F1 Game Car Setups Explained

A key aspect of All Formula 1 games, including the most recent F1 22, is the ability to adjust the car's setup, which can have a significant impact on the car's performance. Check out this article to understand the details of an F1 game setup and find out our recommendations for each value.

F1 Game Car Setups Explained
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Parameters of an F1 game car setup

In an F1 game, such as F1 2021 or F1 22, the car setup can be adjusted along several parameters. They are:
  • Aerodynamics: Front wing angle and rear wing angle
  • Transmission: differential adjustment on throttle and differential adjustment off throttle
  • Suspension Geometry: Front and rear camber angle and front and rear toe angle
  • Suspension: front and read suspension, front and rear anti-roll barr, and front and rear ride height
  • Brakes: Brake pressure and front brake bias
  • Tyres: Front and rear tyre pressure

Adjusting car setups on the F1 22 game

Each of the parameters can be adjusted along a certain scale. In the Electronic Arts F1 22 game, the values are:
Parameter
Value min
Value max
Front Wing
0
50
Rear Wing
0
50
Differential Adjustment On Throttle
50
100
Differential Adjustment Off Throttle
50
100
Front Camber
-3.50
-2.50
Rear Camber
-2.00
-1.00
Front Toe
0.05
0.15
Rear Toe
0.20
0.50
Front Suspension
1
11
Rear Suspension
1
11
Front Anti-Roll Bar
1
11
Rear Anti-Roll Bar
1
11
Front Ride Height
1
11
Rear Ride Height
1
11
Break Pressure
50
100
Front Break Bias
70
50
Front Right Tyre Pressure
21.0
25.0
Front Left Tyre Pressure
21.0
25.0
Rear Right Tyre Pressure
19.5
23.5
Rear Left Tyre Pressure
19.5
23.5
Let's dive into what each value does and what a good starting point is!

Aerodynamics

F1 22 Game - Setups - Aerodynamics
F1 22 Game - Setups - Aerodynamics
The front wing angle affects the amount of downforce generated by the front wing and can impact the car's handling and stability. A higher front wing angle will increase downforce and improve grip in corners, but will also increase drag and decrease straight-line speed.
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We recommend setting the aerodynamics values custom for each track. This is the most important setting to customize per track and makes a big difference in your lap times. Check out our dedicated article for the best wing settings here: Expert Wing Settings for Every Track

Transmission

F1 22 Game - Setups - Transmission
F1 22 Game - Setups - Transmission
The differential adjustment affects the distribution of torque between the front and rear wheels during acceleration (on throttle) and deceleration (off throttle).
  • Differential adjustment on throttle: high values increase traction, improve acceleration, but increase understeer
  • Differential adjustment off throttle: high values improve stability, reduce oversteer, but reduce throttle responsiveness
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We recommend setting the on throttle differential to 65-70%. This will make your car a bit easier to drive out of slow corners, avoiding wheelspin. Set the off throttle differential to 50-55%.

Suspension Geometry

F1 22 Game - Setups - Suspension Geometry
F1 22 Game - Setups - Suspension Geometry

Front and rear camber angle

The camber angle affects the amount of grip generated by the tyres and can impact the car's handling and stability. A high negative camber angle will increase grip and improve handling in corners, but will also reduce stability during straight-line driving. In practice, this means:
  • Low negative camber angles maximize the contact patch on straights, which increases the car's traction on straight-line acceleration and braking.
  • High negative camber angles maximize the contact patch when cornering, meaning when the latitudinal forces make the car roll to the outside.

Front and rear toe angle

The toe angle affects the direction of the wheels and impacts the car's handling and tyre wear.
  • A higher front toe increases the car's initial turn-in response ("readiness to turn"). This comes at the expense of straight-line performance, tyre wear and the risk of mid-turn understeer.
  • A higher rear toe angle makes the car more stable, specially when accelerating or decelerating. That makes it easier to put power down quickly. The trade-off is straight line performance, tyre wear and, depending on the setup, the initial-turn in response.
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For the F1 22 handling model, we recommend setting the front and rear camber to their highest negative values (-2.50 and -1.00) and the front and rear toe to the minimum values (0.05 and 0.20) in order to optimize for high grip and stability.

Suspension

F1 22 Game - Setups - Suspension
F1 22 Game - Setups - Suspension

Front and rear suspension

The suspension stiffness affects the car's handling and can impact the car's balance and stability.
  • Softer suspensions (low values) are easier to ride over kerbs and hence allow you to drive more aggressively.
  • Stiffer suspensions (higher values) increase the responsiveness of your car.

Front and rear anti-roll bar

The anti-roll bar stiffness affects how much the car leans during cornering and can impact the car's balance and stability.
  • Stiffer anti-roll bars (high values) will improve responsiveness when turning in corners, but will also lower the overall stability.
  • Softer anti-roll bars (low values) will make the car less responsive and harder to turn, but more stable and easier to drive.

Front and rear ride height

The ride height affects the car's ground clearance and can impact the car's aerodynamics and handling. A lower ride height will increase downforce and top speed, but increases the risk of bottoming out (leading to loss of grip and potentially spins).
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Suspension settings depend on your driving style and are harder to generalize. At F1Laps, we see many racers with front / rear suspension of 3 / 1 (firmer in the front, softer in the back), front / rear anti-roll bars of 4 / 1 (firmer in the front, softer in the back), and a front / rear ride height of 6 / 5.

Brakes

F1 22 Game - Setups - Brakes
F1 22 Game - Setups - Brakes

Brake Pressure

Brake pressure affects the amount of stopping force generated by the brakes and can impact the car's braking performance. A higher brake pressure will increase stopping force and reduce braking distance, but will also increase the risk of lock-ups and increase wear on the brakes.

Front brake bias

Front brake bias affects the distribution of braking force between the front and rear brakes and can impact the car's balance and stability. A higher front brake bias will increase front-end grip and stability during braking, but will also reduce rear-end stability and increase the risk of oversteer.
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We recommend setting the brake bias to 50-52% and the brake pressure to 100%. This might look drastic but generally is the most responsive setting for the F1 22 game.

Tyres

F1 22 Game - Setups - Tyres
F1 22 Game - Setups - Tyres
Tyre pressure affects the amount of grip generated by the tyres, the overall tyre wear, and the car's handling. Lower typre pressure generally leads to more grip, but may reduce responsiveness. It also increases the risk of punctures and reduces the tyre lifespan.
Your tyre temperature throughout a session is an important indicator for setting the right tyre pressure. You want to optimize for keeping tyres in the right temperature window of between 90 - 100°C once warmed up.
  • Lower your tyre pressure if your average tyre temperature consistently exceeds 100°C
  • Increase your tyre pressure if your average tyre temperature consistently falls below 90-92°C
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As a starting point, F1Laps racers often go with 23.3psi front tyre pressure and 21.3psi rear tyre pressure.

Finding the best F1 22 game car setups

F1Laps is the most popular place to find the best car setups for each track of the F1 game. It contains setups used on real F1 game laps with the fastest lap times, for both time trial and race sessions.

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Written by

Marc
Marc

F1Laps Editor