What’s new in Horizon Labs

External HUD Designer and design import

Horizon Labs 1.8.1 moves widget design editing to the standalone Horizon Labs Designer app. Import .hud designs from the Layout Editor and open them for editing without the in-app designer window.

• New Import design button in the Layout Editor copies .hud files (and optional .graphite sidecars) into your user designs folder
• Edit design opens Horizon Labs Designer externally instead of the built-in HUD Designer window
• Overlay runtime is unchanged — imported designs render live with the same telemetry bindings

Layout Editor

• Import a .hud exported from Horizon Labs Designer to register it on overlay.designs for the target widget.
• The pencil icon on each widget layer launches the external Designer with that widget's active design file.
• Layout positions and presets are unchanged; only the design authoring workflow moves external.

Horizon Labs Designer

• Install Horizon Labs Designer separately (sibling folder, Program Files, or registry InstallLocation).
• If the Designer is not found, Edit design opens the design file folder as a fallback.
• The legacy in-app HUD Designer window is disabled in 1.8.1; runtime scripts remain for overlay rendering.

Clearer HUD when you scale widgets up

Widgets enlarged in the Layout Editor can look soft or pixelated at 2× and above. This update keeps text, bars, and gauge markings sharp when you scale panels up, especially Driving score.

• Widgets you enlarge with Transform (scale) no longer look blurry or stretched
• Driving score, Speed/RPM, secondary gauges, and clock benefit from the fix
• Normal size (1×) looks the same as before; only scaled-up widgets change

Layout Editor

• Bars, small labels (GRIP, STAB, etc.), and tick marks stay crisp when you scale a widget up.
• Your saved positions and layout are unchanged. Only picture quality improves.
• Want bigger text only? Use Text scale in the typography panel instead of Transform scale.

Drive test, radial alt2 fixes, overlay stability

v1.7.7 adds a HUD drive-test simulator for layout QA without launching the game, fixes Speed/RPM radial style 2 clipping and alignment, and hardens overlay startup when config arrives before the canvas is ready.

• New Test button in Settings (left of Layout Editor) simulates UDP telemetry: 0→400 km/h, turns, and braking over ~19 s
• Speed/RPM radial style 2 (alt2): brake track no longer clipped at the right edge, gear and speed centered on arcs
• Overlay no longer crashes with clearRect on an uninitialized canvas during fade-in

Drive test simulator

• Toggle Test / Stop test from Settings; overlay opens automatically while the scenario runs.
• Built on the same 324-byte FH6 UDP packet builder as live telemetry.
• Status syncs when the scenario ends so the button returns to Test.

Speed/RPM radial style 2

• Widget bounds account for empty brake arc round caps at 3 o'clock.
• Arc center shifts left when alt2 geometry would exceed the viewport edge.
• Gear circle and speed readout align with the radial arc geometry.

Overlay runtime

• drawFrame returns safely when the main canvas context is not ready yet.
• Present loop no longer calls drawFrame during fade without a valid context.
• applyCanvasSize refreshes the context after canvas bitmap resize.

Layout editor and typography hotfix

v1.7.6 fixes layout editor selection boxes that could misalign with clock and lap-delta widgets, and restores the italic toggle for widgets that ship with italic fonts by default.

• Layout editor interaction boxes are now measured after the HUD preview renders, so text-based widgets align with their selection handles
• Clock widget font helpers no longer conflict during measurement, fixing incorrect box sizes for the clock layer
• Italic can now be turned off on speed, gear, lap-delta title, and clock widgets even when those roles default to italic
• Typography scale changes in the inspector now refresh selection boxes immediately

Layout editor

• Selection rectangles for clock and lap delta now use the same typography scale as the rendered preview.
• Preview draw order was corrected so canvas text measurement runs before box placement.

Typography

• Added italicOverride so user choices take priority over hardcoded draw defaults.
• Inspector italic checkbox reflects the effective state of migrated widget roles.

Custom canvas resolutions and widget typography

v1.7.5 adds custom viewport resolution controls for overlay and OBS, improves layout preview accuracy across unusual ratios, and introduces per-widget typography controls while preserving existing HUD font defaults during migration.

• Overlay and OBS can now follow the selected display, use a custom W×H canvas, or choose expanded presets including portrait, 16:10, ultrawide, and super-ultrawide formats
• OBS auto mode can force the resolved overlay viewport so browser sources match the intended canvas instead of guessing from the source size
• Layout editor preview now shows the resolved resolution, ratio, viewport mode, and preview scale
• Widget typography controls add text scale, font weight, italic, and reset from the layout editor inspector
• Existing profiles migrate typography snapshots from the current hardcoded HUD defaults and active widget variants to avoid visual regressions
• The full Helvetica Now Display woff2 pack is bundled, including 100, 300, 400, 500, 700, 800, and 900 weights plus italics

Viewport and OBS

• Settings now expose canvas source, custom width/height, DIP vs physical mode, and expanded OBS canvas presets.
• Display labels include physical resolution, ratio, and Windows scale factor.
• Layout presets export and import viewport source, custom viewport, viewport mode, and OBS force-viewport settings.

Typography

• Text widgets support typography overrides in the layout editor inspector.
• Migration captures per-widget typography roles from current defaults plus variant size multipliers.
• Helvetica Now Display now includes the complete bundled family used by the inspector weight picker.

Universal HUD presets and Motion HUD fixes

v1.7.4 makes exported HUD layouts portable across 1440p, 1080p, portrait, and OBS canvases, keeps Motion HUD strength consistent across resolutions, and fixes G-based Motion HUD effects when the G-force widget is hidden.

