In an earlier article we already looked at your correct tire choice for Endurance Sim Racing. In this part we want to take a closer look at the tire management and extracting the most performance for ultimate race pace.
The crucial factors for a tire to maximize its performance are tire temperature and tire degradation. Our sim of choice in this example is Le Mans Ultimate, but consider these two factors applying across all other sims as well.
Tire temperature
While taking a new set of rubber out on the track, the first thing to consider is to build up temperature. It is important to do this at a steady pace, as you do not want to spin out or lock your tires under braking in case you drive a car without ABS. Doing this would cause flat spots on our fresh tire set, causing vibrations through the chassis making the car difficult to drive, inevitably forcing you to pit again to change tires.
Instead, one effective method to warm up your tires properly is to apply a little more steering lock through the corners to overdrive the front axle of your car, causing the tires to slide lightly, which then causes tire surface temperature to rise. Another valid option is to drag your brakes on straights with the brake friction heating up the brake disc and therefore forwarding some temperature into the tire as well. Another method, and probably the most popular one, is to swerve from left to right, putting the tire through some load and therefore increasing its temperature.
After a while you will feel the grip building up, eventually providing maximum potential to push for fast lap times. Remember to not overdo it though and keep in mind that, depending on the tire compound, it might take a little longer to warm up your tires.
Tire degradation
Over the course of a long race, it is important to manage your tires as effectively as possible to increase tire life and minimize pit stop time. Naturally, the longer you drive the more tire degradation you will experience which slows you down, but you can heavily influence the degradation rate with a few adjustments to your driving style.
One principle that applies here too is to avoid any brake lock ups or big slides and spins. This will strongly affect your tire life and might force you to pit early. Especially in an endurance race, you should never try to go across the edge of a tire’s grip level. There might be some close fights within your race, and you understandably do not want to lose the battle to your opponent. In these situations, it is fine to absolutely go to the limit of what the tire can provide but you need to be able to compensate for that tire life lost at a later stage of your stint. To preserve tire life, try smoother steering inputs, minimizing slides and never operate above the tire temperature window. This will get you a long way and will give you a great advantage during endurance races.
