Aside from the introduction of six new cars and a new track, the other major feature of Assetto Corsa EVO’s recent V0.6 build was a 2026 version of the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the longest and perhaps most recognisable permanent race track in the world.
As a result, AC EVO is the only sim to feature the current layout of the Nordschleife, which, given its status as a mecca for car enthusiasts, gives developer Kunos Simulazioni a unique advantage over competing sims.
Thanks to insights from Kunos’s Co-Founder and Executive Manager, Marco Massarutto, we found out how the Italian studio went about upgrading its laser-scanned version of ‘the Green Hell’, reflecting changes made to the track for the 2026 season.
Collaboration
Nordschelife is a busy place. Not only do car manufacturers regularly use it to test their sports cars (Hyundai, BMW, Mercedes-AMG, Porsche, and the VAG group all have an official presence nearby), but it’s also in near-constant use by the general public from March through November via the Touristenfahrten layout.
And it seems like almost every other week, another obscure lap record is being broken; car makers understand the kudos of being the quickest around the 12.94-mile circuit.
Given how track development is generally a costly and slow process, how exactly did Kunos manage to secure access?
“We get access to the facility any time there are relevant updates, thanks to their [Nürburgring 1927 GmbH & Co. KG] cooperation and support,” answers Massarutto, citing the 13-year relationship between Kunos and the German facility. This arrangement bore fruit in Assetto Corsa’s version of the Nordschleife, which was released as part of the Dream Pack 1 DLC in 2015, something Massarutto describes as “one of the most successful DLCs of the [Assetto Corsa] franchise”.
“Every time they resurface the track, their LiDAR [laser-scan data] supplier updates the point cloud data and shares the updates with us, while Nürburgring GmbH informs us as much in advance about the modifications they are going to apply.
“And thanks to the closer cooperation we set with Misha Charoudin, who can address the most relevant things to be done, we can also apply all those details that can make the difference in the driving,” referencing Misha Charoudin, the popular Nordschleife YouTube personality.
“And who better than him can tell us if we did our homework properly?” he added with a wry smile.
Charoudin has made several pieces of content about AC EVO’s version of the Nordschelife in the past, including a standalone video reveal of the game’s much-vaunted open-world interpretation of the track’s surrounding Eifel region.
With over two million subscribers and a focus on Nordschleife-based content, his influence on the game’s popularity cannot be underestimated.
2026 Nordschleife updates
AC EVO already included a 2025-spec version of the Nordschleife, arguably the best example in sim racing, and there’s a clear desire from Kunos to focus on the track and its surroundings.
For 2026, the track has received several minor upgrades and improvements, with many new areas of kerbing added, widened or flattened. The Hatzenbach Kurve section, for example, has seen its kerbing flattened, opening up the entry point to the following complex.
At the exit of Foxhole, another flat kerb has been added, although its uses appear limited, with a similar situation at the approach to Karrussel. Perhaps the biggest change to the track occurs in the following section that climbs to Hohe Acht, where a particularly nasty stretch of astroturf has been ripped up and replaced with asphalt.
This part, which would be notoriously slippery in damp conditions, will almost certainly lead to quicker lap times when the circuit properly rubbers in this summer, enabling drivers to carry more speed into the following uphill left-hander by hugging the barrier before turning in.
Another section likely to drop lap times is a flattened kerb at Eiskurve, which should give both real and virtual drivers more confidence to get on the power early, before the daunting run through the famous Pflanzgarten.
All-new fencing has been added at Wehrseifen, too, which has again been implemented in-game.
“We received the data and photographic material in regards to the updates, partially from Nürburgring, and partially from our partners in the Eifel area,” explains Massarutto.
“These changes were included in a larger portion of work that is ongoing continuously if we consider the free-roaming map, which is currently in development,” he continues, again referencing free roam.
Pride
Despite AC EVO’s challenging Early Access development period, in which frequent delays, server issues, and the rollback of the game’s in-game economy have eroded consumer confidence, Kunos has countered with a self-hosted server implementation and a more relaxed attitude toward modding.
Having the most up-to-date version of the Nordschelife in sim racing is also a boon, underlining how important it is to the whole AC franchise.
“Well, how do you call your favourite car playground for the entire Kunos team? That’s how much we love the place!” said Massarutto.
“In EVO, the Nordschleife is simply the core of the map, its heart, if you like. Generally speaking, we have been absolutely keen to be granted with the rights needed to reproduce the track.
“[We are] proud, and privileged, and we are grateful to Nürburgring GmbH, which welcomed the EVO concept with great enthusiasm, granting us all the possible cooperation and support,” he stated.
And with such passion for the Nordschelife, will Kunos offer any more Nürburgring-based treats for the community?
“We always monitor the trends related to what people want to drive, and where. About historical content, you always have me at ‘ciao’!” he replies, enthusiastically.
“At the moment we are focused on what we are doing now, which is recreating the Eifel area at the best we possibly can, and trust us that is enough for a challenge.
“But you can definitely expect historical content coming in EVO in the future, so who knows?” he concluded, raising hopes that historic versions of the Nordschleife, including the long-demolished Südschleife, could appear in future.