• Layout presets are now resolution-aware: positions saved on 2560×1440 resolve correctly on 1920×1080 and portrait displays
• Motion HUD pixel effects scale from a 2560×1440 reference so G-shift, zoom, 3D, and lens effects keep the same visual size
• G-shift and 3D now read live telemetry directly, so they work even when the G-force widget is disabled in the HUD layout
• Performance presets now toggle Motion HUD channels without switching the master Motion HUD setting off
• Chromatic aberration in the GPU lens pass follows its own channel toggle instead of being masked by radial stretch mode
• SmtcHelper build step now stops stale helper processes before replacing the executable, preventing locked-file build failures

Universal layout presets

• Exported presets store a reference viewport plus normalized widget positions.
• Imported presets resolve dynamically to the current overlay, layout editor, OBS, or portrait canvas size.
• Legacy pixel presets migrate automatically, including wide 2560×1440 layouts.

Motion HUD

• Motion amplitudes scale with the active viewport instead of fixed pixels.
• G-shift and 3D use live UDP telemetry first, so hiding the G-force widget no longer freezes G-based motion at zero.
• WebGL lens motion is corrected when lens resolution scale is below 1.
• Chromatic aberration remains independently controllable from radial edge stretch.

Performance and build

• Performance presets preserve the Motion HUD master switch and only adjust individual motion channels.
• Settings sync immediately after applying a performance preset.
• SmtcHelper.exe is stopped safely during build before the freshly published helper is installed.

Faster overlay and cinematic Motion HUD perfected

v1.7.3 delivers performance presets (Eco to Ultra), up to 12× faster HUD drawing vs v1.7.0, a polished Motion HUD, and removes the cooling-fan decor widget that cost GPU for little benefit.

• Performance presets: Eco, Balanced, High, Extreme, Ultra, Stream/OBS: explicit Apply, widgets unchanged
• HUD draws up to 12× faster than v1.7.0 in benchmarks (Eco ~4.9 ms/frame vs 61.6 ms)
• Compositor follows your HUD FPS; present idle at 30 Hz when springs are settled in race
• Motion HUD: true panoramic 3D on vertical axis, works standalone, 5° tilt cap
• Radial edge stretch scales smoothly 0–400 km/h; stronger top-speed stretch tuning
• Radial chromatic aberration: strong at corners, near-zero at center, with edge blur to kill RGB ghosting
• Fixed HUD disappearing when radial stretch and 3D were both enabled (single GPU pass)
• Smoother drift picto, cinematic zoom to 0.3×, vertical G-shift pop fix
• Cooling fan widget removed. Lower GPU use when only DOM decor widgets are active
• Performance panel in Settings and perf block in Diagnostics export

Performance presets

• Choose Eco, Balanced, High, Extreme, Ultra, or Stream/OBS under Settings → Performance.
• Apply explicitly. Your existing HUD FPS and widgets are unchanged until you confirm.
• Eco 30 FPS · Balanced 45 FPS · High 60 FPS + Motion HUD · Extreme 120 FPS · Ultra unlimited.
• Balanced: default migration preset, best compromise for most PCs.
• Stream/OBS: capture mode with overlay hidden on the game PC.
• Compositor no longer stuck at 60 Hz when your HUD runs higher or lower.

Motion HUD cinematic polish

• 3D perspective uses panoramic yaw around the vertical axis, no shear or roll artifacts.
• 3D can be enabled alone without requiring another motion channel.
• Lens stretch and chromatic scale linearly with speed from 0 to vmax, no 45 km/h cliff.
• Chromatic aberration is radial with progressive edge blur. Corners pop, center stays clean.
• Lens + 3D + G-shift render in one WebGL pass. HUD stays visible at all speeds and G loads.
• Drift angle picto is smoother; cinematic zoom reaches 0.3× at top speed.

Stability

• Cooling fan decor widget removed from HUD and layout editor.
• Motion effect toggles you disabled are not re-enabled by config migration.
• Widget dirty latch race fixed after high-rate telemetry bursts.
• Overlay skips motion pipeline cost when no visual motion effects are active.
• DOM-only decor widgets no longer force a full-screen canvas draw loop.

Track Tuning stability and gearing lap-time fixes

Fixes Track Tuning Calculate OOM on long sessions, surfaces gearing recommendations on power circuits with clear defer/watch reasons, and removes Motion HUD ghosting on Windows.

• Track Tuning Calculate no longer crashes with out-of-memory on long Learn sessions
• Gearing: final-drive recommendations on power circuits when straight speed evidence supports a lap-time gain
• Deferred or watch gearing shows why (more laps, corner vs straight trade-off) with estimated lap proxy
• Clearer Track Tuning rationale hints: defer, watch, suppress, and gate blocks are distinct
• Motion HUD: fixes double-opacity ghost on Windows overlay
• Diagnostic export adds gearing gate and lap-impact digests for support

Track Tuning

• Calculate completes on multi-lap circuits without heap OOM.
• Full compile stays in the worker; only a slim payload is sent to the UI.
• Gearing no longer silently drops when activation and lap impact warrant a recommendation.

Gearing on power circuits

• Micro final-drive lengthen when still pulling on long straights.
• Defer with reason when lap count is low but signal is real.
• Watch when corner exit and top-speed goals conflict. Trade-off explained in seconds (proxy).

Motion HUD

• Fixed ghost/double-opacity when Motion HUD is enabled on Windows.

