What a good test track

Quick question.
What's a good track to test car setups on?
I know the 'ring' has everything but it's too long for running 5 laps to sort things out.
So I guess a track that has an even amount of lefts and rights plus a reasonable long section.
What's peoples thoughts.
Thanks

 

VIR

 

Barcelona GP and Imola.

It has it all, but I still often miss the line and make mistakes, so it might not be ideal for everybody.
At least I would struggle with consistency there and might have a hard time to tell if the setup really is faster or I had cleaner laps.

 

I'm a fan of Grobnik. Its short and has a nice variety of turns that try to do their best in unsettling the car.

 

Top Gear! It even says so in the name So much fun!

 

Riverside was used quite extensively back in the day for testing. It has one of the longest straights and it is a fairly simple layout to become consistent at. As for a modern track I would agree VIR has it all especially since it has so many different layouts.

 

Definitely VIR, reminds me of a miniature version of Nords.

 

Well you can do 1 lap at the ring instead of 5 laps at other tracks.

 

I've always thought the Nürburgring GP course has a nice variety of corners and a fair number of straights and makes a good test track. It was always my go-to in Gran Turismo 6.

 

For me Mugello is a great test track

Long radial medium/high speed turns
2 double apex turns
Long straight
2 Chicanes going up and down
Multiple low speed tight turns
Off camber turns
And lots of elevation changes
Around 2 minutes

I like others but as a test track I've not come across a better. I wish we had a accurate laguna seca as there are so many real world onboard hotlaps to compare to.

Nathan

 

Depends on what you want to do?
There are numerous ways to setup a car, some will suit some tracks better than others.

You won't be able to create a setup that works best on Monza and Brands Hatch.

For an overall general setup for street cars (if that is what you're asking for), I'd go for the Nordschleife, because IMO, it's closest to a public road (apart from the curbs, obviously ).
For race tracks, you can't make a single setup, but at least setups for 2-3 types of tracks (fast, bendy and mixed), maybe more.
There are some tracks for which you can swap setups relatively easily (some adjustments might be needed), e.g. setups made for Spa will work quite well at the Nürburgring and on the Nordschleife as well as Imola (all mixed type of tracks).
Depending on the car (read: amount of downforce) you can get away with that on other tracks like Barcelona as well.

Barcelona might need more downforce, Imola a softer suspension (due to the curbs).

 

True, it is, but it's a relatively "special" track, setup wise. The temp in the tyres is normally much higher than on other tracks and that long high-speed and very bumpy bend requires a special setup (you can't really neglect it or you will lose a lot of time. Tried that before).

 

Any track where you are the most comfortable and that doesnt have "extreme" characteristics, like super long straights or extremely tight sections.

Basically, any average track will work, as long as you are consistent. That will give you the best base setup.

Anything else will be on a "per track" basis.

 

Already mentioned by @detoit , Mugello all the way. It has everything you need, I'm biased though as it is one of my all time favourites.

 

Silverstone National. Its nice and short so you can spam laps to get an idea of pace in no time. It has a fast bit with a high speed corner and a slow bit and you get lots of practice at right handers, great if your not an ambi-turner.

 

If i were to recommend a track ... it would be Vallelunga lol, It has one of the tightest turns in game (good for testing diffs etc), while it's relatively twisty in places it's a more of a "high speed track" (more Monza than Mugello) aerodynamics wise. Also the 180° turns are so flat/wide/long they test the actual setup quite well - on shorter turns driver can often compensate some of the deficiencies (sometimes not even thinking about it) but 180° forces you to actually "corner" for some time and each phase is clearly visible. There are also kerbs of variable height to rub front splitter on. Pretty good overall package

That said as William mentions, comfort is the king and for me most comparing/testing happens at Silver-Nat (thou you need to know what you want already as that track is pretty featureless ).

 

Interesting reading peoples opinions. Thanks for the input. I know you have to 'tweak' for individual tracks but just something that will give you a bit of everything to get a basic setup going and then move on from there.
I have had a run at VIR and did enjoy it. So I'll most likely sit with it for the time being.

 

I'd vote for Grobnik or VIR

 

As already stated but I always try Nürburgring GP first(all I need uphill downhill not too long), or Grobnik(bumps in braking zone, hilly) or after that Barcelona( some tighter corners, longer straights/ braking zones.)

Cheers
Robin

 

For me I feel the most comfortable to test new setups and or cars at Vallelunga.