McLaren 720s GT3 CDA3 Release Notes

Welcome to the McLaren 720s GT3 release notes blog. In this page you will find the detailed notes compiled by the team after each session when creating the fast and safe variants of the new CDA3 McLaren setups.

In addition, a complete list of the driver and engineer combinations for each track is present so customers can see which driver and engineer worked on that circuit when looking for setup trends. Note, some tracks required more notes and instruction than others. This is determined by how the car behaved in the session or how much scope for change in the setup there was.

To view the notes and team list, see below:

Brands Hatch

• The car works well with quite a soft set up approach with alot of rake and max wing here. Stiff roll bars are to keep responsiveness.
• Bumpstop range can be used as a very good pitch control on the front and rotation on the rear.
• Rear ride height can be used as a fine tuning tool for overall balance.
• The car can be sensitive to kerbs (can bounce weirdly) so be careful on cutting over inside kerbs too much.

Misano 

• The McLaren works well with stiff anti roll bars and low bumpstop ranges on the front and rear. The dampers are quite sensitive to changes so it is recommended not to change them too much from the RF variant that has been developed. 
• The bumpstop rates have a bit of leeway to work with. A few clicks up on the front bumpstop range and a few clicks either way with the rear should be ok to still stay in the working range of the car. 

Nurburgring

• Softer springs and stiffer bumpstops to give more overall grip without a loss of pitch control.
• Alignment metas used for toe/camber/caster.
• Damper adjustments to not overload fronts on turn in under deceleration.
• Fast Damper adjustments to tune understeer/oversteer behaviour on kerbs, better rotation in the Schumacher S, but may cause the car to be a little more unstable in the final chicane.
• Higher rake to increase mid-corner rotation.
• Safe setup uses lower rear ride height and larger bumpstop range on the rear for stability and traction.
• Qualifying setup uses more rake and bumpstop/roll bar changes for more aggressive rotation.

Paul Ricard

• Running the front bumpstop range low is paramount to stability around Paul Ricard, especially into right hander at the end of the back straight. 
• The Spa baseline was used as it’s a medium downforce baseline. The front dampers have been adjusted to accommodate the bumps on the chicane through the first sector. 
• The safe setup runs a higher wing with stiffer front wheel rate to ensure maximum stability at the entry into the right hander at the end of the back straight and improved kerb absorption in the first sector.

Silverstone

• Reasonably minor adjustments from previous setup.
• Roll bars tweaked for better rotation.
• Bumpstops adjusted for less entry oversteer and power-on understeer.
• Safe setup uses a lower rake philosophy to add stability and predictability without too much loss of lap time.
• Lower wing is also used on the low rake safe setup to help redistribute aero balance.
• Qualifying setup has a slightly softer front for maximising front grip.

Spa Francorchamps 

• For the fast setup if you are struggling with entry stability consider running a slightly more forwards brake bias but for the first corner at the hairpin and at the bus stop chicane it is recommended to use a brake bias lower than or equal to 50.6% in order to get optimal braking distances. 48.8% is a good lower limit for the bus stop and 1st corner.
• Similar to other tracks, the McLaren runs much better with a stiff roll configuration and low rear bumpstop range. The front bump and rear rebound dampers have been adjusted to prevent excessive pitch into downhill corners, since the lower wing in this setup can potentially cause the car to snap if not adjusted. 

Suzuka 

• The car can take inside kerbs reasonably well, however, it can bottom out if it’s set up too soft. Going higher wheel rates will help but you will lose overall grip.
• Can use a higher front ride height to help avoid kerbs but it does add more understeer.
• The bumpstops are tuned to help prevent bottoming out and keep a reasonable overall balance, but, some compromises are made such as a higher than usual rear bumpstop range to counter sliding and keep tyre temperatures under control in long stints.
• You can use TC2, however, if the tyre temps get too hot in a race.
• Adjusting the diff can help for entry rotation, but, brake bias can do the job if you are mid-stint as the car balance changes.