Scroll, drift fix, OBS port, track map

• All Settings sub-panels scroll properly on compact windows (single- and multi-card)
• Car grip widget drift rotation now matches Forza lateral slip (sign fix)
• OBS browser-source port configurable under Overlay → Display (default 8088)
• Boot fix for profiles with legacy game-detector settings (no more hang at startup)
• G-force overlay startup fix (Forza Body widget loads reliably in the renderer)
• Settings blank panels fix (Overlay/Diagnostics/Settings tabs show content again after 1.7.1 scroll work)
• Diagnostics → Logs and Export: boot/crash logs and check results stay accessible

Settings scroll

• Overlay, Diagnostics, and Settings sub-nav panels use internal scroll when content exceeds the window.
• Especially helpful around 720px window height.

Drift angle

• Fixed inverted drift angle on the car grip HUD widget.

OBS port

• Set overlay.obsPort in Overlay → Display; URL hint updates automatically.
• Restart OBS browser source URL after changing port.

Track map

• Enable in Overlay → Widgets; place in layout editor.
• Draws current lap from posX/posZ telemetry while racing.

Stability

• Fixed startup hang when upgrading from older profiles that still had a legacy game-detector block in settings.
• Fixed G-force Forza Body widget throwing root is not defined on overlay load (1.7.0 regression).
• Fixed blank Settings content on Overlay, Diagnostics, Settings, and other tabs (missing HTML close tag in 1.7.1 scroll patch).

Motion HUD, new widgets, smarter AI, and shareable track results

Your HUD comes alive in v1.7.0: cinematic motion that follows every turn and stop, three fun new overlay widgets, AI Tuning trained on 1,600+ community setups, easier Quick and AI tuning flows, parts shopping hints, shareable track comparison cards, and a beefed-up Help and Diagnostics experience.

• Motion HUD: the overlay moves with corners, braking, and acceleration; dial intensity or pick Cinematic / Subtle
• Three new widgets: rearview charm, Now Playing on the race HUD, and a spinning cooling fan you can style
• AI Tuning learns from 1,600+ real community setups and can suggest parts to unlock next
• Quick Tuning and AI Tuning share a clearer step-by-step flow: review, save, copy to Forza, then bench or track if you want
• Parts advisor shows recommended upgrades, prices, and what you still need to buy for your build goal
• Track Tuning: export a polished comparison image for social or friends; optional lap delta while you are still learning the circuit
• Profile library: compare any two saved setups side by side; filter Quick and AI saves from Home
• Help search finds answers across FAQ and tutorials; setup guides for single PC, Xbox to PC, and dual PC
• Diagnostics makes connection troubleshooting easier; OBS can pull the HUD from another device on your network
• G-force meter can hold your peak reading; more cars recognized automatically when you hop in game

Motion HUD

• New Motion HUD under Settings → Overlay: turn the effect on, set how strong it feels, or pick Cinematic or Subtle.
• The HUD slides with you in corners, lifts under hard braking, and dips when you accelerate, so the overlay feels tied to the car.
• Mix and match speed zoom, corner motion, brake and accel motion, edge stretch, and a subtle speed lens look.
• Optional light 3D tilt adds extra drama without turning off the motion you like.
• Tuned for a clean, sharp look on Windows so the HUD stays crisp at race pace.

New HUD widgets

• Rearview charm: a hanging good-luck charm that swings with bumps, jumps, and hard driving; use your own image.
• In the layout editor, resize the charm, adjust the rope, and choose how it hangs from the mirror.
• Music on HUD: see what is playing without leaving the race, with album art, title, artist, and skip controls when you want them.
• Compact layout when you only need a small Now Playing strip on screen.
• Cooling fan: a playful animated fan for hot days; pick blade and body colors and how fast it spins.

AI Tuning and Quick Tuning

• AI Tuning is smarter: trained on more than 1,600 community setups from top FH6 tuners and hub exports.
• More cars and tire combos covered, with results still grounded in Quick Tuning physics you can trust.
• After AI proposes a setup, see how confident the suggestion is and whether parts upgrades would help.
• Quick Tuning and AI Tuning now follow the same clear path: review the setup, save your profile, copy values into Forza.
• Jump straight into Bench or Track Tuning to test the proposal on track without typing everything again.

Parts advisor

• Browse recommended suspension, tire, gearbox, diff, and other upgrades for many FH6 cars.
• Build Config shows parts that fit your goal, what they cost, and what you have not unlocked yet.
• Track Tuning can factor in circuit-friendly parts when it analyzes your laps.

Track Tuning

• After comparing learn laps vs verify laps, export a polished summary image to share.
• Pick landscape or portrait layout; the card uses your theme and accent colors.
• Turn on live lap delta while learning a new circuit so you always know if you are faster or slower.
• Lap times read consistently across every track screen.

Profile library and Home

• Compare with: pick two saved profiles and see exactly which settings changed.
• Filter by Quick Tuning and AI Tuning saves alongside Bench, Live, and Track profiles.
• Recent saves on Home open in one click so you can get back to tuning faster.

Help and setup

• Search Help for FAQ answers and step-by-step tutorials in one place.
• Quick links on Overlay, Music, Connection, and setup tabs point you to the right guide.
• Hundreds of new and updated help articles, available in all 20 languages.
• First-run setup wizard shows your progress and a clearer path through Forza Data Output settings.

Diagnostics and connection

• View recent startup and crash logs inside Diagnostics when something goes wrong.
• Test your telemetry connection with one button and retry if the game link did not start cleanly.
• Clearer warnings when a port is already taken, with hints on what to fix.
• Connection panel shows live packet activity so you know data is flowing.
• Send a diagnostics bundle when reporting a bug; choose where to save it before upload.
• OBS LAN mode lets a browser overlay on another PC or tablet on your Wi-Fi pull the HUD (home network only).

