Highrevnrx7

I was just posting this to get an idea of what you guys do to save your *** in those scary moments, like when your going around a turn and the *** decides to come out.... This happened to me in my other car when i was going around a turn at about 90 and i fought the car for almost a 100 yards before i lost it,,,, but luckly i just spun in the middle of the road,,,,, almost wrecked it!!!! Scared the **** out of me though, that happened almost a year ago in my first 3rdgen..... I sold that car and now i have an r1,,, I would like to hear some stories and techniques that you all have, deffinately like to hear your drifting techniques....

Dougie_fresh_007

hmmm well my personal way to avoid this is so, lightly let off the gas and release the wheel in an unwinding motion, until u get traction, the wind the wheel again and retain ur line, umm there are a couple good books that cover all this stuff, like perfesional race driving tequniques, but i forgot who it is by, but barnes and nobles sells it

Highrevnrx7

Yeah i have done that pulling out of places, just let go of the wheel and the car will correct its self, never tried that at high speeds though, it real hard to think when it happens so fast, you know, man my ******* downpipe stud just snaped in half, half is in the manifold and the other is in my hand

skunks

just learn how to drift and it will be fun instead of scary. BTW: Learning to drift is not only fun, its great to know what to do automatically when the rear steps out like it did to you.

BTW: The more caster you have, the faster the car will straight itself if you let go of the wheel, I personnaly don't do this, I always keep at least on hand on the wheel but i have heard from a couple of guys i know which are much better at drifting then me that it does work, just let go and it will right itself.

Highrevnrx7

Give me a few pointers on how to drift, should i just find a huge *** parking lot and try it or what?

skunks

yeah, but parking lots have a lot of obsticals still, find a beater car or try finding someplace that has a lot of run out!

if there is like a single light post 300 yards away, youll probally end up hitting it so watch out hehe

BTW: cops will give you reckless driving tickets if they see you doing this on the street and will probally give you a breathlizer.

to get some techniques, try going to driftsession.com and becareful, you dont wanna hit anything with your fd or hit anyone (especially kids that are just standing around)

Highrevnrx7

Thanks

danphan

try going to a open track day.. u can push the car to the limited and learn how to react it to it..if u are u cali try going to.. willow spring race way hehehe lots of room for u to go fast...
dp

skunks

https://www.rx7club.com/forum/showth...hreadid=156938

SanJoRX7

It all depends on the severity of the loss of control, as well as your speed and the condition of the road. I always like to assume that if i lose it I'll hit something, which is one thing that keeps my driving a little more sane.

A big key to recovering from these little situations is committment. Sometimes you just need to commit, and power through things rather that freak out and jab the brake like an epilleptic. Applying smooth power can often stabilize the car and regain traction. Of course, this isn't a hard fast rule...you need to know when to apply it.

SleepR1

A well prepared FD with balanced handling will only react to a drivers input. An FD won't do anything on its own. On the TRACK, 90-mph turns are common. Putnam Park's Turn 1 is a 90-mpn turn www.putnampark.com My point is, that you probably unknowingly lifted off of the throttle (a novice's instinctive reaction to going too fast through a turn), and unsettled the rear tires, causing traction loss, and loss of control. The only time you lift in a turn, is if your car is setup for moderate to heavy understeer (fat tires in back, skinny tires up front). Of course the car will push (understeer) through the turn, and you need to lift off of the gas to get the nose pointed back in the right direction. You should attend a few drivers eds in your area. Your life is worth the small investment in drivers training.

SleepR1

Being in Knoxville TN (fun roads BTW), I think there's a track in Memphis? Check out NASA's HPDE (high performance drivers eds). I think Dewey Patton is the your regional NASA guy (I don't recall his email address). For a little more fun, try the Peachtree Chapter BMW CCA. You missed their March drivers school at Road Atlanta, but there might be another in October? Go to www.bmwcca.org and find Peachtree Chapter.

sibleyg

You might want to grab as many driving technique books as you can. Read up on the physics of what is going on and then go and pratice in a safe location. Sometimes a race track is not the safest. Lots of folks trying hard to go fast can be distracting for a new driver testing the limits of the car and their technique.

I recommend 'Drive to Win' by Carroll Smith or 'How to make your car handle' by Fred Phun(?). Good basic information.

Driving at the limit is not intuitive. It takes practice and a strong will to NOT do dumb things that make the situation worse. An example is lifting off the throttle when the car starts to oversteer (rear end steps out). Most folks panic and lift off the throttle or even worse step on the brake thinking that if they slow down the oversteer will stop. Actually it makes it worse by transfering more weight off the rear thus giving less traction where you want more. More gas is the key but is not intuitive. Most folks think 'more gas=go faster' and is not something they want to do when things are getting out of shape.

Another idea is rather than going to a open track day, most race tracks have some sort of driving school (and cars). Take a 1 day course to get an introduction into the physics of driving. It will cost some $ but the advantage is you get a knowledgable instructor (hopefully!), 1:1 attention (hopefully) and you drive someone else's car (and won't have to fix yours if things go bad!).

