FH6 Best F1 & Open Wheel Cars — Single Seater Guide
The first time you drive an open wheel car in FH6, everything you know about driving in this game breaks. The braking point you've used for the last 200 hours on that corner? You're braking 50 meters too early. The corner speed you thought was the limit? Add another 20 mph. The steering input that turns a Senna into a corner? That input sends an F1 car into the wall because it responds to movements so small your controller barely registered them. Open wheel cars don't just go faster than road cars — they operate on a different physics layer entirely.
FH6 includes a growing roster of F1 cars, Formula drift cars, and vintage open wheelers from different eras. Some are competitive in S2 class against hypercars. Others exist in their own category and can only race other open wheel cars. This guide covers every open wheel car available, how to tune them, and why their handling model requires a completely different driving approach.
Modern F1 Cars
McLaren MCL38 (2024) — The Current Generation
The MCL38 is FH6's most modern F1 car and the closest you'll get to driving a current Formula 1 machine. The 1.6-liter turbo V6 hybrid makes around 1,000 horsepower in a car that weighs 798 kg. Downforce numbers are classified in real life but in FH6 the effect is clear: the car generates enough grip at 150 mph to take corners flat out that would send any road car into the gravel. The hybrid system deploys automatically — you'll hear the electric motor whine as it fills in torque on corner exit. DRS is available on mapped buttons and opens the rear wing for a straight-line speed boost. Top speed around 220 mph depending on wing settings.
In FH6 the MCL38 is restricted to open wheel events and cannot compete against road cars in standard S2 races. This is important — you can't just buy an F1 car and dominate the S2 leaderboards. The game keeps F1 cars in their own sandbox, which is the right call for balance. Tuning: lower the final drive to stretch gears for tracks with long straights. Wing angles matter massively — more angle means more corner speed but you'll get eaten alive on the straights by cars running less wing. On a balanced circuit, run about 60% wing. On a high-speed circuit, 40%. On Monaco-style tight circuits, 80%. Tire temperature is modeled in F1 cars but not road cars, so warmup laps matter if you're running simulation damage. Autoshow price around 3 million credits.
Ferrari SF-24 — The Scuderia Contender
Ferrari's 2024 challenger and the MCL38's direct competitor in FH6. Similar specs — 1.6-liter turbo V6 hybrid, roughly 1,000 horsepower, 798 kg minimum weight. The SF-24 handles differently from the McLaren despite the similar numbers. The Ferrari has slightly better traction out of low-speed corners — the rear end hooks up earlier on throttle application. The McLaren has better front-end bite on turn-in. On lap time they're within a tenth of each other on most circuits, so the choice comes down to which handling personality you prefer. Available through seasonal events or Autoshow for around 3 million credits.
Classic F1 Cars
McLaren MP4/4 — The 1988 Dominator
Senna and Prost won 15 of 16 races in this car. The 1.5-liter turbo V6 made 650 horsepower in qualifying trim and the car weighed 540 kg. No hybrid system, no DRS, no traction control — just a lightweight chassis, a screaming turbo engine, and a manual gearbox. In FH6 the MP4/4 is the most fun classic F1 car to drive because it's powerful enough to be exciting but light enough to throw around corners. The turbo lag is part of the experience — you have to anticipate power delivery about half a second ahead of corner exit. The manual gearbox means you're heel-toe downshifting, which is rewarding once you learn it. Available through the Autoshow for around 1.5 million credits.
Lotus 98T — The 1986 Turbo Era
Ayrton Senna's Lotus from the peak of F1's turbo era. The 1.5-liter turbo V6 made over 1,200 horsepower in qualifying trim — more than modern F1 cars — in a chassis that weighed 540 kg with zero driver aids. This car actively tries to kill you and that's the appeal. In FH6 the 98T is the most difficult car to drive fast on this list. The turbo comes in like a sledgehammer at 8,000 RPM and the rear tires have about 50% of the grip they should have for the power. But when you get a clean lap, it's faster than the MP4/4 by half a second on most tracks. The challenge is putting together a clean lap. Tuning: soften the rear springs, run lower tire pressure at the rear, and be progressive with the throttle. Don't mat the pedal until the car is straight. Autoshow around 1.2 million credits.
How Open Wheel Cars Handle Differently
The biggest adjustment is downforce. Road cars in FH6 generate moderate downforce and the grip feels linear — more speed, slightly more grip. Open wheel cars generate massive downforce and the grip curve is exponential. At 60 mph you have moderate grip. At 120 mph the car is glued to the road. At 180 mph you can take corners flat out that would be braking zones in any road car. This means the braking points move backward as you learn the car — you brake later than you think, then later again, then later again, until you find the limit where the front tires actually protest.
The second adjustment is weight transfer. Open wheel cars are 500-800 kg with extremely low centers of gravity. Direction changes happen instantly. The steering is direct — no rubber bushings, no power steering delay, no body roll. A twitch of the stick sends the nose exactly where you pointed it. This rewards smooth inputs and punishes jerky corrections. If you drive an F1 car like a rally car you'll spin at every corner exit. Smooth steering, smooth throttle, smooth brakes. Let the car do the work.
The third adjustment is tire behavior. F1 slicks have a narrow temperature window. Too cold and you have no grip. Too hot and they start sliding. The first lap on cold tires requires gentleness. By lap two the grip arrives. By lap 10 on softs the grip is fading. This matters in longer races — tire strategy is a real factor with open wheel cars in a way it isn't with road cars on street tires.
Open Wheel Events in FH6
FH6 restricts modern F1 cars to open wheel-specific events. You can't enter the MCL38 or SF-24 in a standard road racing championship. Classic F1 cars like the MP4/4 and Lotus 98T sometimes have more flexibility depending on event restrictions. Check the eligible car list before building a car for a specific championship. Open wheel events typically feature longer races with pit stops and tire strategy, which rewards consistency over one-lap pace. Bring a car you can drive at 95% without crashing, not the fastest car that you can only drive at 100% for two laps before binning it.