I’ve slowly been working my way through the single-player event list in Forza Motorsport 3, and having had good results with the racing spec Cadillac CTS-V, I figured a B Class version would be a good choice for 31 laps of Mugello.
Unfortunately I was either drunk or not paying attention when I tuned the B Class version. To put it mildly, it was slow, handled like a tank, and had no rear grip whatsoever. But instead of quitting out and sorting the problem, I persevered, and it turned out to be a useful experiment.
Bad set-ups can lead to good lessons…
So what can you learn from sticking with a crappy set-up for a few laps:
Better insight into your driving style:
Good set-ups hide some of your bad habits, and emphasis your good ones. Driving something with terrible handling highlights I’d gotten lazy with my throttle control, and a few laps later, I’d started driving far more smoothly.
Better insight into your typical set-up:
Quite often I’ve been focusing on increasing power at the expense of better handling. And yet, driving the CTS-V, I realised the biggest problem with it was actually the cornering speed and the traction out of corners. Power is definitely useful, but only in the right circumstances.
Driving round problems:
After a crash or a mechanical problem, it’s more important to adjust your driving style. Driving something which handles like a wheelbarrow gives you some practice just in case it happens.
You appreciate the good cars a lot more:
Suddenly you’ll have far greater appreciation for a well-sorted car! You might have thought you had major problems with your best set-ups, but once you’ve raced a heap, you’ll realise that actually they’re nothing to worry about…
So…
Anyone want to buy a slightly-used, raced once, ORD-stickered CTS-V? Sometimes there’s too much of a good thing!
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