Not sure why PD5 chat has been kept within game update 1.80 thread instead of its own thread.
Could all the posts be moved over to this or a similar thread, please, mods?
Eric has done a post about PD5.
There are some valid points in the comments of his article.
Link to the existing topic: Game Update v 1.80 [December 2024] - #283 by calfzilla
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The 1.80 topic is at the top for me under the Zwift Game category, the Whatâs New section and the latest tab. Did you mute the thread by accident?
Whether or not the 1.80 thread is visible (it is), PD5 discussion shouldnât be relegated to an old update thread where no one will see it. This is much better.
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Good catch, I didnât even notice that function - seems I did. Thanks. 
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Any idea if it was on again for the WTRL TTT? We and another team of ours really struggled with sticky drafting and multiple lines. Passing is most difficult, which is especially challenging when someone finishes their pull and drops towards the back. They basically block everyone from passing leading to big gaps. It definitely reminded me of when PD5 was accidently turned on for a WTRL TTT back in December.
It does appear that you can use the behaviour of PD5 to drop people out of groups according to the Zwift Insider article.
You could lose the wheel ahead and make others behind you also get dropped. Maybe itâs possible to team up with a friend or two and use it to your advantage in races?
Iâve seen this effect happen a few times in normal robopacer groups but doesnât normally impact me because Iâm always alert to gaps and immediately try to zip past people doing that. It ends up with a less smooth pace but at least I donât get dropped.
Believe itâs intentional to slow down groups.
WTRL TTT last night was without PD5 or Autosteering v5âŚitâs really bad if you have steering and non-steering riders in team and you get 2 lines.
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Itâs Race CraftâŚwhen you stop your pull you need to lower watts under 100W itâs even better to 0W until you are in back in the draft as the game recognizes you slowed down and next one can pass. Most riders just continue to push the watts and then it takes a really long time to pass someone.
Not sure if it matters, but we raced Americaâs West time, so just a few hours ago. Updates usually drop around then.
Do you mean the riders should be easing off to allow others to pass them more easily?
Maybe in a team time trial that would be good but I doubt too many people would do it in a normal race.
Thats the one thing that gets me through these flat is fast races - No one can breakaway and I dont have the patience to sit in for 20-25mins bored out of my brain, so il see if i can drop the other âRacecraftâ users sat at the back. Sometimes you can, sometimes you cant.
Its good if you have a team mate who can attack the front at the right time so you stretch it both ends
Eric and jon both saying nothing is wrong Exactly Iâm Experiencing The Same Issues But Like Zwift Support Zwift Insider Isnât Believing us pd5 is terrible I hold 3.3 in a beacon group where beacon is 2.6 yet constantly getting dropped since pd5 Iâll be stopping my subscription and going elsewhere itâs unrideable
Kenny, I would suggest utilizing some punctuation and sentence capitalization. I guess youâre saying, âPD5 sucks and Iâm going elsewhere.â That about right?
So, one of the things Iâve seen with PD5 is the need to stay near the front of the pack. About the front 10 or so. If you get further back, itâs harder to stay on and it seems to get worse the farther back you get. At least that seems to be my experience. Throwing in the changes to steering and other things, itâs getting hard to know whatâs whatâŚ
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I suspect that is because you are being âstuckâ or blocked behind riders who are letting gaps form.
If you form your own group of 10 riders well away from the huge robopacer groups youâll find itâs easier to maintain a smooth pace.
I did however ride briefly with the Coco group once last week and found it easy enough to ride through the pack. Does that mean the PD5 isnât working properly and the blocking effects need to be much higher? 
The rest of my rides have all been alone on ADZ where there are no big groups or IRL.
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Nope, I tested this theorem in the TdZ long event today and it took less power towards the front of the blob as opposed to further back. If I could save video the power numbers I was generating seem to support my postulation. The key word there is âseemââŚ
Have we moved on to PD5.1 now?
Looked like toned down PD5 behaviour when I was riding with the Watopia D bots on tempus and ticktock,
So, one rider can overpower (more watts than needed to draft but less than the watts to pass) and then I am stuck behind him. How many watts do I need to pass this rider? I found I was stuck in the back of a large pack in todayâs tdz. It was like hitting a wall when I tried to move deeper into the pack. It was definitely different than a year ago when you could drop a draft power-up and surge past everyone.
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This has been an issue since PD4. A good but risky strategy is to back off a bit, then surge forward and punch your way up.