This guide focuses primarily on the DesignData files, specifically the various TimeCost values in them, which govern how fast each car is at any instant. As such, they are important parameters, but how big of an impact do they actually make?

To determine this, I use qualifying sessions to test various 'modded' variables. This thread was where it began: https://steamproxy-script.pipiskins.com/app/415200/discussions/0/133261124633275396/

Over time, the test has gone from only using Doha A, to a combination of Doha and Dubai A, to now the comprehensive test in this latest version of the guide. Under the right circumstances, qualifying laps are fairly consistent, as long as the lap isn't hindered or helped by traffic. All of the below information is currently accurate for version 1.53.

A different guide once stated that car pace was determined solely by where each cars parts were ranked relative to the grid, and that the ratings didn't matter beyond determining said rankings. This is a myth, and the calculations are more complex;

<TopSpeedMph>340</TopSpeedMph>
<Acceleration>12</Acceleration>
<Braking>30</Braking>
<LowSpeedCorners>1</LowSpeedCorners>
<MediumSpeedCorners>1</MediumSpeedCorners>
<HighSpeedCorners>1</HighSpeedCorners>

<MinPerformanceTimeCost>20</MinPerformanceTimeCost>
<TopSpeedPerformanceScalar>0.80</TopSpeedPerformanceScalar>
<AccelerationPerformanceScalar>1</AccelerationPerformanceScalar>
<BrakingPerformanceScalar>1</BrakingPerformanceScalar>
<CorneringPerformanceScalar>1</CorneringPerformanceScalar>

The top set of values determine how fast the 'perfect' car can possibly be in game. The bottom set tells the game what the maximum reduction to these stats is for a base level car compared to a perfect one.

The ChampionshipMinStat and MaxStat values in the Parts.txt file are used to create a scale, from which part ratings can be compared to. For all six parts in the WMC, the MinStat is 600, and the MaxStat 2850. This means that anything rated 600 or lower is considered base level, and anything 2850 or higher is 'perfect'.

So for example, if I have an engine rated at 1050 in the WMC, the top speed reduction ends up being 80% of the maximum, because it is 1800 points below the MaxStat, and the WMC uses a 2250 point scale.

With that being said, part rankings still matter. Each track has 2-3 parts that are considered 'critical', and the game ranks the field based on ratings in each critical part. This is then used to apply an additional performance reduction, known as a TimeCost;

<CriticalPartTimeCosts>
<!-- Rank 1-5 -->
<TimeCostForRank>0.0</TimeCostForRank>
<TimeCostForRank>0.03</TimeCostForRank>
<TimeCostForRank>0.1</TimeCostForRank>
<TimeCostForRank>0.11</TimeCostForRank>
<TimeCostForRank>0.17</TimeCostForRank>

There's 24 of these, corresponding to ranks 1-24. Each critical part is ranked separately and assigned their own TimeCost, and then the average of these 2-3 values is taken to determine the overall TimeCost. In vanilla, the critical part values are somewhat low, especially on long race length where the rank 24 value is 0.41.

But knowing this above information means little if we can't quantify it. To do so, I did one test with an entire car of 600 rated parts, and six where one part each was rated 2850. A custom DesignData file is used to eliminate additional variables like critical parts and driver skill, making performance scalers the sole remaining factor determining pace.

And because I felt like it and had nothing better to do... I ran these tests for all 16 locations in the game. The longest version of each track was used, and a minimum of six attempts is made on each tested combination to ensure that the best lap is close to being ideal each time. Here are the results;


- Lap times in italics were originally examples of 2850 cars that recorded a slower lap time than the all 600 car. These times were 'adjusted', since it doesn't make sense for a better car to be slower. The 2850 rear wing was only 0.007 slower at Cape Town and 0.028 slower at Doha, but...

- There were instances of 2850 brakes actually hindering the car around some corners, resulting in slow sector times. Most notably, 2850 brakes dropped roughly 9 tenths in Beijing sector 3, and a second in Tondela sector 3, the latter of which resulted in a lap time that was 0.456 slower. Munich sector 1 and Singapore sector 1 were other problem areas, though the time loss was much smaller.

