AudiOn19s

It should also be noted that Trailbraking shouldn't really be practiced on the street either. You could practice pedal feel if you wanted to on the street but to really get it to work right you need to be way beyond the level you should be driving at on the street.

That's why for street driving throw a big rear bar on the car and take away some grip at the rear and you'll move balance to the front that way for better "general" feel. Doesn't necessarily mean you'll be any faster at the track but it'll feel better on the street. When I had just H&R springs on my car I ran a M030 front sway with a GT3 rear sway and I really liked the way the car drove.

ivangene

Gawd I am lost...
isn't oversteer the *** coming around...in otherwords LESS rear traction?
Sorry to keep this up, but for me its an area I dont know much about and this is great info (not that it will change my driving to and fro work )

LVDell

Not necessarily always. Oversteer can happen when you have too much FRONT grip, too little REAR grip, or any combination of several factors but yes the quick and dirty definition is when the rear runs out of traction before the front does in a corner.

....and just the opposite for understeer.

The reason it is not a 1 to 1 scenario and not a "when increasing one the other decreases" is because there are more variables involved with trying to achieve "balance" between the two when taking corners.

redridge

I was reffering to the lowering rear tire pressure to increase oversteer thus reducing understeer.... Dell stating that it was not a 1-1 relationship... so the argument was not complete.... Like what was previously mention, the dynamics of trail braking, momentum and throttle control around cornering better explains over/understeer relationship... more so than my traction explanation

chago996

Oversteer is when you hit the wall with the back end!
Understeer is when you hit the wall with the front end!

Unknown author

Ray S

All true. Sometimes a heavy throttle foot also helps!

ivangene

Again, sorry for my ignorance, but if hit hit the gas harder, aren't you transfering the weight to the rear of the car, thus reducing the front traction and actually increasing undesteer?

Boy, I have this ALL wrong

himself

To the OP, where are you experiencing understeer? At corner entry? Midcorner? Exit? All through the corner?

Despite the street tendency towards understeer, I would first look at your driving technique before fiddling too much with the setup. It is possible that you are exacerbating the inherent understeer by abrupt release of the brakes or a heavy right foot.
Depends on a number of factors, including the car, what gear you are in, and the corner. But in a 996, a heavy foot too early in the corner can result in corner entry understeer because of decreased front tire patch due to rearward weight transfer. This coupled with poor braking technique can wreak havoc on your corner entries. In other instances, a heavy throttle can result in throttle oversteer - which completely eliminates understeer

In general, if you balance the car correctly with a smooth release of the brakes and transfer to power smoothly, the car will take a set nicely. Once the car is set and turn-in is complete, a hefty but smooth application of gas by/around apex is recommended to keep the car set. [This does not take into consideration trailbraking or trailing throttle to rotate the car.]

-td

springgeyser

with zero suspension changes.

Wider front tires help reduce the understeer.

himself

I've never understood this reasoning. But, I admit I've never spent much time on it. I'd like to hear technical reasons why wider tires are better in the context of tire patch.

My (simple mind) reasoning is: contact patch is directly related to vehicle weight. You might have a wider contact patch with wider tires, but it will be the same area as a narrower tire, since you haven't changed the car's weight. With the same area in contact with the road, you will have the same traction. I.e., no reduction in understeer.

-td

ivangene

I agree with you (himself) but what I read was increase throttle equals decreased understeer. I see where placement of the throttle is important and I supose with the *** coming slightly off track (sliding out) understeer can be achieved. The OP did not mention where understeer occurred, so in a sence the reply is correct and incorrect dependant on when in the turn it is used.
Thanks, fun info

Ray S

True, but if you go really heavy and break the rear tires loose, "voila", instant oversteer.......

DFC

Ed, if you are interested, I highly recommend the book "Going Faster - Mastering the Art of Race Driving" from the Skip Barber Racing School. It's a great book, and does a very good job of explaining technical information.

ivangene

are there pictures or do I have to read ?

DFC

Lot's of pics