workin on it.

 

I dont get it. I dont have understeer like you guys. Is it because I have an MDF box with sub? It should only add about 15 lbs above the spare tire.... or because I havent tracked it yet?

 

I've always found BMWs (even the E36 M3s) to have understeer at the limit, much like the 350Z. Most of the understeer of the Z can be dialed out with tire pressures (I've got my front tire pressures up to 41psi and it's doing much better). The biggest problem I've found so far is the lake of grip on the tires and how fast they get over-loaded during cornering. I need about $4k more to get my 18s and then put race tires on my stock 17s, anyone want to donate to my Z fund?

 

Putting 41psi in your front tires will INCREASE your understeer tremendously.

 

yes he's correct, itll also make your ride absolute hell even if you did the backs.

however, to kick out the back end, just blip the throttle. by raising the rear pressure your shooting yourself in the foot for acceleration traction. and over all in the turn your cornering ability will be worse, it might be more fun, but I bet someone in a Z with normal pressure, taking a turn at a speed where he can control the understeer, would be able to complete the turn faster.

 

Certainly not a "race guy"...just a "wannabe". I posed this question to a tech shop, and they said a sturdy ??? would likely help. Shoot...now I can't remember what he called it, but showed one to me. It is a fairly heavy duty "bar" of steel (looked solid not hollow) which is custom bent to specific vehicle. It goes between the tires across the underbody of the car...don't even know what it bolts to, but was told they are used in many performance cars as an add on???? Might it have been a sway bar??

 

sway bar sounds right to me... but I have seen a weird bar on some civics that is bolted on and is NOT the sway bar...

 

We have an adjustable front and rear bar that we are developing for the Z.

 

I've noticed very little understeer driving on the street. But if I find it bothersome at HPDE's, then I may buy a pair of rear Track rims and tires for the front. That oughta make it closer to neutral and as an added bonus, I'll be able to rotate my tires.

Michael.

 

You haven't read the car mag tests if you think the new M3 has oversteer. All of the articles I've read document the new M3's understeer.

Yes, the Z has understeer with the staggered tire setup, but it has plenty of power to kick the rear end out by increasing the speed in a corner. The initial understeer becomes oversteer and the rear rotates. You could reduce the Z's understeer by fitting the same size tires on all 4 wheels.

The article in R&T documents the M3's penchant for understeer on the track but says it goes away in normal driving on public roads.

 

Doesn't every single car, no matter fwd, rwd, awd, nwd(ie. shopping cart) understeer when going faster then the wheels can handle?

In my understanding, every car will tent to go straight if you're way too fast and steer (because of Newton's 'n'th law). And then at the middle of the corner,it'll either over or under. Most rwd car tend to over, because the traction of the rear wheel has been broken by the extra power from the engine. awd and fwd car tend to under, because of the same concept.

Someone plz correct me if i'm wrong in any way.

 

No clue...when I lose traction in a turn in any way, I just try to regain control. I'm not thinking to myself...hmmm that sounded like the rear sliding out to my right....but what's that? Ohhhh now the front seems to be dipping in on me.....maybe I should.....

I just swear alot and hope my instincts take over and my adrenaline doesn't make any arteries go "pop"!

 

whats understeering??

 

>Doesn't every single car, no matter fwd, rwd, awd, nwd(ie.
> shopping cart) understeer when going faster then the wheels
> can handle?

no

>whats understeering??

understeer- During a turn, the fronts slide

oversteer- the rears slide

neutral- front and rear slide equally.


most cars are designed with an understeer condition because it is the safest option when a car breaks traction. It's difficult for the driver to make the slide worse when it is understeering.


koryo

 

Just to clarify: some of the posts here seem to indicate that understeer can simply be cancelled by using the throttle. In some low-speed corners, this can be the case as the 350Z has sufficent torque.

BUT, overall the car is engineered to understeer (or push, if you like that description). This is only truly felt at the limits of adhesion and maximum cornering speeds (not recommended for the street). This applies to all medium-speed, second and third gear corners and particularly in high speed, fourth gear and above corners.

The slip angles of the front tires get larger and larger the faster you go. That means if you are driving the correct line through a corner, that the car will eventually run out of road as you exit! Putting two or four wheels off is NEVER GOOD at the racetrack (unless you are avoiding something) and is the essense of what limits the 350Z at the racetrack.

The good news is that by backing out of the throttle gradually, the front tires will gain more traction and you might be able to keep from going off the track (not a guarantee, however). Nissan deliberately engineered this quality into the car, to keep the typical owner out of trouble. It's also the reason that 95% of all cars (FWD, RWD or AWD) have built-in understeer from the manurfacturer.

I think that adjustable swaybars and the ability to adjust more front camber into the Z will help bring the car into better overall balance (ie. neutral handling). Downshift and others (Nismo, Stillen, etc.) will also be developing more complete packages for sale (with revised shocks, springs, bars, etc.) in the near future, I'm certain. So the bottom line is... get out your wallets and roll up your sleeves if you have a serious need for speed!

 

Good site on under/oversteer