HUD polish

• G-force meter can pin your peak G until it fades; adjust how long the peak stays visible in the layout editor.
• New widgets show live previews in the layout editor so you know what you are placing.
• Expanded car list helps Horizon Labs recognize more vehicles as soon as telemetry arrives.

Release notes display fix

Fixes release note bullets showing raw markdown syntax when checking for updates.

• In this update panel renders bold and italic in changelog lines
• Help and What's new release cards use the same formatted text

Settings

• Release note lists parse **bold**, *italic*, and `code` safely instead of showing asterisks.

Full localization, HUD upgrades, and Settings polish

Since v1.6.6: complete 19-language UI, new radial clock HUD widget, G-force and drift-angle telemetry fixes, layout-editor overlap cycling, offline Quick/AI tune saves, music volume restore after menu fade, Tune/Home UI cleanup (Quick Tuning rename, assistant subtitle, five Home shortcuts), and a more reliable Settings shell (status pill, instant quit, Home banner).

• 19 locales: Settings, Tune, HUD, layout editor, Help, and dynamic strings fully translated
• Radial clock widget: digital skew panel or full analog dial with timezone in layout editor
• G-force bubble aligned with Forza UDP; drift angle live again at 60 Hz on the hot path
• Layout editor: click stacked widgets to cycle layers; lap delta bar spacing stabilized
• Tune: save offline Quick/AI proposed setups; manual car profile when telemetry has no match
• Tune/Home UI: Quick Setup renamed Quick Tuning; hub cards only; five assistants on Home
• Music: Windows volume restored after fade-to-pause in menus (no stuck at 0%)
• Status pill shows Telemetry OK when Home is Connected; footer Quit within ~1.5s
• Home banner car name displays correctly ({carDisplay} interpolation fix)

Localization

• All manifest locales (19) now have complete bundles for settings, tune, layoutEditor, hud, help, and dynamic.
• Fixed cross-locale pollution (e.g. French layout editor strings in other languages, German tune keys in wrong locales).
• Status pill boot states use dynamic i18n keys instead of static HTML text.
• Single-brace placeholders like {carDisplay} now interpolate correctly in banners and messages.

HUD & overlay

• New radial clock widget: digital skew readout or RPM-style analog dial; timezone picker in layout editor.
• Body Acceleration G-force bubble matches Forza UDP (game-aligned calibration, 3-axis pipeline cleanup).
• Drift angle / sideslip restored on the 60 Hz hot telemetry path for car grip and label widgets.
• Lap delta widget: stable bar width, natural digit spacing, dedicated gap between time and delta columns.
• Stacked overlapping widgets: repeated clicks in the layout editor cycle which layer is on top.

Tune Architect

• Offline Quick Setup and AI Tuning: review proposed setup, then save without a bench session.
• Manual car profile: skip unknown telemetry car via ordinal 9999 and save under a custom name.
• Workflow session SSOT and fix for carOrdinal overwritten when appending profile saves.
• Quick Setup renamed Quick Tuning in the UI (19 languages); hub shows assistant cards only.
• Tune header shows active assistant name under Tune-Architect; bench intro text removed.
• Continue session banner on hub when a workflow is in progress (including AI Tuning).

Music

• After fade-to-zero pause in Forza menus, session volume returns to your configured race level.
• Volume also restores on app quit when the music player is disabled.
• Quit no longer blocks up to 10s waiting for the Windows volume helper (capped at 1.5s).

Settings & reliability

• Header status pill synced with diagnostics: Telemetry OK when UDP packets arrive on any tab.
• Footer Quit: confirmation dialog opens instantly; respects Confirm before quitting in Settings → General.
• Boot sequence: status pill no longer stuck on Starting… after language or feature init.
• Overlay, Settings, and Diagnostics scroll panels refined for small windows (flex scroll chain).
• Home quick actions: start Bench, Live, Track, Quick Tuning, or AI Tuning in one click.
• Removed redundant Show/Hide overlay header buttons; use Overlay tab or Layout editor instead.

Stability and usability improvements

Fixes a launch issue some users saw on v1.6.5, improves scrolling in Settings and related panels, and lets you drag sliders smoothly in the layout editor. Keeps AI Tuning and the Windows 10 startup improvements from the previous release.

• Horizon Labs opens reliably again after a failed v1.6.5 update
• Overlay, Settings, and Diagnostics scroll properly on smaller windows
• Layout editor sliders (opacity, steering wheel, tips history) support click-and-drag
• AI Tuning and faster Windows 10 startup from v1.6.5 included

Reliability

• If the app would not start after v1.6.5, install v1.6.6 and launch once: settings and tune data are preserved.
• Before installing, quit all Horizon Labs instances from Task Manager.

Layout editor

• Inspector sliders now follow the mouse while you drag, not only when you click a new position.

Windows 10 boot fix: Settings opens reliably again

Fixes a startup regression on Windows 10 when your profile contains many saved car setups: Settings now opens within seconds, language and Show IP work immediately, and Tune scripts load only when you open the Tune tab. AI Tuning is bundled again for offline setup prediction from car physics.

