpms even the slightest lift has a large impact on vehicle speed... but low rpms, slightly on the throttle, and a tappy tap here and there will keep corner speed up while also balancing the car.
In the real world, that last downshift on corner entry (supplementing braking) would snap spin the car quicker than you can say ... too late.

Also, they often do not use traction control (and if they do, they rarely trigger it), rather, they have pretty much mastered throttle control, and, at high revs risk spinning the tires (lost acceleration), again loosing time... where in the higher gear they are better able to roll the power down taking advantage of the actual traction available (not triggering TC or spinning the tires) and go to the rug without having a shift interrupt the entire process.

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

Ok let’s use the Suzuka hairpin as an example, the top times last week in the Gr3 cars were at their slowest there around 37-38mph and some were going round in 4th gear!

 

[Alpha Cipher]

It's probably a habit of the alien you mentioned.

Spoiler: Bit of a tangent

Here in the Asia-Pacific region there's a consistent Top 10ner that would always upshift at halfway through the rev line. For fuel-saving purposes its really useful but in most cases for qualifying it would slow him down because he's not in the optimal powerband (depends on the car, but 90% of the time the shifting at the limit of the rev line gives you the best powerband).

Do all the Top 10 people do that or do only 1-3 people do that? If the majority doesn't do it then maybe it's a habit of a select few

 

[zaxs]

Usually with the best drivers goes the best equipment.
High end pedals are doing miracles.....

As @cleanLX is saying, changing gears is time.

I would say, maintaining speed is even more time!
Who can do it finest is quicker.

I can do it few times on few places with DS4, but whole lap, whole race or position fight... No.


My legs are still doing pedal movements, oh, how I miss the wheel...

 

[syntex123]

I would agree with @cleanLX. I don't concider myself a fast driver but I do consider my gearing and braking to be good, I don't shift all the way down, I like to keep the RPM low-mid to have more control both in and out of a corner.

I take that Suzuka hairpin in 4th as well, depending on the speed / car I use. Maintaining the speed through the corner is crucial to not lose time.

Tree'd by @zaxs I agree fully with you. It sure depends whether you're in the heat or just qualifying / got some distance between you and the other drivers ++.

 

[JacksHerer]

I avoid watching top ten replays, may have a look for mental comparison of braking points. But I vary so much from lap to lap that trying to copy what someone else is doing without seeing at least 5 of their laps to get an idea of what gear they would want to be in... depending how the cars stability feels, I may change up or down different to a prior or next lap.
The lap you watch may have been slower at that point, but perfected a latter corner which made the overall lap his fastest.

 

[Spurgy 777]

I’m usually 2-3 seconds off the pace of the aliens on any given hot lap but I’ve noticed one really odd thing.

Say for example I put down a qualifying time of 1:55.XXX and want to shav a few more seconds I’ll watch a top ten replay and see how they do it better. I’ll notice they’re never in the same gear as me coming out of a turn, even if I match that speed and pull away in third, they’ll be in fourth.

Why is this, because watching my own ghost at the same speed as me if I don’t drop down into my ghosts gear it will pull away.

My guess is that they are getting on the throttle earlier in a higher gear and that that along with not needing to change gear is giving them a better exit. If you use a higher gear and don't get on the throttle earlier then you probably won't gain time, but whether it works will obviously depend on what car/corner it is.

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

My guess is that they are getting on the throttle earlier in a higher gear and that that along with not needing to change gear is giving them a better exit. If you use a higher gear and don't get on the throttle earlier then you probably won't gain time, but whether it works will obviously depend on what car/corner it is.

Well you’d be one of the best people to provide insight, perhaps it’s the getting back on the throttle early I need to practise, because atm if I try maintaining a higher gear my ghost will always pull away.

 

[GTFraker]

As a matter of principle, I take all corners at least one gear higher than the one suggested.

 

[JacksHerer]

Well you’d be one of the best people to provide insight, perhaps it’s the getting back on the throttle early I need to practise, because atm if I try maintaining a higher gear my ghost will always pull away.

This is the problem with watching replays vs experiencing against a ghost.

I've found there are times when I will initially be overtaken by my ghost on corner exit, but by the time I've reached the next gear a hundred or so yards down the road I am up.
Even against your own ghost, you need to have it visibly in front of you to see any gain/loss from braking for the corner to the braking for the next corner.
How people think they can see that from replays amazes me.

As a matter of principle, I take all corners at least one gear higher than the one suggested.

^ Yes, if there is one thing I am consistent with, it is being in a higher gear than the game predicts.

 

[Robben]

Just use AT, then you don't need to worry

 

[TheNorfolkDad]

Just use AT, then you don't need to worry

 

[Robben]

Seriously, for me... there is too much to concentrate on already without worrying about gears too. Plus, I play with no sound so it's nearly impossible.

