handling...

[growler_south]

I found it! the mysterious point at which the MR2 switches from mild understeer to remarkable oversteer. And when I say 'switches' I mean 'like a lightbulb'. One moment you're zipping around a tight motorway onramp with the front pushing a little wide, the next you're a passenger on a wild fun-fair ride, trying to think fast enough to prevent the back wheels from overtaking the front. Thank god for quick steering and plenty of practice with the throttle over the last week. And wide onramps.

Lets not do that again.

Comments

[mikeybill.livejournal.com]

Bad growler! Bad bad growler! Gggrrrr! I htink we need to take that car off you and give you a Hillman Imp instead ;-)

[smellykaka.livejournal.com]

Mine is irritatingly sudden in the way it goes from taking a corner quite happily to drifting into the opposite lane without warning. After having driven it a few years I don't get that happening to me much any more.

[droo3556.livejournal.com]

and you *want* thinner rear tyres to promote more oversteer? I can picture you doing a 'Clarkson' screaming out "Powerrrrr!" mid drift!

Remember that hitting pedestrians is softer than hitting power poles side on, as they dont ding the panels as much. Older pedestrians have softer bones too : P (just an fyi)

[growler-south.livejournal.com]

I thought skinnier tyres would make the initial breakaway a little more gentle, but it seems the source of the problem is a lack of weight transfer on turn-in. The car's just too low, short and light to be able to tell what's going on in the back until it's gone. Racers fix it by putting ballast in the nose, softer springs in the front, and dampers which are light in compression but hard in rebound.

Oh and I found the source of the vibration above 100kph- the front tyres are square!! Jacked it up and spun them, sure enough... time for some new ones. heh heh. I'm liking the look of the Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3...

[droo3556.livejournal.com]

you want traction now?? lol A cheap set of nankangs will be firm enough to progressively loose control and being a hard compound, wont flick up gravel on to your undercarriage as easily as a soft compound would AND, will last a fair bit longer than the a soft compound tyre with the driving style i'm guessing you want! Being a hard compound it'll also be much easier to slide in the wet too. I'm also guessing you'll need a bit of time to really familiarise yourself with practicing that little nudge on the steering wheel just before you go sideways too. Its right, you saying that the car's low, and a short wheel base doenst help as easily in this case, but the lightness of the car will help with a lack of traction when you catch it offguard at the right point. All this means is that, for now, find a wide open car park to practice on. I'm betting with the uneven lateral weight distribution in the rear, you'll be able to drift it much easier turning in to the right, (engines on the right, gb on the left) and have a more flighty time doing it left turn. either case, have fun! + consider a phantom-grip lsd!