The Formula 1 season is finally underway! For all simracers, it’s another opportunity to take to the world’s racetracks week after week. Once again this year, I’d like to introduce you to the Assetto Corsa F1 2023 mods, which will bring us a little closer to real racing, while keeping us in our good old simracing chassis.
Assetto Corsa F1 mods put the official F1 games to the sword
For new simracers who haven’t yet had the chance to discover the joys of an F1 season in Assetto Corsa, a little background is in order. Assetto Corsa I may soon be middle-school age, but it’s still an absolutely essential sim. Today more than ever!
The reason for this is the monumental work put in by thousands of modders. Most of them are simply enthusiasts who are happy to make their contribution. Others, thanks to their talent and the quality of their work, have made a career out of it.
These modders maintain Assetto Corsa and improve it from month to month. The result is, quite simply, a game that is still capable of slapping the latest simus on the market in the face. It even has the luxury of dethroning the official F1 series when it comes to quality and up-to-date content. Yes, the first game to feature the brand-new Miami circuit in 2022 was not F1 22, but Assetto Corsa. And for the record, yes, the Las Vegas circuit already exists in draft form on AC.
The race list
But to prepare your season properly, we’re going to make ourselves a little shopping list. This list includes Formula 1 cars, of course. But also livery, up-to-date circuits and, of course, the racing rules. As a reminder, Assetto Corsa is not originally equipped with DRS or pit-stop rules.
F1 2023 models for Assetto Corsa
Like every year, the first thing we’re all looking forward to are the first Formula 1 mods. After a 2022 season that marked a major turning point for the VRC team and their superb Formula Alpha 2022, we’re scouring RSS to see what innovations they’ll bring us this season. But once again, it’s the French team ACFL who are the first to release their F1 2023 pack.
See the fantastic F1 2022 mods on Assetto Corsa
RSS Formula Hybrid 2023
Photo: Race Sim Studio
RSS wowed SimRacers the world over with their F1 Hybrid 2022 model. This year, they’ve spent 2,500 hours in development to bring us their most accomplished model yet. It’s a paid mod that costs around €4 (£3.79).
And the RSS teams haven’t contented themselves with a simple remake of the 2022 model. It’s an all-new Formula developed from the ground up, taking into account the changes in specifications concerning backgrounds and broadcasters. On the sound side, they went to a real Formula 1 racing team, whose name has not been revealed.
In the cockpit, you’ll find a GSI (Gomez Sim Industries) Hyper P1 steering wheel. It’s funny to think that today we’re adapting simracing steering wheels in mods. And in terms of design and immersion, the gamble has more than paid off.
In terms of driving, it’s a success again this year, and you can already find all the season’s liveries on RaceDepartment. Modder Shadow118 has once again delivered all the livery in less than 2 weeks!
ACFL F1 2023 (and online championship)
Photo: ACFL
Every year, the French team ACFL models ALL the F1 cars of the current season. These vehicles are offered as part of a paying package comprising all 10 cars and their respective liveries. But although each Formula is scrupulously reproduced in terms of aesthetics, in terms of performance they are all identical.
This choice to standardize performance is explained by two factors. Firstly, it’s a mod package used by leagues in championships. It would be inconceivable in a league to provide simracers with vehicles of differing performance. But this choice is also dictated by a technical reality concerning Assetto Corsa, namely that the differences in performance would be so minimal that the AI would ruin all this precision work anyway. For the AI in AC has its own autoblip, ABS and Traction Control, which distorts the team’s work.
Another major benefit is the updates. ACFL updates its models regularly throughout the season to keep pace with the evolution of real F1 kits. The complete package costs €19.99.
An online championship is also organized. It scrupulously follows the rules and races of the real Formula 1 World Championship. If you’d like to compete against other drivers for a crazy season, don’t hesitate to sign up!
Other F1 mods (vehicles) we’re looking forward to
The next vehicles we’re really looking forward to are, of course, the RSS Formula Hybrid 2023 and the VRC Formula Alpha 2023, due to arrive in the next few weeks. I’ll be sure to update the article as soon as they arrive!
F1 2023 liveries on RaceDepartment
If your car needs a lick of paint, the best thing to do is visit RaceDepartment. You’ll find every conceivable livery for just about every vehicle mod available today. My advice is to check out the work of modder Shadow118. He’s got a real eye for detail, and offers livery adaptations for all the F1 VRC and RSS mods. You can visit his creator page by following this link 😉
All F1 2023 season track mods for Assetto Corsa
It’s perhaps the modders who offer circuits that I admire the most. Every race week , from the Friday of free practice to the end of qualifying on Saturday, we’re treated to a track mod. When the circuit itself has not undergone any changes since the previous year, you get an update of the trackside sponsors. But it doesn’t stop there! Last year, for example, we were treated to the brand-new Miami circuit, on the very day of the actual grand prix.
The modder with whom I invite you to do your circuit shopping is Frenchman Pyyer. You can find his work on his Patreon page. There he shares tracks updated in real time, and sometimes revisits of historic races too! Here’s the link to his Patreon page. To access his mods, you have to donate €3 a month. Honestly, I’m delighted to do it, because his work is simply breathtaking.
THE mod for integrating DRS and PitStops rules into Assetto Corsa
When you want to recreate a Formula 1 race on AC, the big problem is the racing rules. AC was not designed to enforce DRS rules or AI pitstops. Miraculously, modder Schmawlik has created the RARE (Rules and Race Enhancements) application. An application that integrates with AC and will clearly change your life.
What it does for DRS:
- Triggering according to the track’s DRS zones.
- DRS deactivation if you’re more than a second behind the car in front at the detection line.
- DRS triggered after a player-defined number of laps (basic 3)
- DRS authorization based on track humidity (weather)
- Works during races, but DRS can be activated during practice and qualifying sessions.
- Beep sound when DRS is activated and flap opening sound when activated
- All options are, of course, fully adjustable 😉
As for pit stops, finally something that works!
- Force AIs to carry enough fuel for the entire race (no refueling at pits)
- Determine the rate of rubber wear at which AIs will make a stop (basic 60%)
- a little aside: Launch Control, so that AIs can finally learn to start their F1 cars correctly at the beginning of the race
In short, as you can see, this is an essential mode for experiencing the competition in the best possible conditions. Here’s the link to the mod’s Racedepartment page. Be very careful with the installation procedure, though: it’s not a simple click-and-drop in Custom Manager. Take the time to do it properly, so that everything works.
A bug that quite a few players (myself included) have encountered with this mod:
If you launch a race weekend (practice, qualifying, race), it’s imperative that your practice session lasts more than 5 minutes (and that you don’t skip it). OR that you don’t try out at all. If you don’t respect this condition, the AIs will tend to do anything during the qualifying session and the race. Going for spins, etc. Let’s hope the modder fixes it in the coming months!
Ready to experience your F1 2023 season on Assetto Corsa?
I hope you’ve found these mods useful, and that you’ll be able to experience the 2023 season live from your chassis! If you have any other suggestions for mods or modders you’d like to see on this list, please let me know in the comments! I’d be delighted to test their work and feature them 🙂
See you soon just below!
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