I have been becoming more and more obsessed with driving fast around corners...G-forces are a major thing I value in life! However, cornering can become quite a sophisticated art. It can be intensely fun in a car that you trust. Who doesn't love the sounds of the tires singing to you, or the feeling of being locked against the side-bolster of your seat?

I believe stretching the arch your route over a specific area to the entire bend (in other words, "spreading" high G's over the entire duration of the turn) is the main thing to accomplish when you want to go as fast as possible around a turn.

Is it best to start on the outside and slice into the heart of the curve then ease up as soon as possible (and begin to accelerate as well) to end up on the outside again? I am new to this art (or science?) and have drawn up a few pictures to illustrate my idea. I realize some of the red lines I created contradict the tire marks on the road...but I suppose that there are turns that can't be seen in the photo that might influence this.

Thoughts?

 

Some of the lines I'd chose differ, but maybe that's because I'm looking at pictures and not seeing things from the road itself.

 

ive found it works best as a balance between safety (giving yourself wiggle room in case you mess up) and the g-force etc. if on a curvy road you aim for the inside of every curve and in the intermediate stretch just floor it lol..but you probably knew that.

granted if i get anything close to a sharp corner i like to hang the tail out for the entire length of the turn but dont do that unless you're 100% confident in your car and yourself

 

These 944's are not very interesting in a straight line. In the corners they come alive. Anway you are reallt taking about track driving. On the pulic roads it is very hard drive to drive a proper line because you need to stay your lane and you need some margin for the unexpected. The track you use every inch of the road and more at times.

The fast line through section of corners uses what you mentioned, but inpractice is more complex .The reason is that track layout entering a section of turn determines you entry speed and inital position on the track. Also the way you exit depens on track after the turns. Plus depending on entry and exit it can make big change in which turns are "throw away turns" and which once you optimize. Throw away turns are turns where your purposely chose path that is fast through that turn, but allows you to travel faster in either the prior turn or next turn.

Beyond that curbing (or lack of it) and run off play a role as well. The same thing goes for the quality of actual track surface. There are alot factors and the the track is where you learn the basics, practice an attempt to master them.

Done right car will flow from one corner to the next seemingly at ease. If you must fight the car you are doing something wrong.

 

This turn is very dependant on straight preceeding it and what is around the mountain. The entry for the right could be fast as show and use all the exit on the left and the give up the entry for the hairpin taking it from the far left rather than the right as you show. Or you can give up the exit of right hander by slowing down all more on the way in and turing in 1-2 car lengths later and hugging the right side on corner exit to set up for the left hair pin.

However not know actually entry speeds it hard to determine for sure the line. Chances are high you need to give up one or the other, but which one?




This corner your line is wrong.


The wear marks in the track show the correct line. I believe you are not seeing the entry to the corner, but the photo is from the apex out. It alos appears the camber of road will help you corner faster if you stay in trough on the left side of the road. Then pop out of trough and drop into the next on for the right hander. Taking advantage of the camber is in fact faster than trying to make the line wider. It is also an uphill climb that appears to leading to a straight so getting out of right hander early and on the power is more critical tha entering it fast. This is slower speed section of track and cutting down the distance travel is probably faster.



Even so you have the right idea. It just take time, practice and an acutal feel for the track to refine these lines. When going to a new track often try to use images to develop my line. However that only goes so far as I really need to feel it to do it right. Even then I may need to try it a differently a few times to determine what works best.

 

Which direction? I can't tell.

 

In all photo I am assuming you driving to the corner (car going away from you, rather than coming at you).

 

There's a great book, "Driving in competition," written many years ago by Alan Johnson, a famous Porsche racing driver, that explains this all in a very straightforward way, you can get a cheap used copy on Amazon.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...&condition=all

 

yes, in all those photos i drew the line as if the car was driving away from the camera. anyway, it was hard to imagine where to put these lines...it's easier when your on the road like hevquip said.

thanks for the interesting points M758! so, it sounds like there are multiple strategies for taking a turn...this is what i expected and i guess only a stopwatch can determine which is best. this aspect truly makes driving an art i think. of course, it becomes easier to drive faster when you know the road well. what does it mean to let your tail fly out?

does anyone know of any good videos or video tutorials?

here is one:
i think the driver starts to get comfortable at about 3 minutes in and makes some better turns.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9XTjNeo5Sk

also that book looks interesting to read.
one more thing: drifting is mainly for show, right? it's not actually effective in terms of cornering efficiency?

 

Yes, drifting is for show, and not the fastest way around a corner.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQeloy2Q5ig

this first image is a section called Wipperman, and your actually heading downhill here as you can see the tire markes in the pic which shows the driving line. @7:50



this section is called pflanzgarten. @8:40
this should give you some ideas on driving lines, not that it you should really apply it to street driving

 

for our cars that's absolutely correct. but, Walter Rohrl will drift any 9-11 with turbos just a little and make the right line.


btw, this thread is chock full of win.

 

video games would be helpful for you. gran turismo 5.

 

No wonder what I was seeing was different, I was looking at the pictures top to bottom, so I thought the car was coming towards the camera.

 

thats more how a 911 is supposed to drive; the weight out back makes the car want to step out, but with enough thrust from the motor it will keep the car pointed forward and gripping due to weight and you can accelerate through the corner.


just ask doug bray about the time he nearly made me **** myself in his 911.