Actually Richard, Mike is right, it is common practice for auto
manufacturers to tune the handling of their cars to understeer. It's
much safer this way. If someone goes a bit too quickly into a corner,
the car understeers, driver eases off the gas, and the car is
controllable. With oversteer, the back end swings out, and everyone
(including oncoming traffic) is in a ton of trouble.
Tim Holbrook
1971 TR6
--- Richard Seaton <rsh17@msn.com> wrote:
> From: "Richard Seaton" <rsh17@msn.com>
> To: "Mike Munson" <fasttrs@mindspring.com>,
> "'Jim Swarthout'"
> <jswarth1@tampabay.rr.com>,
> "Web_disscusion List"
> <6pack@autox.team.net>
> Subject: Re: oversteer, understeer, neutral steer...thoughts,
> theories,
> comments
> Date: Sun, 22 Dec 2002 21:14:55 -0600
>
> Mike,
> I can't imagine that the factory would "design" the car to
> understeer. To me
> this seems more dangerous than the oversteer. I'm not that great of a
> driver,
> typical to average, but the understeer is an awful thing. The front
> goes where
> it wants, usually plowing straight through a corner. I realize that
> most of
> the cars now days are front wheel drives (cheaper to make), but I'm
> not sure
> how they handle. I assume most do understeer since most of the weight
> is up
> front, but I've never looked into this or driven many front wheel
> drives.
> I'm pretty sure Triumph didn't design this into their cars,
> probably just
> worked out that way. Such a heavy and long front end with the 6 in
> place. Are
> the TR3-4's like this?
>
> Just my thoughts on this though,
> Richard Seton
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Mike Munson
> Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2002 8:57 PM
> To: 'Jim Swarthout'; 6pack@autox.team.net
> Subject: RE: oversteer, understeer, neutral steer...thoughts,
> theories,
> comments
>
> Jim,
>
> See if you can find the book "How to make your car handle" by Fred
> Puhn
> sold by HP Books. There are so many ways of doing it and even saying
> it
> that I wouldn't know where to begin. Basically there was nothing in
> the
> market to meet my needs so I had to design my own system using NASCAR
> style bars. My system was in a Grassroots Motorsports article
> featuring
> a TR6 several years ago.
> All cars come from the factory to understeer (front slide first)
> because
> the designers know that the average guy or gal doesn't know what to
> do
> with an oversteering (rear slides first) car.
>
> Mike Munson
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-6pack@autox.team.net [mailto:owner-6pack@autox.team.net]
> On
> Behalf Of Jim Swarthout
> Sent: Sunday, December 22, 2002 9:22 PM
> To: 6pack@autox.team.net
> Subject: RE: oversteer, understeer, neutral steer...thoughts,
> theories,
> comments
>
> To the list,
>
> What happens to your TR-6 when you "put it" into a corner? What
> happens
> at the threshold when the tires begin to slide? Does it over-steer,
> under-steer, or is it neutral...how do "you" know how to set-up your
> suspension?
>
> Jim Swarthout
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