Zandvoort

• The car likes to bottom out if the wheel rates are too soft. Avoid going too soft, particularly on the front. If you need more rotation or more front grip, consider adjusting the rear ride height or front bumpstop range.
• A low diff is important for the off throttle rotation that is needed in the high speed corners, predominantly through sector 2.
• Bumpstop rates can be sensitive so can be a good fine tuning tool.

Zolder

• Wheel alignment changes to current metas to improve mid corner rotation.
• Front bumpstop increased in range and stiffened to provide better kerb handling, especially bottoming out on entry to the 2nd chicane.
• Rear bumpstop shortened for corner exit performance.
• Higher ride height also used to compensate for the bumpy track.
• Damper adjustments including softer front bump dampers to give more compliance on turn-in.
• Safe setup uses bumpstops and dampers tuned for more stable entry and exit, Mid-corner mainly untouched.
• Qualifying setup tuned for much more aggressive rotation on corner exit.

Barcelona 

• Can run quite a soft and low car here as there’s no risk of bottoming out.
• A low diff is set to get rotation, especially through longer corners but a higher diff will make the car more predictable.
• It can be easy to out brake yourself into the hairpin – make sure you pick a good solid reference.
• Gearing can be awkward in a couple of places. Don’t be afraid to let it almost hit the rev limiter else an extra gear change can cause you to miss the corner.
• For a safer qualifying set if the current one is too much on edge you can raise the front ride height by 1mm.

Donington Park 

• Main difference between RF and RS is the tradeoff. With the RF setup you can maintain a much higher min. Speed, especially through the high speed corners. But it is harder to control as the car is more loose
  • RS is much more stable at the expense of rotation
• Overall you want to use TC 1.
  • If you have issues with it you can try TC 2/3.
• T1: Use second gear + make sure to maximise the pit exit to open up the corner as much as possible.
• T2/3 drive the tightest line possible to save lap time by travelling less distance at the same time.
• T4: It´s important that you don’t run wide on the exit of the previous corner as you need to bring the car over to the left side in order to get a good entry for T4. The less weight transfer is still going on, while you are bringing the car over to the left,  the better. Try to clip the inside curb, especially the green part, which will help you to pull the car around the corner. Be careful to not run wide on the exit, as you´ll face pressure loss by going off-track.
  • If you have stability issues here you can try to reduce the front bs range or rear rh
• T6: Stay tight to open up T7
• T7: Use all the space at the insight of the corner. The banking will help you to pass the corner and carry more speed than you actually think is possible
  • If you have exit oversteer you can try to reduce the rear bs rate/ increase the rear bs range
• T8: Use the left curb on entry to open up the corner. Try to cut as much as the car allows you at the apex. The earlier you can floor the car the better
• T9/10: Maximise all the track at T9 so you can open up the exit of the chicane as much as possible. The goal is to have as less steering angle as possible while driving over the insight sausage at T10
• T11/12 requires a V line. Try to brake into the corner instead of waiting to long before turning in
• If you find the car sluggish in the direction change you can try to increase the front arb 
• To fix traction issues it is advisable to reduce the rear arb or bs rate. Keep in mind this will create more understeer.
• Curb compliance shouldn’t be an issue, however you could try to stiffen the front wheel rate or reduce the front bs range if you find the car is struggling with curb compliance

