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CONTENTS
Spacing and Length
Permissions
Introduction
Apricot Hill Raceway (II)
Cote d'Azur/Monaco
Deep Forest Raceway (II)
Grand Valley Speedway (II)
Laguna Seca Raceway
Midfield Raceway (II)
Rome Circuit (II)
Seattle Circuit (II)
Smokey Mountain (II)
Special Stage Route 11 (II)
Special Stage Route 5 (II)
Special Stage Route 5 Wet (II)
Super Speedway
Swiss Alps (II)
Tahiti Circuit (II)
Tahiti Maze (II)
Test Course
Tokyo R246 (II)
Trial Mountain (II)
Contact
SPACING AND LENGTH
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PERMISSIONS
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Permission is granted to download and print one copy for
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INTRODUCTION
The purpose of this guide is to provide players with a
general idea of the tuning requirements for virtually any car
used at a given circuit in Gran Turismo 3. Some of the
tuning suggestions presented here require specific parts,
which may or may not be standard equipment and which may or
may not be available for a given car in the Tune Shop. Also,
tires are specifically not discussed here, as tire choice
(other than Dirt Tires) is dictated more by the length of a
race and each player's driving style than by the
configuration of a circuit.
In the Gran Turismo series, a 'II' designation indicates that
a race will be held in the reverse configuration for that
circuit. The 'II' designation is not used for all circuits.
However, car set-ups for a reverse-configuration race will
generally be the same as for a regular-configuration race at
the same venue.
On a very important note, these suggestions can largely be
discarded when using F1 cars, due to their inherent
advantages in acceleration, top-end speed, and cornering
ability.
APRICOT HILL RACEWAY (II)
Apricot Hill Raceway is generally a rather fast circuit; even
many of the corners can be taken at a medium or high rate of
speed; however, the hairpin behind the Paddocks and the final
chicane are both very slow corners (about 50MPH), which makes
a high-speed set-up a bit precarious in these areas. There
should not be much need to ride the rumble strips here,
although it can be quite useful in the final chicane.
Ride Height: Medium-low, to keep from
bottoming out in the slow
sections (which are located
at the lowest part of
valleys
Stabilizers: Low, to make up for the lack
of downforce
Brake Balance : Medium to high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Relatively low
====================================
COTE D'AZUR/MONACO
This is by far the most technical circuit in Gran Turismo 3.
Not only is this circuit narrow, there are virtually NO
straightaways here, so top-end speed is not an issue. The
benefit to using longer gear ratios (closer to 'Wide') is
that there will be less chance of wheelspin, which will
unnecessarily accelerate tire wear; on the other hand, using
shorter gear ratios (closer to 'Sport') will provide the
acceleration needed to power out of corners and pass a
competitor before the next corner. Expect to ride the rumble
strips at several locations here, notably the chicane just
beyond the exit of The Tunnel.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: High
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: As soft as a player's driving
style and comfort level
will allow
Brake Balance : VERY high (20+)
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Sport
Downforce: High, to assist in cornering
====================================
DEEP FOREST RACEWAY (II)
Perhaps the most scenic race venue in Gran Turismo 3, Deep
Forest Raceway has only one long straightaway (Pit Straight),
although lack of traffic and good reflexes can make the
section from the low area up through the tunnels a good place
to attain top speeds as the circuit continually fades from
side to side. The place where the most clock time can
potentially be lost is the first third of the circuit, with
its hairpin corner at the end of Pit Straight and its tight,
twisty corners running through the forest and into tunnels.
Players can expect to use the rumble strips and to drop
wheels off the pavement fairly regularly.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: As soft as a player's driving
style and comfort level
will allow
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium
====================================
GRAND VALLEY SPEEDWAY (II)
The longest circuit in Gran Turismo 3, Grand Valley Speedway
is also fairly scenic. Due to its length and the tricky
final sector (when run in the forward configuration), tire
management is key here, or else too much time will be lost in
trying to keep the car on the pavement.
Spring Rate: Medium
Ride Height: Medium-low
Shock Absorbers: Medium
Stabilizers: Medium
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-wide
Downforce: Medium
====================================
LAGUNA SECA RACEWAY
This is the home of the world-famous Corkscrew (Turns 8A and
9), the tight left-right chicane on a steep downhill slope
beginning just beyond the crest of the circuit. Safely
navigating the Corkscrew as well as the final corner (a tight
perpendicular left-hand turn) can result in low lap times.
using the rumble strips is almost certainly a must for most
corners, but the rumble strips are fortunately not very tall,
which means the car is not very likely to jump when rolling
onto them.
Spring Rate: Medium
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Medium
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium-low
====================================
MIDFIELD RACEWAY (II)
This circuit is in a figure-eight formation and contains many
types of corners, which makes this a somewhat-technical venue
despite the high speeds attainable on several of the
straightaways. Rumble strips are very important here.
ROME CIRCUIT (II)
This street circuit provides many high-speed runs (some with
straightaways, some with fades) and four notable slow
corners. This circuit is also almost entirely flat.
Spring Rate: Medium-high
Ride Height: Lowest possible setting
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium-low
====================================
SEATTLE CIRCUIT (II)
This is perhaps the most scenic street circuit in Gran
Turismo 3; unfortunately, the famous Space Needle is only
seen far in the distance between the old buildings. This is
a fairly technical circuit, especially the upper portion of
the circuit (where most of a lap is spent) and the final
chicane at Pit Entry. The multi-tiered uphill climb (in the
forward configuration) is extremely treacherous, as the very
top of the incline contains a right-hand right-angle corner
with little swing-out room. Also, beware of the railroad
tracks, especially when entering the chicane between the old
and new stadiums.