• Boot fix for large tune profiles: no more invisible Settings or multiple HorizonLabs.exe on Win10
• Settings shell first: Home, Overlay, Music, and Diagnostics usable before Tune loads
• AI Tuning restored: 6-step wizard, predictive setup + parts (fh6-physics/ml, bundled AiPredict.exe)
• Music bridge lazy start: SmtcHelper only when you open Music or use media controls
• Config migrations in memory: one disk write instead of dozens of full settings rewrites
• Boot diagnostics: boot-trace.log and crash.log under %APPDATA%\fh6-radial-desktop for support

Startup & reliability

• ConfigStore runs migrations in memory and flushes once: fixes multi-minute freeze with 600 KB+ settings files.
• Tune Architect, Track Tuning, and Three.js load on first Tune tab visit (optional idle preload).
• Music integration no longer calls syncPlayerEnabledState at boot: ensureMusicBridge on demand.
• Per-module try/catch in Settings init so one failed panel does not block the whole window.
• If stuck on v1.6.0–v1.6.3: end all HorizonLabs.exe in Task Manager, install v1.6.5, relaunch.

AI Tuning

• Tune Hub → AI Tuning: vehicle, limits, build config, goal, proposed setup, save.
• Offline inference via bundled AiPredict.exe (PredictiveBlender v4: policy + physics bank, Quick Setup anchor).
• Unknown cars: low-confidence physics-based suggestion, not community tune lookup.

4 tuning levels, Music & Profile Library

Four tuning levels: Quick Setup for an instant base, AI Tuning trained on popular FH5/FH6 tunes, Bench Tuning with telemetry, and Track Tuning for circuit-specific custom setups. Music integration with zero ban risk (no game files touched). Smarter recommendations with evidence cards, Apply/Try Next/Watch buckets, and per-car session memory. Profile library with search, filter, duplicate and rename.

• Quick Setup - instant 9-tab offline calculator; no driving needed
• AI Tuning - AI trained on hundreds of top FH5/FH6 community setups; predicts optimal tune from car specs and goal
• Track Tuning - circuit analysis with heatmap, lap delta comparison, custom setup per track and driving style
• Smart recommendations - evidence cards (coverage, balance, uncertainty), Apply/Try Next/Watch buckets, car session memory
• Parts Advisor - recommends suspension, tires, diff, gearbox, aero parts for your goal
• Music - Now Playing with album art, media controls, auto-pause or volume ducking in menus, fade, zero ban risk
• Profile Library - browse, search, filter by type, duplicate and rename saved profiles
• Track Lap HUD - new overlay widget for lap progress, best lap, signal quality during track sessions
• Launch at login + close behavior + font size settings

Quick Setup & AI Tuning

• Quick Setup: 9-tab offline calculator - pick engine, limits, parts, goal; full tune computed instantly. Copy to Forza or send to Bench/Track.
• AI Tuning: trained on hundreds of popular FH5/FH6 setups. 6-step wizard with vehicle, limits, build config, goal, proposed setup and save. No bench required.
• Build Config Panel: suspension, tires, differential, gearbox, aero - each choice shows which tabs it affects.
• Parts Advisor: suggests part swaps for your tuning goal (e.g. Race suspension, Sport tires).

Track Tuning

• Calculate phase: analysis engine generates custom setup for your car, circuit and driving style. Decision cards, Parts Advisor, evidence cards.
• Verify phase: drive again with new setup. Dual-path map compares baseline vs validation laps with per-section delta.
• Save tune + circuit (heatmap + best lap) for future reference. Export raw session data.
• Track Lap HUD overlay: phase, lap progress, best lap, last lap, signal quality.

Music, Profiles & Settings

• Music: Now Playing with title, artist, source app, album art. Previous/Play-Pause/Next controls. Auto-pause or lower volume in menus (0-100%). Separate race volume slider. Fade transitions (0.2-5 s). Zero ban risk - no game files modified.
• Profile Library: grouped by car, filter by Bench/Live/Track, text search. Load, Duplicate, Rename, Delete from one panel.
• General settings: launch at login, start minimized/hidden, close behavior (Ask/Minimize/Quit), quit confirmation, font size (N/L/XL), Light/Dark/System theme.
• Terrain disclaimer for Rally/Offroad profiles. Post-test recommendation panels with Forza mirror hints. Quit confirmation dialog.

Bench Calculate & TA fixes

Dedicated Calculate pages after bench 1 and bench 2, workflow Previous/Reset fixes, per-recommendation apply in Tune-Architect, Tune engine improvements (Rally/Offroad profiles, verify fixes, 11-category ingest), PSI decimal display, and HUD/layout-editor translations for all 20 languages.

• Calculate page after bench 1 - profile picker, Start calculating, Apply per recommendation and Apply all to Tune-Architect
• Calculate page after bench 2 - locked profile, Calculate + refinements before Save
• Workflow Previous and Reset work without restarting the app; try several profiles before locking at Next
• Tune engine - 11-category strict ingest, verification fixes, Rally and Offroad profiles, manual profile picker
• PSI tire pressure shows correct decimals in setup sliders
• HUD and layout editor strings translated across all 20 languages

Bench Tuning workflow

• Finishing the test protocol opens the Calculate step in the workflow rail.
• Apply recommendations individually or with Apply all to Tune-Architect before verification.
• Profile locks only when you click Next toward verification.
• After verification, Calculate opens with your locked profile for final refinements.

Tune-Architect engine

• 11-category strict ingest wiring; verification fixes for aero alias and balanced damping.
• Brakes use phase-2 grip; FH6 Data Out fields for clutch, handbrake, CarGroup, smashables.
• New Rally and Offroad destination profiles; manual profile picker (no auto override).
• Base gearing uses stack-health equilibrium scoring.

HUD and languages

• Tire pressure (PSI) decimal display fixed in setup sliders.
• HUD and layout-editor copy localized for all 20 supported languages.

Big QoL update

Big QoL update - GearEngine rebuilds gearing recommendations (biggest Tune Architect jump since v1.3.2), plus snappier HUD gauges, smoother low-FPS overlay, cleaner Bench Tuning, and more reliable Live Tuning - on top of the Horizon Labs rebrand, new Home screen, and full 20-language support. Your settings, layout presets, and car data migrate automatically from the previous FH6 Radial HUD folder on first launch.