It's immediately clear that, despite the version 1.5 nerf, engines are still the most important part in the game. Aside from TimeCost modifiers, they provide the largest boost to car performance regardless of location. To a lesser extent, gearboxes are also vital around every track in the game.

By contrast the brakes, suspension and front wing all have tracks where they excel, and tracks where they barely make an impact at all. However, they still fare much better than the rear wing, which struggles due to a lack of corners that are considered 'high speed' by the game.

As for the 600 +2 TimeCost column, the purpose of this is to figure out the severity of the performance reductions I mentioned earlier. What I did was turn CriticalPartTimeCosts back on, set the TimeCostForRank to 2.0 for ranks 19-24, and made sure my cars were ranked 19th and 20th on the grid.

The results show that you can expect to lose an average of 0.495 seconds per TimeCost point. TimeCost factors are used extensively in the DesignData to simulate many things that can slow a car down, such as fuel load, driving style, driver skill, water on the surface, and so on.

<MaxDriverTimeCostWithDriverAidsOn>1.0</MaxDriverTimeCostWithDriverAidsOn>
<MaxDriverTimeCostWithDriverAidsOff>3.0</MaxDriverTimeCostWithDriverAidsOff>

TheFlamingRed once stated on RaceDepartment that all 9 skills affect driver speed equally (yes, even feedback), and having looked at the relevant area of the assembly file myself, I can confirm this was and still is true.

The game takes the combined score of a drivers nine skill ratings, after modifiers have been applied and including fractions, and compares it on a 0-180 scale. A driver with 0 skill points takes the maximum TimeCost; in the above example, 1.0 if driving aids are allowed, 3.0 if they are banned. Conversely, a driver with 180 points (perfect 20's) always has zero TimeCost.

Virtually all drivers in practice will fall somewhere between these two extremes, reducing the gap between the best and worst drivers in any given series. But even a half star difference in skill becomes substantial when additional skill effects are considered. My picks for most important skills in the game are;

- Focus (reduces errors, including the dreaded DNF)
- Overtaking (make the most of your cars pace)
- Smoothness (improves tyre wear)
- Fitness (directly governs stamina in the endurance series)

The least important skills right now are braking and cornering, which have no secondary effect, though they still contribute to the total skill points all the same.

- In the GT series, the performance scalers are lower;

<MinPerformanceTimeCost>13</MinPerformanceTimeCost>
<TopSpeedPerformanceScalar>0.4</TopSpeedPerformanceScalar>
<AccelerationPerformanceScalar>0.6</AccelerationPerformanceScalar>
<BrakingPerformanceScalar>0.6</BrakingPerformanceScalar>
<CorneringPerformanceScalar>0.6</CorneringPerformanceScalar>

This reduces the effect of performance parts in GT, making races in these championships closely contested. The Endurance series uses the same scalers as Single Seat, but with a MinPerformanceTimeCost of 15, and reduced critical part TimeCost values.

- The ChampionshipMinStat and MaxStat scale is different for every championship in vanilla;

WMC: 600-2850
APSC: 200-1550
ERS: 0-900
IGTC: 200-2150
GTCS: 0-1150
IEC-A: 600-2450
IEC-B: 0-1000

If you have a long term save, it is wise to memorise the MaxStat for each series. This is because a 'car specifications reset' is triggered whenever any team in the series builds a part that reaches or exceeds the MaxStat for the series.

This reset will occur at the end of the season, and when it happens, each team is given parts rated somewhere between the MinStat and 50 points above it, depending on where their parts ranked before the reset. Engine supplier stat bonuses are applied after the reset, so you still get your money's worth if you select a supplier with a high bonus.

- Special thanks to;

- jtarj, as his Steinmann Ultra Cheat mod played a part in getting this whole hot lap test thing started.

- Ryder_755 on Reddit, who as far as I know, was the the first person to uncover the massive engine disparity in earlier versions.

- TheFlamingRed and Brian, who have been and are continuing to work on re-balancing several aspects of the game.

Anyway, that concludes the guide. Despite it's complexity, I do hope it was relatively easy to comprehend. Thanks for reading.