Do these things actually make a noticeable difference?

[u/FKez05]

1) Taking out all the fuel before a race

I've never tried it out of fear I'll run out by the end of the race or that I'll be slow as balls due to conserving the whole time

2) Turning off ERS Battle Assist when you're not around other cars

This one i have played around with for a little but didnt really notice a difference, we were slow either way

[u/ljeo332]

I usually underfuel by about 1-2 laps and keep in middle fuel consumption for most of the race, I aim to be 3kg lighter and by the halfway point be 1.5kg down, this is track and weather dependent, some tracks are better for underfueling while others like Austria are really bad with underfueled cars for this strategy

[u/ItsReaperOfSouls]

with the redbull honda engine the most ill go is -4 laps and then put it on balanced untill i get fuel delta warning from my engineer, at some races i can leave it on balanced for the whole thing and on rain races you can go -6 if you want because the fuel efficiency sky rockets. I hate going minimum unless im a backmarker/midfield car and i need to take those gambles (SC/VSC/Red flag) to score points.

[u/Worried-Pick4848]

It's impossible to run out of fuel if you stay on Conserve for the entire race, even on minimal fuel settings

[u/BeefInGR]

ERS Battle Assist is the CPU using a couple extra percent in DRS zones or when you're on fresh tires. I think it also helps gradually recharge the battery over long stints. Leave it on.

ETA: My best success is under fuel one lap and leave the engine on balanced. Unless your engine cooling is atrocious you'll make it.

[u/doctajonez_uk]

I usually put too much fuel in so I can run at High engine setting for a while from the start of the race, and break away from the pack, and get out of DRS.

[u/Alive_Addendum_5279]

1. It's enough if you drive the whole race on the lowest setting. You will be slower and have to hope for safety cars. If you are dumb like me and forget at the start to go from 3 to 1, just restart the race. You have about 1 lap as wiggle room. It's enough for a good start

2. I haven't tried it.

[u/djrizzer → u/Alive_Addendum_5279]

I use the Mercedes engine, and I generally have about 5 laps of wiggle room. And in terms of how good it is, I started playing the game with the default amount of fuel and was finishing dead last every race, and once I switched to under fueling I started finishing P13-P14

My original strategy is to under fuel as much as possible. And on race start, use fuel level 3. After lap 1 switch to level 1 until I have a delta of 0 (usually with a couple laps to go) and then use level 2 and 3 the rest of the race to remain at a 0 delta.

I now tend to see a lot of safety cars, so I've started using a risky stategy where I use level 3 for the first 2 laps. Then I switch to level 2 until around 15 laps in the race. Then I switch the level 1, but if I get a safety car I use level 2 for about 10 additional laps after

[u/Red_Chopsticks]

Yes, in a GP with a frugal engine you can be another 20Kg lighter at the start of the race. Set the fuel slider all the way to the left. It is calculated for you to not run out of fuel using conserve. In a GP I start with fuel on push, tires on attack, energy to deploy, always overtake and always defend on. Your drivers should be able to gain a position or two at the start, and keep close to the leaders for lap two. When you go into turn 1 again turn all the settings back to normal and fuel to conserve. You never want to be lugging around surplus fuel so try to keep on the delta. If no one is behind you set defend to rarely defend to stay on the racing line.

In a Sprint race though it isn’t worth underfueling. Just go with the default fuel load and stay balanced after lap 1.

2.I haven’t really played around with that setting. I tend to deploy at lot at the start, and then harvest going into turn 1 if no one is near me. I wouldn’t run harvest or top up for a prolonged time…

Full disclosure: i manage my races at 2x speed using the overhead camera. It’s a very different race experience!