• Big QoL update - GearEngine gearing, snappier gauges, smoother 30 FPS HUD, cleaner bench flow, and more reliable Live Tuning
• GearEngine gearing - final drive, 1st, middle, and top gear optimized together; up to +79% better shift calibration vs v1.3.2; 8/8 QA car types improved (v1.3.2 regressed on 6/8)
• Snappier HUD - throttle, brakes, and speed track your inputs in real time (no multi-second overlay lag)
• Smooth at 30 FPS - Eco HUD mode stays fluid without flicker or freeze when you cap overlay FPS to save CPU
• Bench Tuning flow - taller, easier-to-read stage; bench 2 reuses your bench 1 profile instead of asking again
• Live Tuning fixes - session reset clears old coach data; recommendations stay when you switch tabs; chained applies no longer get stuck
• Rebrand to Horizon Labs - new name, icon, and Windows installer (Horizon-Labs-Setup); settings migrate from the old app folder automatically
• New Home tab: game status, current car, overlay state, recent saved profiles, and one-click shortcuts
• Clearer navigation: overlay setup, Tune-Architect, cars, diagnostics, and app preferences each live in their own place
• Bench Tuning and Live Tuning replace the old Full Bench / Quick Tune labels - same workflows, easier to tell apart
• Tune-Architect hub shows quick actions to start Live Tuning, continue a session, or open saved profiles
• Engine and telemetry readiness shown earlier so you know when tuning is available
• Full interface in 20 languages - Settings, Help, FAQ, and Tune-Architect follow your language choice
• Light, dark, or system theme in Settings → Appearance
• Separate accent colors for the HUD overlay and the Settings interface
• Confirmations use in-app dialogs instead of Windows pop-ups
• Ctrl+1–7 jumps between main tabs; improved keyboard and screen-reader support in section menus
• Short Tune tour after the setup wizard shows where Bench Tuning and Live Tuning live

Rebrand

• The application is now Horizon Labs (tagline: Telemetry & tuning companion).
• New HL icon in the taskbar, Start menu, and Settings header.
• Windows installer and executable are renamed - reinstalling is recommended; auto-update still uses the fh6-radial-hud-updates channel until a future migration.
• On first launch, config, layout presets, and car database files copy from %APPDATA%\FH6 Radial HUD when present.

Home and navigation

• Home is the new starting point: telemetry connection, car detection, overlay visible or hidden, and banners when a tune session is running or paused.
• Recent saved profiles appear on Home so you can reopen a Bench or Live setup without digging through menus.
• Overlay, layout presets, gauge units, and HUD widgets are grouped under the Overlay tab with section shortcuts along the top.
• Connection, language, updates, startup, and appearance moved to the Settings tab so tuning screens stay focused on the car.

Gearing - GearEngine

• Final drive, 1st gear, middle gears, and top gear co-optimized on the real Forza gear grid - not middle-only.
• Peak gains vs v1.3.2 reco: Track +79%, Sprint +45%, Drag +36%, Top speed +19%, Endurance +16%.
• Overlapping gears fixed where v1.3.2 made overlap worse; gearbox health up to +18 points on several profiles.
• Sprint turbo 6-speed: 1st −12%, mid-stack realigned, box health 82 → 100. Track 4↔5 overlap: +76% calibration. 7-speed track: −52% → +58% vs v1.3.2.
• Up to ~31,000 catalog gear trials per bench (vs ~5,000 in v1.3.2); scores post-shift RPM in the power band.

HUD and performance

• Gauges track throttle, brakes, clutch, and speed in real time - fixes visible multi-second lag on the overlay.
• Optional HUD FPS cap (e.g. 30) stays smooth without flicker or freeze; fade in/out is steadier when the HUD wakes or hides.
• Lower CPU when Tune Architect is off; overlay still wakes quickly when you start driving.

Tune-Architect

• Bench Tuning - full flat-ground measurement run (acceleration, braking, grip), then profile choice. Same protocol as before; clearer name.
• Bench 2 keeps the profile you picked after bench 1 - review refinements and save without a second profile picker.
• Bench and verification screens use a taller layout that is easier to scan on wide monitors.
• Live Tuning - mirror your Forza setup, then get live coaching and setup suggestions while you drive. Same live coach as Quick Tips in v1.4; clearer name.
• Reset session clears coach history and report data when you start fresh.
• Live recommendations stay available when you leave the tab and come back; applying several suggestions in a row no longer blocks on the second apply.
• Hub quick actions let you start Live Tuning or resume where you left off in one click.
• Status rail shows when the tune engine is ready so you are not left guessing on the first steps.
• After the first-run wizard, a short tour points you to the Tune-Architect tab and reminds you to mirror Forza setup before Live Tuning.

Languages and appearance

• Choose your display language under Settings → Language - 20 locales including French, Japanese, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), German, and more.
• Help and FAQ content follows the selected language instead of staying English-only.
• Theme: System follows Windows, or lock Light / Dark for this window.
• Pick one accent color for buttons and highlights in Settings, and another for gauges and arcs on the in-game HUD.

Polish and reliability

• Delete preset, apply tune, and similar actions use styled in-app confirmations that match the rest of the UI.
• Live connection status (UDP, last packet) sits next to telemetry fields in Settings → Connection.
• Tune workflows and overlay options are easier to scan on wide monitors and on smaller windows.

