And if you get rid of useless (for me) performance suckers like motion blur, step down with the details a bit and don't crank AA and AF to the max, it should be running smooth and still look stunning.
And on top of that: It's a proper simulator, so it will be fun even if it doesn't look that amazing. I mean, we're in the LFS Forum, so complaining about the graphics of AC is a bit weird
And dear god, that Vintage Replica GT is tonnes of fun in the rain. That's some real white knuckle driving stuff just to keep that beast on the road. But while you're doing so, you just have that inner giggle, with your head telling you "It's madness to munch the throttle like that in the middle of the corner, but it's just so much fun to do"
Well I agree with you that looks aren't important for a driving game. But I guess, I judge the graphics of an game by the games that are already out and in that case AC looks better than anything the sim market has to offer until today