Laguna Seca

• RF is more tailored to ultimate pace. It is a bit more traction limited compared to the RS setup, which makes it harder to drive.
• Also the RF setup has more rotation in the high speed which allows for a higher min cornerspeed.
  • as this makes the car more loose it is advisable to use the RS setup if you struggling with the balance
• TC: 1 is necessary to extract the most laptime
  • if you struggle with that you can also try TC: 2 or 3.
• Raw pace potential between the race setups 2 tenths.
• T1-2: Because of the long gearing you want to use the first gear.
• T3: Maximise the track on the left side and don’t wait too long before turning in otherwise you won’t make the corner.
• T3/4/6: If you struggle with snap oversteer on corner entry you can reduce the front bumpstop range or rear ride height to make the car more planted. Bear in mind this will compromise every other corner.
• T5: Use the banking of the corner to go early on the power
• T7/8: Use your throttle modulation to help the car go over the track bumps. You want to time the upshift into second gear as best as possible so you minimise the time in the limiter. Be careful that you do it too early as this can lead into a snap during the direction change.
• T9: Make sure you use the camber of the road and don’t hesitate with the turn in.
• T10: Don´t brake too hard. Try to introduce the car smoothly into the corner. Don´t go lower than third gear.
• T11: Make sure you finish the rotation early enough, as it´is important to floor the car as soon as you hit the apex.
• If you struggle with exit traction you can decrease the rear arb or increase the rear bumpstop range.
• Give the tyre at least 2 laps until you start to push. As it´s a short track the tyre pressures won´t be already in the first lap in their window. You don’t want to risk a pressure loss that early in your stint.

Kyalami

• Alignment metas used as per other circuits.
• More rake added to the car for mid turn at high speed.
• Roll bars adjustment for more mid corner rotation.
• Dampers tuned for low speed traction and less chance of washing out on entry.
• Preload lowered to allow for more control of traction.
• Safe Setup has less aggressive rear suspension setup for better control.

Hungaroring

• A higher front ride height makes a big difference at the chicane which is the main compromise on the track.
• While the car is set up to handle the kerbs, including dampers, without too much compromise elsewhere, you can still get unlucky bounces due to the kerb physics.
• Soft wheel rates and fine tuning of the bumpstops are utilised to generate rotation.
• The car can be traction limited here so going up on the rear ride height may not be advisable to generate rotation without going higher TC or further compromises to overall pace to get traction back.

Monza

• Alignment metas added.
• Shorter & harder rear bumpstops to help eliminate exit understeer.
• Damper changes to the front for kerb behaviour, and softened at the rear for traction and also less snappy turn-in grip loss.
• Ride height adjustment – better mid corner & direction change in chicanes.
• Front bumpstop change, more stable entry.
• Front brake ducts increased as susceptible to brake fade into T1.
• Safe setup has lower rake and longer rear bumpstop ranges to maximise entry and exit stability.
• Quali setup uses aggressive roll bars for rotation along with the lower rake from the safe setup. Note from driver – Move brake bias rearward 0.8% for T1.

Imola

• The car uses the Zolder baseline in order to get the suspension in an optimal range for the kerbs around Imola. The dampers in general have been stiffened in order to accommodate the more aggressive kerbs around the track and also to provide stability under braking through downhill sections. 
• Differential and bumpstop adjustments have also been made to ensure the car has optimal traction through some of the sharper high speed corners. The front bumpstop range and differential in the current race fast configuration are very sensitive so it’s recommended not to change these values too much. 
• If you require more entry rotation, consider dropping the differential preload by just 1 click and increasing the front bump damping by 1 click, in order to find the optimal compromise. For more stability, reducing the front bumpstop range by 1 click should suffice as it makes quite a difference under braking zones. In addition to this softening the rear bump and front rebound damping values should also help. 

Mount Panorama 

• Softer rear springs and damper changes to aid traction.
• Bumpstops changed to stabilise entry and limit exit understeer.
• Lower wing and rake to help in overtaking in races.
• Wheel alignment metas added to setup.
• Safe setup uses higher wing and some damper and bumpstop changes to try to give more predictable entry.
• Qualifying setup is based around high speed performance, less wing, more aggressive bumpstops. Only a very slight half-lift needed in Mcphillamy Park Corner over the mountain, the rest is flat from The Cutting (T4).