Quick Tips live coach, lighter overlay

Quick Tips is a new live coach that watches how your car handles while you drive and suggests small setup changes on the HUD. Mirror your Forza setup in Settings first, then enable Quick Tips and Show on HUD. This release also cuts baseline CPU when you only want the telemetry overlay, plus fixes and polish from v1.3.4 through v1.3.7.

• New Quick Tips live coach watches your handling while you drive in free roam or between events
• Get small setup suggestions on the HUD (balance, tires, brakes, and more) after you mirror your Forza setup in Settings
• Turn on Quick Tips and Show on HUD to see tips while driving
• Eco, Balanced, or Heavy controls how often the coach analyzes and how often tips appear
• Much lower baseline CPU when you only want the telemetry HUD with Tune Architect and Quick Tips off
• Lower CPU in FH6 menus when the HUD is hidden; it wakes quickly when you drive again
• Optional HUD FPS setting to trade smoothness for CPU savings
• Throttle and brake bars feel more responsive the moment you press or release
• Live coaching stays ready when Tune Architect is on and you are editing setup
• Tune Architect starts off each launch and turns off when Quick Tune or Full Bench finishes
• HP, torque, boost, and speed gauges work on the live HUD again; mph setting applies everywhere
• Drivetrain auto-syncs when you change cars; saved setups and profiles stay per car
• Smoother overlay and stream output with OBS or dual display mode
• Settings window is lighter when open; less sluggishness with the app in the background

Quick Tips live coach

• New live coach watches how your car handles while you drive in free roam or between events.
• Suggests small setup changes (balance, tires, brakes, and more) right on the HUD.
• Mirror your Forza setup in Settings first, via Quick Tune or after a measurement bench.
• Enable Quick Tips and Show on HUD to see tips while driving.
• Eco, Balanced, or Heavy sets how often it analyzes and how often tips appear.
• A CPU hint under Quick Tips explains what each intensity costs.
• Coaching stays ready when Tune Architect is on and you are editing setup.

Performance and overlay

• Much lower baseline CPU with Tune Architect off and Quick Tips off (overlay only).
• Lower CPU in FH6 menus when the HUD is hidden; wakes quickly when you drive again.
• HUD stops drawing in menus instead of staying active in the background.
• Optional HUD FPS setting to choose smoother visuals or lower CPU use.
• Throttle and brake bars respond faster when you press or release.
• Handbrake, boost, drift, suspension, and tire widgets stay smooth on the overlay.
• Less PC sluggishness when the app runs in the background.

Tune Architect

• Tune Architect starts OFF each launch so you opt in when you want it.
• Turns OFF automatically when Quick Tune or Full Bench reaches Done.
• Quick Tips and Full Bench are separate top-bar choices, not both at once.
• Saved setups and profiles stay scoped to each car; the profile picker loads the right driving slot.
• Verification and test steps stay inside Settings panels.
• Tire pressure install range goes up to about 50 psi; spring and aero bounds stay whole numbers in the UI.

Gauges and streaming

• HP, torque, boost, and speed gauges work on the live HUD again.
• mph selected in Settings applies to overlay speed and Tune Architect recaps.
• Smoother overlay and stream output while OBS or dual display mode is on.
• Drivetrain auto-syncs when you change cars.

Overlay idle CPU budget

Lower CPU when the HUD is hidden in menus or Tune Architect is idle in configure mode - deep sleep stops canvas draws, overlay live IPC is gated on menu idle, and cold telemetry drains at 4 Hz instead of 15 Hz when only the overlay needs updates.

• Deep sleep on menu idle - no canvas draws after Hide when inactive fade completes
• Overlay live IPC suppressed while deep-sleeping; race-on edges still wake instantly
• Cold telemetry coalesce at ~4 Hz when TA is off or configure-only (overlay display)
• 60 fps draw cap and fewer GC allocations on hot telemetry paths
• TA configure mode: subscriber registered but no engine ingest until protocol or coaching
• Drivetrain sync fix when switching cars
• CPU targets: ≤5% driving TA off, ≤2% menu idle, ≤8% TA configure

Tune Architect domain refactor

Tune Architect is reorganized for clearer setup, session, and protocol behavior: it starts off each launch until you enable it, turns off when a Quick Tune or Full Bench run finishes, and keeps saved setups and profile picks scoped to the current car.

• Tune Architect starts OFF each launch - opt in explicitly
• TA auto-disables when Quick Tune or Full Bench workflow finishes
• Tire pressure install max up to 50 psi; spring/aero min-max stay whole numbers
• Saved setups scoped per car; profile picker loads driving slot
• Verification protocol text stays inside panels; lower CPU when TA idle

HUD gauges and drivetrain sync

Fixes secondary HUD gauges (HP, torque, mph) after the telemetry hot/cold split, mph display in overlay and Tune Architect, and drivetrain stuck on FWD when switching cars.

• HP, torque, boost, and mph gauges work again on the live overlay
• mph selected in Settings → Gauges applies to overlay speed and Tune Architect recaps
• Drivetrain auto-syncs when you switch cars; bounds edits no longer freeze FWD on disk
• Stale drivetrain from the previous car is not merged during car changes

Setup persistence and Apply fixes

Bugfix release for Tune-Architect setup mirroring: bounds, gear count, assists, and mechanical locks now stay put after Apply.

• Apply test results no longer resets gear count, aero locks, transmission, or driver assists
• Install min/max bounds (springs, ride height, tire pressure) save before the verification run
• Whole-number PSI values (e.g. 31 psi) work in tire pressure fields
• Spring install range up to 1500; separate front/rear bounds persist correctly
• 5-speed cars: verification protocol respects your gear count after Apply

Tune-Architect: steadier results and clearer bench coach

Everything since v1.3.1: steadier tuning, faster overlay, smarter measurement bench, better gearing, clearer in-game coach.

