Well, this is mostly speaking in terms with the fastest cars in S2 (namely the GTR cars and all the Formula cars).

Right now we have 3 environments in S2 which are very complex and interesting, however, they are ALL very high speed courses with hardly any technical sections at all. Personally, I really love the challenge of taking a slow chicane at a high risk, entering corners at high speeds and braking hard, or doing a few hairpins to keep the racing close. Because if you think about it, right now we have all these tracks that are primarily catered to high speed, and there is not much braking going on in most areas... specifically HARD braking for slow sections.

Aston may be the only exception, as it has a variety of slow corners, but it isn't as much as I'd like personally. If you go take the BF1 out for a spin on the S2 tracks, it is very fast, and nearly full throttle the entire time (on parts you'd think you'd need to slow down on, but you don't need to zzz). Feels really strange to me. Watching the GP at Imola, the F1 cars have some technical places to brake, chicanes to approach, it is all a very nice variety that tests the ability of the driver. Whereas, right now we have drivers just hauling butt around the corners and there really is no possible way to have close races without some challenging technical sections that require focus. Put a few tight/slow hairpins here and there, that would ultimately prove the ability of a driver, rather than just seeing how fast you can go full throttle through a corner

The GTR cars of course have a bit of challenge, but the BF1 NEEEEEDS a course with a mix of slow sections and fast sections. Aston could probably come close to this (not quite), but the other S2 tracks do not fill that requirement. Fern Bay, South City, and Blackwood, they are more for road cars in my opinion (being so narrow), and laptimes are quite short for the fast cars. But it isn't just laptimes, the main reason I bring this up is because of the thrill factor. I do agree that fast tracks are absolutely insane, and give you quite a good rush of speed, but it can get rather simple and boooring without any challenging sections.

I guess I am just saying that we need some tracks that are made more for the faster cars, but also to show their ability at low speeds too. Not to mention, that most of these formula tracks are quite flat, and all of our tracks are very hilly. I like hilly tracks (namely laguna seca), but a nice and fast flat track with chicanes and tight sweepers, it is all very exciting to me too. Kind of strange we don't have any track like this really, all of our tracks at least have some kind of large elevation change one way or another. The tracks should just be quite technical, and be similar to that of most reallife circuits in my opinion.

Take these tracks for example:

Turkey - Istanbul Park
Australia - Melbourne / Albert Park
Spain - Catalunya
Canada - Montreal

All of which have at least plenty of slow sections, chicanes, tight hairpins, slow esses and corners which take a lot of technical steering control (switchbacks), tight kinks, and some slow/round steady corners that need to be taken with ease rather than agression. Like imagine a corner that turns around more than 180 degrees, but you have to take it at 60 mph in the BF1. Basically something to make use of the sheer braking power and acceleration power of the BF1. Wouldn't it be nice?

Can't think of many others, there are lots in Europe. You know what I mean. (Can you name some?)

Well the problems of fast cars with loats of downforce is: There is no racing, its just hotlapping. Or the tracks are boring (straight, hairpin, straight, hairpin, etc)

+1 hell yes!

I was thinking about this the other day. I'd love to see some tracks that suit the BF1's capabilities a bit more (racing this thing at the Oval really doesn't do it justice). A tight city circuit like Melbourne would be great, as would Adelaide (not that I'm biased or anything ). Of course, a new masterpiece from Eric's brain would rock as well!
Once the remaining low-speed grip niggles are sorted I can imagine people having some awesome BF1 races, so some tracks that can really test the car's limits would be fantastic

Not all moden F1 tracks would be suitable though - we saw at Imola the other day that there's no place to overtake, and some newer tracks are exactly what ORION is describing: flat out, 2nd gear, flat out etc. Suzuka would be a nice choice though, there was some excellent passing there last year...

Yes, twisty track for slower cars but wider than FernBay.. Dunno why there is GrandTour, the same track as GP, I hoped of track like in attachment.
Edit: added version2, a little more work for Eric, but imo better, hard braking in yellow sections

What I would like to see is technical tracks in the way of Shanghi - curves that open up or close up towards the exit, giving multiple racing lines and close racing/overtaking. Turn one on Aston GP/Historic is an example of such a corner. I also love turns where you have to brake and turn at the same time - the first hairpin in the third sector of Aston North Reversed. Corners like the smooth left into sharp right of Aston (GP 2nd sector, after the first longish straight and North Reversed and GT have the turn). The corner after that is also awesome, a tightening uphill bend with a few racing lines. As for the fast sections, the back section of Aston is completely mind-blowing when you take it well.

Yup +1

The BF1 currently has a great sense of speed, but with most tracks I played the corners almost always have to be taken much more aggressively than they look at first. On many of these the technical finesse is limited to releasing the throttle for 1/4 second - not exactly demanding - and I somehow refuse to believe that F1 cars are driven like this IRL.

