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This tips guide will help you optimise your vehicle to race as its best in F1 2019.
Finding those extra tenths of a second through optimising the car setup is often the difference between a win and potential disappointment in F1 2019. Finding the perfect car setup is key to extract the maximum amount of performance from the car on any given track in the F1 calendar. Here’s a comprehensive guide on how to get the best setup.
Aerodynamics
Depending on which track you’re racing on, adjusting the aerodynamics is a great way to increase the levels of downforce generated by the car. Higher front and rear wing angles will give you better downforce, thus increasing grip, but it can cause higher levels of drag which will ultimately slow the car down.
Lower wing angles will generate less downforce and grip but will increase top speed, which is ideal for the likes of Paul Ricard and Shanghai and their long back straights. Play around with the setup until you strike a balance between the downforce levels and the top speed of the car
Transmission
Tweaking the differential of the car can influence the way power is delivered to the rear wheels of the car. An unlocked differential will allow the wheels to turn at a different speed, decreasing tyre wear and giving a more gradual loss of traction.
Raising the differential levels on tracks like the Hungaroring and Abu Dhabi will certainly help with traction on the exit of the low speed corners.
Suspension Geometry
Setting up the camber and toe of the car is important to gain maximum performance from the tyres. Adding lots of toe will make the front of the car more responsive but it can decrease stability, while toe on the rear will make the car more stable but will make it less responsive.
Changing the camber affects the contact patch that the tyre has with the track. A more negative camber can give you more grip in the corners but will lower traction levels, causing the car to step out when applying the power. A poor camber setup can heavily impact tyre wear so it’s important to test out different combinations to find the right balance.
Suspension Springs
Taking time to look at the suspension springs is extremely important when it comes to handling and overall stability of the car. Stiff springs can prevent the car from moving around when braking aggressively and accelerating hard on corner exit, and can increase aerodynamic stability, too.
Soft springs help the car handle better over the bumps but can cause the car to pivot when accelerating harshly which may result in an unwanted spin.
An over sprung car can make the car extremely difficult to handle so taking time to find the optimum setup for the suspension is essential to achieve the best handling.
Ride Height
Getting the ideal ride height settings can have a significant impact on the aerodynamic performance of the car. A low ride height helps the aerodynamics but if it’s too low then the car will bottom out and ultimately decrease the top speed.
A higher ride height will prevent the car from bottoming out at high speed, but if it’s too high then an increase in the levels of drag will occur. High drag will also slow the car down so finding the perfect ride height is an essential part of getting the maximum performance out of the car.
Brakes
A good setup on the brakes allows you to brake later in the corners which is great when going for a late dive down the inside of another car. Being able to apply the brake that bit later is also important when going flat out during qualifying.
Increasing the brake pressure increases the probability of locking them when applying the brakes but it does drastically reduce the stopping distance of the car. Decrease the pressure and the chances of locking up are much less at the cost of a longer stopping distance.
Don’t forget to adjust the brake bias too! Tweaking the bias will help if the car is locking up frequently but too much bias can affect the understeer when braking.
Fully utilise the practice sessions during a race weekend to find the ideal between stopping distance and the chance of locking up under braking.
