Originally Posted by
ic-racer
Now that I have watched the videos I see that the vehicle dynamics simulation is very useful in my setting of limited on-track testing. However, to get the benefit, it looks like I need the 4-corner scales.
Also, it seems that the information contained in the multitude of 'setups' available on the internet is only part of the overall package. Without knowing the 4-corner weights and CG of the car for which the setup pertains, one cannot expect equivalent performance.
4 wheel scales are definitely helpful but not imperative. What you are looking for is the relative effect of setup changes. Normally weight transfer, camber gain, overall stiffness are all affected when you make a change. What's important to understand are which properties are affected, by how much and does it move the handling in the direction you want to go.
All RC3 models include at least an educated guess at the CG location by comparision to similar vehicles. The CG position is essentially a constant in the calculations, knowing it's correct location is great but not critical to understanding what your setup changes are doing.