So yes, a more F1 suited South City like track would be very welcome

Well if you take into account that no LFS driver is absolutely perfect, you can make a track that not everyone can do so well on. Two back-to-back hairpins or something, or a chicane that you have to take at just the right speed before braking for another tricky section. It all adds up to a place where any driver can make a minor error and leave a gap open for some passing opportunities.

I personally think that the S2 race tracks are well designed, but imagine if there was a version of Fern Bay that is of much larger scale and wider... so basically the severity and angle of the corners is just as challenging for the BF1 as that of the GTi at FE . The S2 tracks have just long waits in between the slow sections, and you are usually just cruising at high speed on some back area that could really use a chicane or something. Like imagine that back valley area at Aston, which is a long right hander going downhill than uphill before reaching that hairpin. You could have a chicane there even. There are so many ways to make Aston more exciting and active, and I know some people want to go fast, but I actually want to SLOW down and do some corners with the proper required speed and gears, and not be stuck in 4th gear or higher and rarely touching the abilities of a car at low speeds.

This high downforce stuff on the BF1 is just ridiculous at times, you almost want sections where downforce does NOT suck the car down so much and where the car must rely on the driver to adjust to fast and slow sections on any given track.

Suzuka is quite a fast track still I think, much like Kyoto. I am only asking for something that has some techinical driving to it. PLUS, if it is slow for the BF1, it would be GREAT fun for the GTR cars to take over a chicane and really push it to the limits. It just reminds me of video I have seen of ALMS cars just going crazy over the kerbing and really trying to get the most out of the slow sections.

I really haven't seen "straight, hairpin, straight, hairpin"... Really there are only 1 or 2 hairpins on most tracks we do, but there aren't straight in between, it is just a curvy place you can take nearly flatout the entire time, and no braking is required. Somewhat classifies as a straight I guess

Quote from Tweaker :

I really haven't seen "straight, hairpin, straight, hairpin"...

Le Mans?

I agree. LFS tracks are just too full of high speed corners. I think the Kyoto's chicanes would be good if they were much more tighter, now you can just flatout over the curbs... altough that's easily fixed with adding objects to the layout.

ps. Nordschleife isn't suggested yet, must be a record in these track related threads.

Quote from Hankstar :

Not all moden F1 tracks would be suitable though - we saw at Imola the other day that there's no place to overtake, and some newer tracks are exactly what ORION is describing: flat out, 2nd gear, flat out etc. Suzuka would be a nice choice though, there was some excellent passing there last year...

But real F1 is not same as LFS. I don't believe it's completely because of the tracks, F1 experts just can't admit that it's the F1 that sucks not the tracks.

Yeah, something slower and twisty would be great. BF1 at autocross doesn't work so well.

+1 for Nordschleife-like tracks (you said twisty, you get twisty!)

Vain

I know people have suggested Nordschleife type tracks, but that is not what I was getting at here.

Places like I mentioned above have a good mix or everything, and heck... even Aston could be improved to have added chicanes on the fast sections. It gives the racing a bit more action rather than just a fast flyby camera all the time of "whooosh" "whooosh", I'd much rather see a car (any car) get crazy on some technical areas, rather than just drive smooooothly up a crest like we have now :doh:.

I took that pic that Madman posted, and pointed out the parts you could add in GREEN. Check it out.

Imagine that 'busstop' style chicane on the left of the picture. Just think about this, I think it would add more interaction to the track. And honestly, things like the GP or GT configs need to have chicanes somewhere, or else they are the same boring kind

I would like one of these two (3) combos (yellow + as historic/pablo's layout)... The fast curves of as club can't be taken flat out, because of the longer straights before them. And the braking from high speed in both directions would be also interresting...

Eric would have to redo the pitlane for that to happen

EDIT: I forgot to mention that part that says "NEW". I really do like that idea, reminds me of the half portion of Nurburgring. I think that crossover would have to be moved down farther to match elevation levels, but it is possible I'd say.

Quote from Tweaker :

Eric would have to redo the pitlane for that to happen

Well breaking the wall and painting two lines wouldn't be so hard... I think this would take less time than adding those chicanes...

I like both the version from Chaos and the first one from Pablo, but the green part (in Pablo's pic) shouldnt be too round, rather two 90° turns, like at the end of the Blackwood straight.

As much as I agree with you tweak, chicanes just aren't the answer. Look at real life and see how many great tracks are ruined by the inclusion of chicanes willy nilly.

What you really want are tigher corners, in complexes. Take a look at Imola - the first chicanes aren't really chicanes (though they did ruin the track), and they require braking, yet are still high speed. Then we have Tosa hairpin (nuff said). Over the hill at Piratella the cars have to brake a fair bit, as they do, whilst turning, at the bottom of the hill Acque Minerale was. Then a fast boring (now) chicane into Rivazza which is downhil land off camber.