 

[BLiTZ]

This is the problem with watching replays vs experiencing against a ghost.

I've found there are times when I will initially be overtaken by my ghost on corner exit, but by the time I've reached the next gear a hundred or so yards down the road I am up.
Even against your own ghost, you need to have it visibly in front of you to see any gain/loss from braking for the corner to the braking for the next corner.
How people think they can see that from replays amazes me.



^ Yes, if there is one thing I am consistent with, it is being in a higher gear than the game predicts.

I'm by no means a fast driver, but I've found that the gear predictions in this game are completely wrong half the time, either too low or start flashing way too early they're certainly not linked to the cone-based suggested braking zones.

 

[JacksHerer]

I've only used the cones on the fantasy tracks, but they seem to always be in the same place regardless of car?

 

[BLiTZ]

I've only used the cones on the fantasy tracks, but they seem to always be in the same place regardless of car?

Yeah, I've noticed they don't move, but on average seem to be in the right spot for braking or at least a good marker. The gear indicator however always seems too early. If you brake hard when it starts flashing then you'll be almost at a standstill before the corner.

The more I play, I'm getting better at picking visual aids (drain cover here or white bit of barrier there etc etc) as in most sport races the cones are gone after lap 1!

 

[Robben]

I've only used the cones on the fantasy tracks, but they seem to always be in the same place regardless of car?

I noticed this, but I presumed it works most of the time as generally the faster cars have better brakes etc?

Edit: I no longer use the cones anyway... since turning them off I am better at picking out good cues. I notice that there tend to be things in just the right place... presumably this is intentional

 

[inri]

My guess is that they are getting on the throttle earlier in a higher gear and that that along with not needing to change gear is giving them a better exit. If you use a higher gear and don't get on the throttle earlier then you probably won't gain time, but whether it works will obviously depend on what car/corner it is.

its this. you can step on the power really early through slow corners, basically right through the apex and the power comes out nice and evenly so the car wont step out. its the same principle that makes the 911 rsr so easy to drive for a lot of people, with the long gears.

 

[Veinz]

Seriously, for me... there is too much to concentrate on already without worrying about gears too. Plus, I play with no sound so it's nearly impossible.

why?

 

[Robben]

why?

Play in the same room as my wife who is watching tv

 

[DriftMethod]

Ok let’s use the Suzuka hairpin as an example, the top times last week in the Gr3 cars were at their slowest there around 37-38mph and some were going round in 4th gear!

I would agree with @cleanLX. I don't concider myself a fast driver but I do consider my gearing and braking to be good, I don't shift all the way down, I like to keep the RPM low-mid to have more control both in and out of a corner.

I take that Suzuka hairpin in 4th as well, depending on the speed / car I use. Maintaining the speed through the corner is crucial to not lose time.

Tree'd by @zaxs I agree fully with you. It sure depends whether you're in the heat or just qualifying / got some distance between you and the other drivers ++.

What cars are people using to take Suzuka hairpin in 4th gear?

 

[Nuschel01]

Play in the same room as my wife who is watching tv

Headphones plugged into the controller it is then

 

[Robben]

What cars are people using to take Suzuka hairpin in 4th gear?

Samba Bus

Headphones plugged into the controller it is then

I never thought of this

 

[Spurgy 777]

Well you’d be one of the best people to provide insight, perhaps it’s the getting back on the throttle early I need to practise, because atm if I try maintaining a higher gear my ghost will always pull away.

I usually only do it for road cars because their gear changes can be quite long so you want to try and avoid changing gear as much as you can. With Gr.3s or Gr.4s if you can control the throttle it’s usually better to stay in a lower gear, only time I would use a higher one is if I’m having to take the corner with a lot of revs, maybe over half the bar. Or generally if I’m having to change up a gear when I’ve barely got out of the corner.

 

[BSDShoes]

4th gear through Suzuka hairpin? I gotta practice that.

 

[syntex123]

What cars are people using to take Suzuka hairpin in 4th gear?

I could tell you.. But then I'd have to kill you. Nah I'm just kidding. I haven't tackled Suzuka for a semi long time, except one race the other day, one of which my performance was poor because of a distracted mind

Edit: waiiiit wait wait.. I totally thought of the wrong hairpin. I thought of the longer-not-so-sharp hairpin near the end. Haha I use 2nd in the tight one. Duh I feel dumb now.


#dumbandtiredmind

 

[Robben]

I could tell you.. But then I'd have to kill you. Nah I'm just kidding. I haven't tackled Suzuka for a semi long time, except one race the other day, one of which my performance was poor because of a distracted mind

Edit: waiiiit wait wait.. I totally thought of the wrong hairpin. I thought of the longer-not-so-sharp hairpin near the end. Haha I use 2nd in the tight one. Duh I feel dumb now.


#dumbandtiredmind

FFS

 

[BSDShoes]