The long-anticipated rain has arrived in iRacing with new cars, circuits and other small refinements alongside it. Joining the Tempest weather system in headlines are three new cars, including Super Formula Lights for road racing, SRX and Dirt Micro Sprint for oval races, whilst Misano and Portimão, two famous European circuits, are also now available in the service.
As usual, Coach Dave Academy’s team will continue to work on the setups and bring weekly tutorials, lap guides and previews for special events scheduled for the upcoming months. So here is everything you need to know about the updates and our plans for 2024 Season 2 in iRacing.
Tempest weather system
After several years of development, the new iRacing weather system is finally available for drivers. Rain is the most anticipated piece of Season 2 content because the weather was one of the few areas where iRacing lagged behind rival simulations such as Assetto Corsa Competizione and rFactor 2, both of which brought compelling driver experiences to the table and, crucially, dynamic weather.
So how good is it? The answer may be up to your driving preferences, but Tempest is certainly realistic, praised by a plethora of real-life single-seater and sportscar competitors.
It introduces a couple of new features in weather simulation for racing:
- Water on the track interacts constantly with the car. You can feel puddles and aquaplaning in force feedback extremely well, conveying loss of grip with great detail
- Rain changes optimal racing lines. The main racing line becomes more slippery as the water accumulates on the track and rubber that’s been layed down becomes slick, forcing drivers to look for alternative lines.
- The spray from cars ahead really impairs visibility in heavy or moderate rain. The graphics may require some fine-tuning to make rain lights more visible, but it shows the challenges of racing in the rain well.
Coach Dave Academy will create wet setups for popular cars throughout Season 2, including GTP, LMP2 and GT3 class vehicles as well as the Super Formula Lights, Formula 4 and FF1600 in open-wheel racing. All wet setups will be available via our iRacing Setup Subscription.
Two new road circuits
iRacing continues to expand its impressive roster of European race tracks, adding Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli and Algarve International Circuit in Season 2.
Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli
Misano has been a prominent Italian circuit since the 1970s. It hosts the MotoGP World Championships and top competitions like the DTM and GT World Challenge Europe, proving itself as a versatile venue.
While renowned for motorcycle racing, the track’s challenging layout, featuring a mix of fast straights and technical corners, is well-suited for racing in GT cars in particular.
Algarve International Circuit
The Autódromo Internacional do Algarve, often called Portimão, debuted in 2008 amid hopes of hosting a Formula One race, but faced setbacks due to financial issues. However, the COVID-19 pandemic provided an unexpected chance to host Formula One and MotoGP events in 2020 and 2021. Currently, Portimão hosts ELMS 4-hour races almost every year.
The layout is known for undulating terrain, featuring significant elevation changes throughout the lap. Its challenging corners and fast straights provide good opportunities for overtaking.
- Check out Coach Dave Academy’s weekly lap guides to learn how to set fast lap times on these circuits.
Super Formula Lights
The only new car for road racers in 2024 Season 2, the Dallara F324, known as the Super Formula Lights, is a junior single-seater that serves as a stepping stone for young drivers aspiring to reach the top levels of motorsport. Powered by a 2-litre engine, its lightweight form acts as the perfect way to acclimate to high-performance open-wheel racing.
In real life, the Super Formula Lights series is designed to prepare drivers to progress to higher tiers such as Super Formula or other international racing categories. The same concept holds true in iRacing’s growing single-seater license ladder – in terms of performance, Super Formula Lights sits adjacent to the Formula C series that uses the Dallara F317.
Updates for oval racing
If you are a fan of oval racing, then the Season 2 update brings new content for you, including one new circuit and two new cars.
The Superstar Racing Experience (SRX) car is designed for a single-make, short-track racing series that features up-and-coming talents competing with legendary drivers on various oval tracks across the United States. Founded by Tony Stewart and Ray Evernham, SRX aims to provide exciting, door-to-door racing with a focus on entertainment and fan engagement.
Dirt Micro Sprint is a small, lightweight race car used in dirt track racing. This car is popular in grassroots motorsports as an accessible entry point for aspiring racers and thus it is part of the base iRacing subscription. It is also available in two variations: with and without the rear wing.
The perfect addition to the Sprint car is the Millbridge Speedway, a prominent dirt track in Salisbury, United States. It is known for hosting dirt racing, including Micro Sprints, Mini Outlaw Karts, and other racing categories designed for drivers early in their careers. The Speedway offers a challenging oval layout with high banking and has gained recognition for its role in nurturing young racing talent, serving as a training ground for aspiring racers.
The licence split, new damage model and other changes
Rain, new cars and circuits are the main points of interest, but the Season 2 update brings many other exciting changes.
The Road licence will be divided into Sports Car and Formula licences from now onwards. Your Road licence iRating and safety rating will carry over into both categories, but since Season 2, they will become separate rankings.
The idea behind this change is to improve participation in Formula leagues, especially at the higher level, because currently, GT and Prototype racing is the only realistic way up for drivers with over 6000-7000 iRating.
Elsewhere, the new damage model is available for the 19 vehicles, including GTEs and new releases (Super Formula Lights, SRX and Dirt Micro Sprint Car). As usual, the season update comes with updated default setups, AI racing and visual improvements for some circuits. For the full changelog, we recommend reading the official release notes.
Coach Dave Academy’s plan for 2024 Season 2
Our team of 15 professional drivers and engineers with an average iRating of over 8000 will continue to develop the best setups for ten popular series, including IMSA, VRS GT3, Porsche Cup, Super Formula and others.
In addition, expect weekly tutorials, lap guides and previews for special events scheduled for Season 2, including the famous Sebring 12-hour and Nürburgring 24-hour endurance races. To learn more about what we will be up to throughout 2024 Season 2, check out our blog post here.
