As one with little track experience, I am asking this out of curiosity. Which is quicker: 1} regular track style racing meaning go fast, brake, turn in, accelerate out or, 2} drift or rally style cornering using 4 wheel drift steering? I'm trying to figure the rational for each.

 

watch WRC rounds run on tarmac - no drifting

R+C
PS even up Pikes Peak you are faster keeping it nice and tidy

 

Tires operate their best at a specific slip angle, so when the car is on the limit the tires are "drifting", but the slip angle is more like 7-10 degrees so the Fast and Furious method is not the quickest way around a race track.

 

The fastest way depends on *many* factors, but in general for regular circuits with asphault or concrete smooth track the cornering will be a relatively low slip angles conpared to low grip surfaces. It will look smooth, ie. not a noticable drift.

 

Watch some old SCCA (60's and 70's) videos. The non-aero cars, especially the production based racecars are almost always in a four wheel drift. This is only because they are at the absolute limit of the tires, and correspondingly the tires are starting to give up grip and slide. This is before all the big advancements in tire technology so the grip levels are very low, probably on par with mid range street tires today. But it is by no means a big @ss out drift like all the import guys are doing now.

 

In my opinion, when you get it right, the car is lightly drifting, but the drift angle is minimal, and not always obvious outside of the car. In racing, if you get more than about 7degrees of yaw, you are probably going to spin, but that is a minimal angle for drift drivers. AS

 

A Kuhmo tire engineer told me years ago that the optimal grip level is acheived at an approximate 10 degree slip angle.

 

Keep in mind that he was speaking very generally...the optimal slip angle would be extremely dependent on a specific tire construction, and even on a specific size of a specific tire. And it changes depending on whether you're referring to lateral (cornering) or longitudinal (braking/accelerating) grip.

 

And drifting is about 75° to 90° slip angle. Waaaayyy past optimal grip. And when the tires smoke tire temps wwwaaayyy over optimal temps!!!