Lots of tracks have corners that aren't flat in F1 cars, yet aren't slow chicanes (which everyone would cut anyway in LFS). I just think that some of the tracks need to be modified to suit the F1 car. Fern Bay is great in the FOX, with plenty of corners requiring braking, lifting, accuracy etc, and not all of them are fast. If it could be scaled up for the Sauber then it'd be brilliant. But I guess cars that suit F1 cars don't really suit other cars so much. Silverstone is mind-numbingly boring in a road car because it's so wide and fast, yet in an F1 car it's a brilliant mix of fast sweepers and slow corners and fast direction changes, only one (two if you count Woodcote) of which is flat out.

Methinks Eric has his work cut out making F1 stylee tracks.

If chicanes aren't the answer to some technical driving, then what is?

I am talking about places where the BF1 needs to come in and BRAKE, and BRAKE HARD. Not just little flowering of the brake and then hauling off full throttle into the next variety of bends that require no skill, I want something that gives more interaction. What else would do that besides chicanes.

But you get the idea, I think we need more slow sections that are not capable of being taken at 80mph or above or something. And adding chicanes would be not only nice to have in some areas of Aston (because some parts are quite long and boring, especially that back section), but it wouldn't just be for the BF1. I mean look at Suzuka or most other high speed tracks, they have optional chicanes and other litlte bends that they use for road cars and such. It comes in handy when you have such a big track for slow little cars, and if you had something to keep them busy, it wouldn't be so boring.

I just about fell asleep when I was doing an hour long race at AS National in the LX4. Would've had a great time if there was at least one slow chicane or turnoff area on the highspeed parts, so that I would have to brake and stay focused.

Because if you look at most parts of our tracks for the roadcars, it seems the straights are great to open up and really get to your cars highest speed ability, however most of them just top out and reach their limit, or near that. Then you just have to keep driving until you get to the next section and... can I yawn a few times?

The new aston configs are more than fine for the BF1 IMO. Plenty of fast turns and a couple of slower ones to keep you on your toes.

I'm inclined to agree with the original posters take, particularly with adding a few more configurations to the existing tracks. Not necessarily chicanes, but maybe a series of tighter corners to suit the smaller class cars.

Rob

Quote from Tweaker :

It comes in handy when you have such a big track for slow little cars, and if you had something to keep them busy, it wouldn't be so boring.

+1

Vain

Heh Vain gets my point. Crap, they call that new config Grand Touring... we need to have it suit touring cars and road cars!!! (By the use of some technical sections of course)

we are all taking aston as base for improvements but what about kyoto or even westhill. It only has 1 config. Must be possible for Eric to do something fancy with those tracks

When you say technial section, which I wholeheartedly agree with, I think of corners/complexes like:

Turns 1 and 2 at Malasia
Turns 9, 10 and 11 at Malaysia
Last four corners at Melbourne
Piratella to Variante Alta at Imola
Last corners of Nurburgring (the NGK Chicane and final corner)
Quite a lot of Barcelona
All of Monaco
Several places at Silverstone (Maggots to Chapel, Vale and Club, Bridge to Luffield)
That multi-apex bit of Turkey, with gradients, bumps and NOT flat out
First corner of China
Esses, Degners, Spoon and the old 130R at Suzuka (new one is BORING)
Middle bit of Interlagos.

All of these are taken from the current F1 season, and are by no means the only ones that are good. Spa has some amazing sections in it.

Few of the sections above are flat, and quite a lot are 'slow'. But they flow nicely, present a big challenge (in real life at least), and aren't for the most part hideous 'let's slow the cars down so the spectators can take photos' chicanes. However, the downside of most of these suggested are that they aren't the best passing places. For that you need a medium speed corner a straight and a very slow corner. But they don't all have to be the same, I think there remains a very possible way of making individual tracks with passing places AND more difficult technical sections.

This is a good thread and the need for a technical track for the GTR's and open wheel cars is there. But, I don't think modifying one of the current tracks is the way to go, ie, sticking a bunch of chicanes in Aston configs. We need a whole new track for this, not just a current with modifications. Yea, that would be more difficult to do and modded Aston would be much faster, but I'd vote for this over graphical changes that everyone wants like high res. cockpits. Stuff that you don't really notice anyways (at least with the correct FOV).

Yes! More twisty tracks. Lowspeed corners are fun now, so more of them! There isnt sections in LFS now where there would be multiple turns after each other. The last turn thingy in Kyoto GP is nice but its short, and really just sort of chicane. We dont have lowspeed tecnical sections because the low speeds were horrible before the patch.

I think that a track like barcelona would be IDEAL for the BF1 car. The plus points of this track:

High speed corners (BUT NOT flat out)
High speed chicanes with fast direction changes, and careful braking points
And only small elevation changes.

Those who want an old nurburgring style track have already got it, the back section of Aston GP