My understanding from books that I have read is that stiffening the front end of the car is used to reduce oversteer by making the car more prone to understeer. From what I have experienced with my S2k, it tends to understeer unless I'm decelerating (or really hard on the gas producing power oversteer). I personally favor gentle oversteer to understeer. It seems to me that adding the X-brace or STB will only make understeer more pronounced. Is this correct or am I misunderstanding something? In terms of understeer and oversteer, what should I expect by adding these accessories? Thanks.

 

Neither the STB nor x-brace will affect the handling balance, so there will be no more or less over/under steer. They brace the structure which aids handling on rough surfaces and sharpens the steering response.

Read the old posts in more detail.

 

This car does not understeer! It oversteers, that is, the rear breaks lose before the front tends to slide. In understeer, you turn the wheel, but the car keeps trying to go straight.

 

That isn't true. ANY car can understeer...even our beloved S2k. Any time the slip angle of your front tires is greater than the rear, you are experiencing understeer. And I have found that especially under acceleration this can occur. True, it isn't as pronounced as many other cars, but it can, and does occur.

 

Yep, snap understeer, that's what you have to watch. Sorry, but I equate drifting differently from understeer.

 

When the mags talk about oversteer/understeer, they are referring to what happens when you are on the throttle through a turn at the limit. For most drivers who experience snap oversteer on the street, it is normally caused by lift throttle, braking or different left/right or front/rear street/surface conditions.