For my second season of iracing, I want to compete in the MX5 Cup (finished 166th in my first season overall with 3 wins) and the Fanatec Global with the Kia.
I’m pretty confident with the MX5 since I drive an ND Club almost daily, but the Kia is giving me trouble. I’m either spinning the tires or understeering off the track. The setups are fixed, so I can’t adjust them and just have to figure out how to handle the car. I’m used to front-wheel drive turbo cars in real life, but not with slicks and stiff suspension.
What are some tips? Am I overdriving the Kia, expecting it to handle like the MX5? Or is there something I can do to manage it better? Even when I follow the same brake points and lines, it feels like I’m going too fast into corners and getting understeer.
I think the Kia is better for league races. The 30-minute races with hot weather in official events make the car hard to drive. But it’s one of my favorites for close racing. There’s a league called BSRTC with 3 races a night, reverse grids, and 60 drivers. It’s great fun. There’s an entry fee, but the prize pool is worth it!
Just finished my first race in the Fanatec Global Challenge. Came 2nd in class—out of 2 (lol). Overall, it wasn’t too bad since many people crashed or got kicked for incidents.
Turns out I was overdriving the car. I’ve only practiced with it and on Summit Hills a few times (I’m good on Jefferson but not the full track yet). I was just 0.3 seconds off the other Kia’s qualifying time.
Lap 2 was rough. A CTSV driver was slowing me down in corners and eventually caused me to hit the grass and spin into a wall while braking. Pretty frustrating, but after I called him out, he started letting others pass (too late for me). Another driver also hit me from behind, almost spinning me out because they couldn’t wait for a safe pass.
I get that multiclass racing is different, but sometimes you just can’t move over without ruining your line. Some people seem to forget that.
Overall, it was a decent first race. Hoping for better luck tomorrow!
I’ve been racing the Kia in the BSR Pro Series for years. Some people find it frustrating, but with a full grid, the races are intense.
The tires wear out faster than on the MX-5. You’ll get a few quick laps, then they slow down by about a second, and after 15–20 minutes, they fall off even more. They can last a full fuel tank (around 45 minutes), but the car gets unstable under hard braking near the end of a stint.
It sounds like you’re overdriving the Kia and overheating the tires. Patience with throttle and technique can make a difference. Even with open setups, you can’t do much to fix the understeer because of the torque and stiff suspension.
@Darwin
I think it just feels slower than the MX5. But when I check my times, the Kia is actually faster. So yeah, I might be overdriving it. Probably won’t be many Kias in the series, so if I keep it clean, I should get decent results.
@james
It’s definitely not slow. On a straight at Daytona Road, I’ve hit 173 mph in a draft with the short gearbox. You’ll pass MX-5s like they’re standing still. I’ve even overtaken GT3 cars at Nurburgring on the main straight.
