Forcing same set-ups would be a good option on
some servers for a change of pace. However, I don't think it would be fair to implement it too much due to the various driving styles and hardware amongst the different players.
I normally use a G-25, but when some of my squadmates jump on, they use a KB & mouse. To be fair, I'll use KB&M also and my "awesome" setup (for my wheel) is all over the place when using the mouse. (I know...I know...LOL.)
As for me, I've downloaded and tried countless setups on various cars. Many WR sets I have tried were useless to me because of the differences between my driving style and the creator's driving style. I like to brake before I turn in and I prefer to take cleaner lines. Many,not all, but many WR sets drift around and slide a lot as you can see in many WR replays and they won't help you remain competitive in races longer than 5-10 laps since the camber/toe angles are so extreme the tires wear very quickly. Furthermore, I have found many WR sets are less than friendly when cantact is made between to vehicles. It often comes down to personal preference and driving style.
The most important "setup" for
me is gear ratio. As long as my car has decent acceleration throughout the powerband and handles predictably, I am happy. For example, in the underpowered UF1 races, I loved my personal "suspension" setup because it fits my style. However, I would always get dusted in the straights by cars I kept up with or passed around the corners. Because I am competent, but not great at setting gear ratios yet (even w/ the help of the GR Calc.
) I took some WR gear setups as a testbed, set my gear ratio to my liking, and kept my "suspension" setup that suited my style. I improved considerably once my car's acceleration was competitive with the majority of the field.
As it was said before, setups are
not the end all be all to winning races. The most important thing is to learn your vehicles limitations and increase your skill level. I could have the best setup in the world, but I wouldn't have a snowball's chance of winning against a truly skilled racer that mastered both his car and the track running a default setup.
My friends and I were KB&M in a server a few nights ago. A driver who won most of the races asked what we were using? We responded KB&M and he said he was using an X-Box controller. I told my friends on TS that I was gonna switch to the wheel and "put him down". Although my race improved considerably with the wheel, I still lost a couple to him for no other reason than the fact that he was more skilled with his particular car on that specific track.