This is a NASCAR Heat 5 Cup setup for Bristol Motor Speedway that gets into the low 15s. It is not my own: it comes from the onboard video by The Setup Man, further down this page. Every value below is read from the garage screen in that video, so you can copy it line by line.
On the test screen it did a best lap of 15.372 seconds, against a goal of 15.556. That is the target. At Bristol the lap is decided by how little time you spend off the throttle.
The setup at a glance
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Left front camber | +3.0 deg |
| Right front camber | -3.5 deg |
| Front swaybar | 1.585 in |
| Wheel lock | 6 deg |
| Wedge | 51.5% |
| Rear end ratio | 4.86 |
| Grille tape | 25% |
| Brake bias | 54% |
Those eight numbers do most of the work. The full sheet is below.
Full setup sheet
Tyres
| Tyre | Pressure |
|---|---|
| Left front | 16.25 psi |
| Right front | 37.75 psi |
| Left rear | 18.50 psi |
| Right rear | 36.25 psi |
Springs
| Spring | Rate |
|---|---|
| Front left | 1,200 lbs/in |
| Front right | 1,200 lbs/in |
| Rear left | 550 lbs/in |
| Rear right | 550 lbs/in |
Shocks
| Shock | Bump | Rebound |
|---|---|---|
| Front left | 5 clicks | 3 clicks |
| Front right | 3 clicks | 3 clicks |
| Rear left | 3 clicks | 4 clicks |
| Rear right | 5 clicks | 3 clicks |
Weight and ride height
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Left weight | 54.2% |
| Front weight | 51.1% |
| Wedge | 51.5% |
| Front ride height | 4.000 in |
| Rear ride height | 4.000 in |
Misc
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Left front camber | +3.0 deg |
| Right front camber | -3.5 deg |
| Front swaybar | 1.585 in |
| Rear swaybar | None |
| Left track bar | 11.00 in |
| Right track bar | 11.00 in |
| Brake bias | 54% |
| Grille tape | 25% |
| Wheel lock | 6 deg |
| Steering offset | 0.100 |
Gears
| Gear | Ratio |
|---|---|
| 1st | 2.50 |
| 2nd | 1.75 |
| 3rd | 1.35 |
| Rear end ratio | 4.86 |
4th gear is covered on the screen and I will not guess it. Leave it at the value the game gives you.
An older version of this page said "around 1.580" for the front swaybar. The screen says 1.585, and the screen wins.
Why the camber is set this way
You only turn left, and at Bristol you are turning most of the lap. The load goes onto the right side tyres.
The right front runs -3.5, the same as Kentucky and Auto Club. Bristol is short, but the turns are banked steeply and the car is loaded hard for half the lap. The tyre needs that lean to stay flat on the track.
The left front runs +3.0, leaning the inside tyre into the corner too.
Why the swaybar is stiff and the lock is low
A front swaybar of 1.585 helps the car rotate on entry without upsetting the rear. Too much oversteer at Bristol and you lose confidence, and you start lifting early to stay off the wall. That costs more than any setup change gives back.
6 degrees of wheel lock is low for a short track. My Phoenix Xfinity setup runs 12. But Bristol's banking does a lot of the turning for you, so the wheel does not need to go far, and a lower lock makes the steering calmer at speed.
Why the rear end ratio is 4.86
Bristol is a half mile with very short straights, so the car needs to pull hard off the corners and never reaches a high top speed. 4.86 is a short rear end, much shorter than the 3.00 of my Auto Club setup on a 2 mile track.
Grille tape at 25% is low, so the engine runs cooler. On a half mile you spend most of a race in traffic, where the engine heats up fastest.
The track
Bristol Motor Speedway is a 0.533 mile concrete oval in Bristol, Tennessee, called "The Last Great Colosseum" because of the grandstands all round it. The numbers that matter for the setup, from the track's Wikipedia page:
| Part of the track | Banking |
|---|---|
| Turns | 24 to 28 degrees |
| Straights | 4 to 8 degrees |
The banking is variable: lower at the bottom of the track and steeper at the top. That came with the 2007 repave, and it is why there is more than one line around Bristol.
The spring Cup race ran on a temporary dirt surface for three years before going back to concrete. The version in NASCAR Heat 5, built on the 2020 season, is the concrete track.
For scale, the race lap record on Wikipedia is 14.945 seconds, set by Kyle Larson in 2018. A 15.37 in the game is quick.
The onboard
Here is the onboard lap from The Setup Man. The setup screen is at the end of the video.
How I would drive it
- Minimise the time off the throttle. A short lift into the turn is better than a long brake.
- Pick a line and stay on it. With variable banking, the high line and the low line both work, but changing lines mid run costs time.
- Be smooth on the throttle off the corner. With 4.86 and short gears, the rear will spin if you ask too much too early.
- Traffic comes quickly on a half mile. Plan the pass a corner ahead.
How to tune it for your driving
Change one thing at a time and run five laps before you judge it. The directions below are standard stock car logic, so check each one on track.
| Problem | First change |
|---|---|
| Rear steps out on corner exit | Raise the wedge a little, or stiffen the front swaybar one step |
| Car will not turn in the middle of the corner | Lower the wedge a little |
| Wheelspin off the corner | Lower the rear end ratio a little |
| Engine hits the limiter on the straights | Lower the rear end ratio |
| Front end washes out late in a run | Take 1 psi out of the right front |
With the servers closed since 1 August 2025, this setup is for career mode, quick races and split-screen. Set the AI first with my NASCAR Heat 5 AI settings, then judge the setup against them.
More NASCAR Heat 5 setups
- All 20 tracks are in my NASCAR Heat 5 Cup setups database.
- Same track, other car: Bristol Xfinity setup.
- Other short tracks: Martinsville Cup setup and Richmond Cup setup.
- Wheel not right yet? Start with my NASCAR Heat 5 FFB settings.
FAQ
What is the best camber for Bristol in NASCAR Heat 5?
+3.0 degrees on the left front and -3.5 degrees on the right front in the Cup car.
What lap time should I expect with this setup?
Low 15s. On the test screen it did a best of 15.372 against a goal of 15.556.
What rear end ratio works at Bristol?
4.86, with gears of 2.50, 1.75 and 1.35 for 1st to 3rd. Bristol needs acceleration, not top speed.
What front swaybar should I run at Bristol?
1.585 in this setup. Stiffen it one step if the rear moves on exit.
Whose setup is this?
The Setup Man's, from his onboard video. Every value is read from his garage screen.
Is Bristol dirt in NASCAR Heat 5?
No. The game is built on the 2020 season and uses the concrete oval.