• Smarter recommendations when a test was messy; gentler changes when you re-tune the same car
• Confirmation runs only succeed when the car actually improved; warning if Forza setup does not match
• Gearing from real top speed; test and verify runs share shift data on the second pass
• One measurement coach on screen: Accel, Brake, Grip with instructions adapted to your car
• Smooth step progress bar; amber alerts if stuck or data quality is poor (restart suggested, not forced)
• EventLab 699 333 588 flat strip reminder in Settings for measurement runs
• Faster overlay and menus; lower CPU when Hide when inactive or Tune Architect is off
• Profile preview required before apply; highlights show what changed after a tune

Smarter tuning you can trust

• Recommendations are more careful when a test run was messy. Conflicting suggestions are sorted out, and repeat tunes on the same car stay gentler.
• Confirmation runs check more areas. Success only counts when the car actually improved.
• You get a warning if your setup in Forza does not match what the app expects.
• Live coaching stays aligned with your last tune. The HUD tells you when driving data is not strong enough to trust.
• After choosing a driving profile (Track, Sprint, Drift, etc.), you must preview the proposed setup before you can apply it.
• Profile detection is better on long straights (max-speed builds are less likely to be misread as drift).
• After a test or confirmation run, the recap shows peak speed with gear when top-gear limiter data is available.

Gearing that matches how the car actually drives

• Gearing suggestions use a deeper search: gears are tuned together, fixed in order, and adjusted as a set, not one ratio at a time in isolation.
• Final drive is based on real top speed from your run when the car hits the limiter in top gear, not a generic fallback.
• On the confirmation run, gearing from the first test is kept and merged, so a thin second pass does not throw away good shift data.
• Suggestions fit how the car pulls in each gear, across all supported driving profiles.

Measurement bench: clearer, fairer, car-aware

• Soft warnings and live hints during the run instead of failing too early.
• Launch wheelspin is handled better. The acceleration phase is split into clearer sub-steps (build speed, shift up, hold top gear).
• One coach panel during the bench. No duplicate HUD.
• Three simple steps on screen: Accel, Brake, Grip.
• Instructions adapt to your car (throttle, speed cap, and cornering targets). A hypercar no longer gets the same advice as a slow car.
• Progress bar moves smoothly through each step instead of jumping in big chunks.
• Amber alert banner when you do the wrong thing, get stuck on a step, or data quality drops, with a nudge to cancel and restart if needed. Alerts do not block the run.
• Settings keep the full step-by-step guide, data quality stats, and EventLab details. The in-game overlay stays short and easy to read at speed.

Faster, smoother overlay and menus

• Gauges and overlay share one live data path. No more noticeable lag in Settings.
• The HUD wakes up quickly when you leave the menu. Throttle and brake bars no longer crawl back slowly.
• Entering or leaving menus feels immediate. The overlay shows and hides at the right time without a multi-second delay.
• Lower CPU use when Hide when inactive is on, and when Tune Architect is turned off.
• With Tune Architect enabled, menu navigation stays responsive.

Live sync and clearer feedback after tuning

• Drivetrain settings stay in sync during live driving.
• Per-side aero and anti-roll bar locks where the profile requires it.
• After a tune is calculated, changed areas are highlighted so you see what moved.
• Measurement recap after test 1. Comparison recap after the confirmation run.

Tune-Architect polish

• Per-measurement unit selectors (weight, power, tires, springs, ride height, aero)
• Weight and power accept decimal values (0.1 step)
• Track profile label (was Circuit), English-only user-facing copy
• EventLab code 699 333 588 and shift-map banner are easier to read
• Bench protocol: soft phase warnings and live driving hints instead of early hard-fail
• Measurement recap after test 1 and comparison recap after confirmation run
• What's new popup scrolls correctly, Got it stays reachable

Tune-Architect (beta)

• Tune-Architect is still in beta, first public build with the new guided workflow
• Settings tab: confirm car, mirror or generate a starting setup, declare Forza assists
• Flat-ground measurement run (acceleration, full stop, grip block), all 11 setup categories at the end
• Pick a driving profile after the bench: Circuit, Sprint, Endurance, Drift, Drag, or Max speed
• Apply updates sliders in the app only, you copy the same values into Forza; optional confirmation run
• Live balance coach on the HUD while driving; protocol coach during measurement runs
• Save your tuned setup per car (named snapshots)

What's new & startup update notices

• Help → What's new: version history with highlights and Current badge
• Modal on first launch after you install a new app version (Got it / View all releases)
• Startup banner + toast when a newer version is available (shown again on each app launch)
• Help tab badge when an update is pending or What's new is unread
• Windows notification when Settings does not open on start and an update exists

Layout editor fixes, presets & THR color

• Layout editor: snap and grid spacing/threshold update live (no lost keyboard focus in number fields)
• Layout presets: Save as in editor and Settings (dialog instead of broken prompt)
• Saving while Default preset is active opens Save as instead of failing silently
• Preset save flushes widget positions before writing to disk
• Custom acceleration (THR) arc and bar color in layout editor inspector (Speed/RPM widget)

Settings tabs, presets & diagnostics

• Tabbed Settings UI (Overlay, Layout, Gauges, Cars, Diagnostics, Help)
• Named layout presets (save, load, export, import) in user data
• First-run setup wizard
• Diagnostics page with export
• Per-widget gauge style (radial / linear) and per-gauge units
• Widget visual variants (base, alt1, alt2, alt3) in editor and config