I get so upset when people say that s02's are inherently dangerous or flawed or whatever. They're not dangerous -- you are!

 

Sure, Porsche's tuned out most of the old 911's tendency for oversteer, but that's not a deficiency of the car. It's caused by letting off the throttle in mid-corner at high loads, a BIG error. You're responsible for learning your car's handling characteristics, and if you spin it (esp. on public streets), it's the driver at fault, not the car.

I've never driven a 911, but my dad owned one, and I remember it handling very well...it seemed unusual at the time how he gassed it so hard through the corners, but that car liked to be driven in that manner.

 

You sure it's not caused by having the engine behind the wheels?

 

The S2000 will do the same thing. Come into a corner fast and let off the gas and see what happens.

 

Yea, older (and not so older) 911's were notorious for some rather nasty trailing throttle oversteer (aka throttle lift oversteer) caused by just that...lifting the throttle and unloading the rear in a turn. But anything a car does is a result of input...it's all about learning what your car does and how it reacts to your input. The 911's were prone to this primarily because of the placement of the engine behind the rear wheels, but still, whatever kind of oversteer it is, it's still "driver induced"!

 

Yea, I didn't mean to imply that the S2000 will come around as easily as an older 911 but... the point is, if you really get out of the gas in the middle of a corner when travelling at a good clip, the tail will pass the nose on an S2000 too.

 

Yes, I totally understood your point. I didn't mean to sound like I didn't. Trailiing throttle oversteer is bad...mmmkay? Bad (or even worse, perhaps) in an older 911, but bad in an S2000, as well.

This reminds me of a drive into the heart of Wisconsin (some great roads, btw!) this summer. I was coming in much too fast into a flat 90 degree left hander. I knew that I wouldn't get out without slowing down and lifted just in a last ditch effort to scrub speed off. I knew what was going to happen and I managed to keep it on the road...the good thing is that it's not a surprise when it onsets. This is one condition that CAN be easily handled as long as you are PREPARED for it. It is most easily prevented, by just NOT LIFTING! But when, and sometimes you must, lift in the middle of a turn, expect the tail to come out and be very prepared to countersteer it back inline.

Fun, but a little unnerving...

 

Yes, Greg described it well. Look at Porsche's racing success...a rear engine config can obviously work very well in competitive racing. The rear engine placement mainly creates probs if you drive it too hard w/ the wrong technique. It's all about throttle control and factoring your car's handling characteristics into your driving style.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by gregstevens
[B]

 

The threat of law suits will probably prevent this, but...

There should be a FAQ here on how to drive the S2000 correctly. There are a lot of people here who could put down some very relevant general pointers (ie, don't brake in a turn, brake before a turn) and some different driving techniques that have been proven to work (for some people) in an S2000.

Won't answer all questions, but maybe it would help a few people lean the car before they flip the tail end around into a tree.