During my tenure working for the government, I had access to a lot of research institutes in the Toronto area. And I've seen some pretty interesting simulators. From the rotating arm G-simulator to detailed cockpits bolted to the floor. They each serve a specific and different purpose.
The same goes with racing simulation technology. We have the 7 post rig that is designed to replicate what the car suspension experiences to full motion driver simulators that are really good at giving the driver an experience as realistic as possible, but worth little in returning valid data for the engineers.
It wasn't many years ago when a driver wasn't expected to do well at the first time at any track. The consensus was that it took the first year of competition for a driver to learn the tracks. As well, one time-honored tradition is for drivers to walk the track, Many times while camping at Mosport I would see drivers wandering up and down the track, in company with other drivers or engineers, walking around, viewing corners from all angles, working out the lines and looking for anything that may be a hindrance, or allow better lap times.
I agree that Formula One drivers can learn a track and know how to get the quickest time out of a track in an incredibly short time. But even with them, every bit helps.
I've done countless laps in my PC racing simulators, and it's my belief and conclusion that simulators allow the driver to learn a lot about a track long before he arrives there in person. From being made aware at just how tight and tricky the entrance to the pits at Turkey are to where to pick up your braking points at Les Combes, it all adds to the pool of driver knowledge. And if a driver can pick this up long before the actual race, it makes him better prepared and free to tackle and learn other issues while at the track. You want the driver to learn at a rate that allows him to process the information and benefit from it, and not to drink from the firehose. At the track you want him to succeed. In the simulator you want him to learn.
For most of us mortals, what we think of simulators is the wheel and pedals in front of a computer monitor. Maybe the pumped-up rig first displayed on this thread. But for the serious professional, simulator technology is a disciplined science, and provides valid feedback as well as teaching the driver.
When Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger put his plane down in the Hudson, a good part of his success was because he had practiced and learned a lot of procedures relevant to the emergency, in a simulator.
The first Canadian military pilot squad to win the team trophy in the American Top Gun competition had never previously fired a real missile. All their training was on simulators.
Jacques Villeneuve set pole position for his first ever Grand Prix at the fabled and daunting Spa Circuit in Belgium, partly based on previous experience gained on his video game.
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Former Champion must do some simulator training..