There's a lot of posting around tuning of cars and what effects performance. I would like to make a couple of points, that a lot of veterans know, but many of us don't know. Please remember that while this is a game, there are examples we can look at in real life.
REAL LIFE
1. Wide body kits and aero packages are designed with the inverse principle applied to airplanes. All aero packages are designed like upside down aircraft wings, they suck cars down onto a track. Not the other way around!
2. Wheel sizes are vital due to the grip provided. Larger wheels provide more grip and more grip will give you more traction and thus better acceleration and cornering speed. Small tyres on the other hand will effect grip and traction on the track, in essence resulting in longer wheel spin and slower pull offs. (small is bad)
3. Carbon fibre is an ultra lightweight substance that is extremely rigid in one direction. Like an egg, can't be crushed from the top and bottom but will smash if squashed from the sides. In the game, nothing major that I can guage.
To achieve "balance" (remember this word as it is important) one must remember what racing is. Racing is not the measuring of who can drive the fastest, any idiot can do that. Racing is measuring who can arrive at the finish line first. (Michael Schumacher said this.) This is not always the fastest car, even in Drag races.
You should bare in mind the following principles when tuning your cars, and deciding what body parts to install. The concept that small tyres will give you a better all round time is false. Bigger tyres give you better grip, and will allow a good driver to brake and take corners faster.
Widebody kits, may not look good but the overall aerodynamic benefits are worth it. Accept that looking good and running first aren't always the same thing.
The single most important thing that effect performance directly is Manual vs. Auto shifting. Although this is not a visual upgrade, it is the most important aspect of high speed racing.
Visual upgrades effect handling vastly, and in turn directly effect performance. Tuning your car is vital, and to squeeze the most out of your car you need top of the range visual accessories which are actually AERO PACKAGES. Things like neons and doors and hoods mean nothing, go wild, use what looks good to you.
Sitting in front a computer asking for settings for cars is somewhat pointless. It may be a start, but it is not a result. Just because Colin McCrae's settings work for him, doesn't mean that they'll work for Michael Schumacher. If you enjoy drifting corners versus driving through the clipping points you can not set the car up the same.
You must adjust your settings one at a time, feeling the changes over a full lap, quick lap, with no mistakes. If there is a gain, you keep the setting and tweek the next one. Sometimes you have to go all the way to rubbish before you arrive at the perfect setting. In other words, if it isn't working out push more forward instead of just going back to the last setting.
Things like springs must be adjusted together, but that doesn't mean they are the same... and remember, lower ride heights increase overall aerodynamic grip but decrease mechanical grip and don't allow for any camber in the road. What does this mean, if you hit a bump you go flying or almost come to a complete stop.
Downforce. Complete low downforce is not good, even for drag racing sometimes. If the downforce is too low, your tyres will spin for longer resulting in a slower pull off. 100% of drags are won on reaction time and the start off the line. (excluding mechanical failure). Find a low downforce setting that doesn't cost you too much time off the line. You are talking tens of seconds, so you must test settings often to make sure you have a true reflection.
BALANCE. Cars must be like people. They must achieve balance to excel. You must tune until you achieve the right balance for you. One part at a time. Learn this art if you want to be fast. And once you think you've learnt it all, get online and race. I promise you, you'll meet someone who'll teach you something new.
Share your advice and experience.
