So I've downloaded the demo, and thrown myself into a Formula BMW Race. I can't say that I've been blown away, but I get the idea that I'm not squeezing the best out of the game.

Basically, can anyone help me by giving me a few pointers that'll help me experience the game at its best, so I can decide whether to purchase or not?

You see threads with "Sticky" above your thread? That's the right place to find what you need.
There are driving tips, educational videos, and other stuff you should know about driving.
Good luck in your future racing.

Right'o!

Just to clarify, I can't race online until I pay for a license, right?

You can race online on demo servers.

You can also ask people for setups for the car. In 98% of the cases you kindly ask if someone is willing to share their setup, you'll get it. Not that the setup alone will make you a good racer, but a proper setup is a good start.

Quote from Cobbs :

Right'o!

Just to clarify, I can't race online until I pay for a license, right?

Well that's what you're doing wrong then! LFS is meant to be raced online, not offline

There's loads and loads of Demo servers you can join without having to pay for a license, so get out there, find a decent server and race against real people.

Be warned though, there are a lot of idiots playing online who would rather wreck and crash into you than race fairly. If you happen to join a server full of such muppets, just leave and find another server. There are some very good ones I've heard, but don't know which ones exactly

Good luck!

Welcome!

May I add this?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2qg8Rti_HWU