BTW, one thing I always remember is what Jackie Stewart told me years ago. 'To go fast, drive slow' meaning slow,smooth and controlled steering, gas and brake usage. Do anything abrupt and the Rex will tend to bite you hard.

Good luck.

TTurboXfd3s

DRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIFT! ERRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR..... satisfaction!

SleepR1

Drift driving and grip driving are different. Drifting is more self-expression...sort of like BMX trick cycling. Not taking away from the skill needed to show off in drift driving, just pointing out, that it's different than grip driving.

DamonB

Everytime I hear people say "drift" I want to Drifting and corner exit oversteer (powersliding) are two completely different things. Knowing how to drift a car isn't going to save you when you are "out of control" and I bet I can count the number of people on this board who can actually drift with one hand anyway. By definition being out of control means you have ceased being a driver and are now a passenger. It means you didn't heed the warnings the car gave you in the first place and pressed your luck. When you are not in control of a 1.5 ton hunk of metal with 250+ horsepower you are begging for things to go wrong. And they will, sometimes you just get lucky. Be appreciative of luck when you get it and don't tempt it again.

sibleyg and SleepR1 along with myself (I believe all of us would still consider ourselves amateurs?) ask you to use some sense and go learn some real driving techniques; that means you need to find a teacher. Go to www.autocross.com and find a club near you or attend a driver's education event at a track near you. Every guy who has ever been sideways on the street and didn't hit anything thinks he can drive. They are all wrong. The guys who can drive are out competing. Go watch them, meet them and learn from them. Humility goes a long way towards self improvement. The novices who have it always seem to kick the butts of the ones who don't.

Racing isn't about being brave, it's about being cerebral.

redrotorR1

... double post ... slow server

redrotorR1

"Secrets of Solo Racing" by Henry Watts. Available at most book stores. Basic driving techniques and setup stuff that even some of us 'veterans' forget about. Great book for anyone ... from novice to hardcore track junkie.

Do not push the limit if you don't know how to handle the car. Learn in a safe environment. There's always risks associated with high speed ... it's always better to minimize the amount. This is not the car to be using the trial-and-error method to high speed driving. It's not a Camaro or a Mustang ... you can't just get into a wreck and expect to find another one just like it. Ok, off my high horse now ...

With regard to your recent near off-road excursion, I've found that the clutch in-clutch out trick helps to settle the car when the rear gets sloppy in high speed corners. Works well in my time trials ... albeit the buttload of time I lose trying to recover my line. I know, I know ... slow in, fast out.

BoostCrzy

best way to practice is on open roads that are wet....on different kinds of surfaces.....for drifting get a beater or if you dont car about your car use it...but find some dirt roads with corners and slowly progress till you feel controlled...then move to the pavement...the pavement is much harder to negotiate since the line between traction and slip is so narrow....you should also explore the breaking abillities of your car incase you ned them sometime...can save your car and possibly your life!...above all: be safe!!....dont put you or your car into situations you or your wallet can't handle...

SleepR1

Nice post DamonB. Yes, I get my *** handed to me by better autocrossers at regionals (dammit), and I'm most definitely an amateur! I know enough about performance driving to handle my car well, but that's about it

DamonB

They ain't afraid of me yet either But I hope they at least look over their shoulder now!

skunks

So true!!! if you brake or dont commit, your tires might grip and throw you in to the other direction and then you'll probally lose it.

apexhittinbull

iTrader: (21)

basically two reason asses come out, lost of traction due to power or wheel lock, or too heavy too late breaking into the corner. First case, let off the gas a lil bit and counter steer a lil when too much power was applied, or counter steer and STEP on the throttle on the latters. don't wanna counter steer too much unless, you're in a drastic angle. one for the show two for the those who know.


p.s. Good book on drivin right- Secrets of solo racing- by henry a. watts. it's cheap too, unlike that bent rear fender.

Flatout

Sounds like from these posts that an FD inherently has oversteer and lacks a bit of balance. If this is not the case, please elaborate. I have yet to push the limit and will not til I drive it at a track. My car doesn't have a front strut bar (which should induce more understeer). Would it be a good decision to balance the car out? I plan on a suspension upgrade where I will further experiment with ride height and spring rates. Thanks all.

TailHappy

First off, the RX-7 seems to be about as unstable as any production car I've seen. But that's not a negative, it's a plus. Manufacturers are forced these days to build crazy understeer into their cars to try to protect the public that can't drive. But that comes at a cost to performance. Learning to drive a car well that has predictable oversteer (both due to power and lift-throttle) and it's an absolute feeling of zen. Granted I'm not there yet, but I've had a taste... And it gives you so many more options on the track. But by the same token, when not respected it'll get you in trouble.

Another book on the subject I like and see recommended a lot is the Skip Barber racing school book "Going Faster." Very technical discussion of racing techniques.