Spring Rate: Medium-low
Ride Height: Medium-high
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: As low as a player's comfort
level and driving style
will allow
Brake Balance : High
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium
====================================
SMOKEY MOUNTAIN (II)
This is one of the four dirt-based Rally Events circuits in
Gran Turismo 3. Those who have played Gran Turismo 2 will
notice that this circuit has been given pavement along the
entire front stretch. This circuit can easily send cars
airborne, especially at either end of the paved sections in
either the forward or reverse configuration.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: High
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: Medium-high
Brake Balance : Medium
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium
Downforce: Medium-high
====================================
SPECIAL STAGE ROUTE 11 (II)
This nighttime street circuit has returned from the original
Gran Turismo, with a few noticeable changes. This is also a
highly-technical circuit, although passing is far easier than
at Cote d'Azur/Monaco. Cornering ability is key here, even
if it means hitting the rev limiter on the straightaways
(especially on Pit Straight).
Spring Rate: Medium-high
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: As low as a player's comfort
level and driving style
will allow
Brake Balance : VERY high (20+)
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-low
Downforce: Medium-high
====================================
SPECIAL STAGE ROUTE 5 (II)
This is another nighttime street circuit. SSR5 is not quite
as fast as SSR11 (above), but good speeds can still be
attained, primarily on Pit Straight.
Spring Rate: Medium-high
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: As low as a player's comfort
level and driving style
will allow
Brake Balance : High
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium
Downforce: Medium-high
====================================
SPECIAL STAGE ROUTE 5 WET (II)
This is the same as SSR5 (above), but the circuit is full of
water. This creates some nice visual effects and shows the
graphics prowess of the PlayStation2, but it means that
hydroplaning is a very real possibility. Because of the vast
amount of water on the pavement, any hard or fast changes in
speed or direction severely raise the risk of losing car
control - and once car control is lost, regaining control
within the concrete canyons is virtually impossible until the
car cones to a complete standstill. Do not plan on attaining
a lot of speed here.
Spring Rate: Medium
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Medium
Stabilizers: Medium
Brake Balance : High
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Sport
Downforce: Medium-low
====================================
SUPER SPEEDWAY
This is one of the easiest circuits for finding optimal car
set-ups.
Spring Rate: Medium
Ride Height: As low as possible
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: As low as possible
====================================
SWISS ALPS (II)
This is another dirt-based track in Rally Events. This is a
rather tricky venue, with many blind and semi-blind corners.
Also, the circuit narrows for the wooden bridge on its back
side, but this narrowing is VERY difficult to spot,
especially in the reverse configuration as the entry to the
bridge is shrouded in dark sunset shadows.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: High
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: Medium-high
Brake Balance : Medium
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium
Downforce: Medium
====================================
TAHITI CIRCUIT (II)
This is another dirt-based track in Rally Events. This is a
fairly quick circuit in terms of speed, although the
consecutive hairpins can be tricky.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: Medium-high
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: Medium-high
Brake Balance : Medium
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium
Downforce: Medium-low
====================================
TAHITI MAZE (II)
This is another dirt-based track in Rally Events, and is the
absolute trickiest Rally Events circuit. This circuit very
much feels like a maze, as there are multiple consecutive
hairpins in multiple sections of the circuit. Due to the
importance of cornering and the very short straightaways, do
not expect to attain high speeds.
Spring Rate: Soft
Ride Height: Medium-high
Shock Absorbers: Soft
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : Medium
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-low
Downforce: Medium-high
====================================
TEST COURSE
This is one of the easiest circuits for finding optimal car
set-ups. There is absolutely NO reason to use the brakes
here at all.
Spring Rate: As hard as possible
Ride Height: As low as possible
Shock Absorbers: As hard as possible
Stabilizers: As high as possible
Brake Balance : Does not matter - the brakes
are not needed at all
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): VERY close to Wide, but NOT
fully-Wide (or else the
engine will likely not be
able to rev high enough to
climb into and remain in
the car's highest gears)
Downforce: As low as possible
====================================
TOKYO R246 (II)
Set in Tokyo surrounding the grounds of the Imperial Palace,
Tokyo R246 is a fun, fast, mostly-flat, semi-technical
circuit which is very reminiscent of Ridge Racer V on Pit
Straight (those familiar with RRV may well wonder why Fukami
Ai is not standing in the middle of Pit Straight). The back
section of the circuit features fast consecutive blind and
semi-blind corners, so intimate knowledge of the circuit is
required to perform well here.
Spring Rate: Medium-high
Ride Height: Low
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : High
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium-low
====================================
TRIAL MOUNTAIN (II)
The Trial Mountain venue is largely contained within tall
rock cliffs, which means that there is very little run-off
room in case a player makes a mistake and leaves the
pavement. This is a moderately-technical circuit, with
impressive speeds attainable on Pit Straight and the back
stretch (in and emerging from the tunnel).
Spring Rate: Medium-high
Ride Height: Medium
Shock Absorbers: Medium-high
Stabilizers: Medium-low
Brake Balance : Medium-high
Gear Ratio (Auto Setting): Medium-Wide
Downforce: Medium-low
CONTACT INFORMATION
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=======================================================================
Wolf Feather Jamie Stafford
=======================================================================
Just as there are many parts needed to make a human a human, there's a
remarkable number of things needed to make an individual what they are.
- Major Kusanagi, _Ghost in the Shell_
=======================================================================
What isn't remembered never happened. - _Serial Experiments Lain_
=======================================================================
