There are a lot of factors that determine how well a tyre sticks to the road. Most manufacturers try to build in a small amount of understeer because in the hands of the average driver, it's behaviour is more predictable which implies that it is safer.
Unfortunatly for front wheel drive cars the front tyres have to do most of the work and consequently are usually the first to let go. Manufacturers spend a lot of time trying to reduce this tendency in front wheel drive cars. They do this with the installation of anti-roll bars and changes to suspension geometry. As it is a difficult thing to increase grip, generally the easiest way to tame a front wheel drive car is to make the back handle worse.
I am no expert on this subject but having driven a few front wheel drive cars, I think that they are designed more for an acceptable understeer in wet conditions when traction at the front is severly compromised. The results of which is that in the dry the back end handles badly.
I don't know if I have helped you any but making any car handle is a complicated task, one which generally goes backwards rather than forwards. - both metaphorically and literally
Fri, 03 October 2003 00:18