Snetterton 

• The Imola setup was used as a base for this track in order to get a good reference for kerb absorption. Snetterton, despite being flatter than Imola with less elevation changes, has quite a bumpy track surface itself. 
• Hence some fast damping changes have been done in order to get the car more stable on bumpier sections of the tracks whilst simultaneously increasing slow speed compliance through aero-dependent corners. 
• The ARBs have also been softened to help in kerb absorption through the final sector. 
• With a lot of long off throttle sections and the requirement for controlling brakes through corners, preload adjustments have also been made to make the rear axle more compliant.

Oulton Park

• Alignment metas used.
• Softer springs and roll bar changes for bump control.
• Damper changes to help with loss of grip coming off brakes and on entry/exit.
• Bumpstops stiffend to help with bottoming out on softer setup.
• Safe Setup uses a softer rear roll bar and longer bumpstop range to keep the car more predictable in turns and on acceleration. Front not changed to keep sharpness on such a tight track. Could lower front bumpstop range and/or increase front bump damper and roll bar to make it less ‘pointy’.
• Qualifying setup has some minor damper and bumpstop changes to assist in very aggressive, low fuel driving. Fast, but possibly not practical for a race stint.

Watkins Glen

• The car runs a very soft wheel rate configuration to maximise mechanical grip. The meta is also to run the bumpstop range quite low for the car currently, and this works well for Watkins considering the elevation changes and off cambered sections which could potentially cause grip issues. 
• The ARBs however are run quite stiff in order to maximise both response and aero stability in the high speed corners across the track. 
• High speed damper adjustments have been minimal from the Imola baseline since there is sufficient stability over the chicanes, and some small adjustments have been made to the slow speed dampers on the front to ensure better braking stability.

COTA

• Dampers changed for better traction and more stability releasing the brake pedal.
• Adjustments made to the wheel alignment for slightly more aggressive settings to add rotation at high speed.
• Changes to brake bias and Electronics to suit driver- it is noted that with the set brake bias, it will need moving 1% forward for T1, then back again for the rest of the lap.
• Front roll bar was softened for better balance.
• Safe setup uses softer rear bumpstop, stiffer front ARB and less extreme alignment to have a less edgy car with similar performance.
• For the safe setup in T13/14, some traction loss is to be expected to rotate the car better through these corners.
• Qualifying setup has more aggressive rotational settings to get the absolute maximum out of the car at the cost of consistency.

Indianapolis

• Softer springs and recalibrated roll bars to aid mid-corner speed.
• Toe changes towards current metas.
• Dampers reworked for low speed traction.
• Front bumpstops to aid turn in.
• Safe setup focuses on rear traction.
• Qualifying setup based on more aggressive rotation mid corner.

Team List 

Driver/Engineer Combination	Track
Taariq Adam/Nick Deeley	Barcelona
Taariq Adam/Nick Deeley	Hungaroring
Amedeo Dekeyser/Saiduth Ramesh	Imola
Amadeo Dekeyser/Rob Taplin	Kyalami
Gregor Schill	Laguna Seca
Taariq Adam/Saiduth Ramesh	Misano
Amadeo Dekeyser/Rob Taplin	Monza
Luka Berk/Rob Taplin	Mount Panorama
Luka Berk/Rob Taplin	Nurburgring
Taariq Adam/Saiduth Ramesh	Paul Ricard
Taariq Adam/Saiduth Ramesh	Spa Francorchamps
Taariq Adam/Nick Deeley	Suzuka
Taariq Adam/Nick Deeley	Zandvoort
Amedeo Dekeyser/Rob Taplin	Zolder
Taariq Adam/Nick Deeley	Brands Hatch
Gregor Schill	Donington
Amadeo Dekeyser/Rob Taplin	Oulton Park
Luka Berk/Saiduth Ramesh	Snetterton
Luka Berk/Rob Taplin	Silverstone
Amadeo Dekeyser/Saiduth Ramesh	Watkins Glen
Luka Berk/Rob Taplin	Indianapolis
Amadeo Dekeyser/Rob Taplin	COTA