New iRacing Update for Season 2: One of the Biggest Yet

iRacing has released a substantial development update, outlining a wide range of new features, content additions, and system improvements. This marks one of the platform’s most significant updates to date, introducing new cars and tracks while refining core physics systems and the user interface.

Following the Bathurst special event, the development team published detailed notes on the upcoming build. Below are the key highlights.

New Tracks

• Grand Prix of St. Petersburg debuts with a fully detailed street-course recreation.
• Barber Motorsports Park has been completely rebuilt using modern laser-scan data (free update for existing owners).
• Short oval art overhauls for Lanier, Langley, and USA International Speedway.
• Visual updates at Long Beach and Sebring.
• 3D curbs added to Red Bull Ring.

New Cars

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• NASCAR Cup Series Next Gen Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 (2026 body update).
• NASCAR Ram Truck added, bringing the number of represented manufacturers to four.
• Audi RS3 LMS Gen 2 TCR introduced.
• Gen 1 NASCAR moves to Legacy status.
• Credits offered to recent Gen 1 purchasers.

Major Physics Updates

TCR Class Overhaul

A complete ground-up rework including:

• New tire model (dry and wet)
• Updated braking systems
• Revised drivetrain, fuel specifications, and Balance of Performance
• Improved handling realism

GTE Class Refresh

All five GTE cars receive:

• Next-generation slicks and rain tires
• Revised aerodynamics and chassis behavior
• Updated garage system
• New ride height regulations

Historic Car Updates

• Audi 90 GTO and Nissan GTP ZX-T receive significant physics and balance updates.
• Lotus 49 is fully modernized with new tires, updated suspension, and historically accurate braking behavior.

Additional Physics Improvements

• 2026 NASCAR Cup physics updates (engine and aerodynamic revisions).
• Improved drafting model for NASCAR O’Reilly events.
• Dallara IR18 updated for more realistic IndyCar performance.
• Continued development of oval rubber buildup and track surface evolution.

AI Enhancements

• Simulated race finishes if a session is exited early.
• Ability to skip qualifying without being automatically assigned pole position.
• More human-like pacing and caution behavior.
• Dirt Oval AI currently in testing.

Sim UI Advancements

• Customizable HUD Profiles.
• Built-in live telemetry (brake and throttle trace).
• New Session Widgets.
• Visual Spotter accessibility feature.
• Driving Line toggle via customizable keybind.
• Ghost/reference car offset now accessible directly in the UI.

A deeper development breakdown is expected soon.

Audio Improvements

• Core audio engine optimized, reducing computational load by approximately 50%.
• Reverb system delayed but still in active development.
• Continued work on transmission audio separation and chassis flex modeling.

A Major Step Forward, With More to Come

While this update is already extensive, the developers have confirmed that additional improvements are on the way.

The most impactful changes for many users are the new UI enhancements, particularly for drivers who previously relied on third-party overlays such as SimHub, iOverlay, or Racelabs.

The updated UI introduces full HUD customization through Profiles, allowing users to create, save, and switch between layouts depending on the car or series. Default profiles can be assigned per vehicle, and configuration files are now easier to share.

One of the standout additions is integrated live telemetry. Drivers can now display real-time brake and throttle traces directly within the interface, both during live sessions and in replays. This enables more efficient input analysis and performance comparison without external software.

Two new widgets further streamline the experience:

• The Session Widget consolidates laps or time remaining, simulation time, and scoring information into a single, organized display.
• The Session Rules Widget provides quick access to essential rule details that were previously scattered throughout the interface.

The Driving Line can now be toggled via a bindable key while driving, eliminating the need to exit the car to change settings. This makes it easier for drivers to use the line temporarily when learning a circuit.

The Reference (Ghost) Car system has also been improved. The ghost offset feature is now directly accessible in the UI, allowing users to position a reference car ahead by a specific time gap for more structured practice sessions.

Finally, the Garage interface has been refined. Ride height is now directly adjustable with automatic recalculations for related components. Dampers have been moved to a dedicated tab, the layout is cleaner, and new tooltips provide guidance on shift RPM, LED settings, and damper tuning ranges.

Overall, this update focuses on deeper customization, improved data visibility, enhanced realism, and a more streamlined user experience, while laying the foundation for future development.

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