it's only predictable if you're an experienced RWD driver. When i bought my S - I wasn't. And even though i'm a fairly good cart/car sim driver and know my theory well, i still managed to spin the car multpile times (on track, of course). Reason being is that knowledge is one thing, muscular memory is another. I mean i KNOW what to do when the tail start to slide, yet when that moment came, I still gave it more gas, or just slammed on the brakes... and we all know what happens when you do that while sliding in a turn @ 60 mph

As for REDs video - i'm not sure it quite illustrates the point. Since the conditions were cold and damp, the rolling friction coefficient was little bit higher than the sliding friction, thus making a change from one "mode" to another much slower and predictable. The extreme example of that would be drifting on snow/ice, when rolling friction is the same as sliding (practically). You can feel the slide well before it's too late to catch, and catching it is extremely easy.

that's my understanding, at least

 

 

how do you know what the street-intersection looked like at the time of the occurence and what makes RED the captain of driving behavior?

i agree to what RED is saying about testing the cars ability in a controlled enviroment but i wasn't testing my cars ability, i know what the car can and can't do and that was the point of my 1st post. half of the people on this board shouldn't even be driving the S, just because you can drive a manual doesn't mean you know how to drive a sports car.

 

S02's aren't that great of an autocross tire. I have an AP1, and after I switched to the hankook RS2's 225F 245R, I experienced way better grip and reponsiveness. Also, I have a comptech adjustable sway bar. Very expensive, but if you can get it or another stiff bar and adjust it to full stiff, the car handles so much better! After I installed the sway bar, my times have dropped significantly. I have been autocrossing for about 2 years and started autocrossing the S2000 since January 2007. I also attended the Evoluting Driving school. I Switched to r-comps (hoosier a6) at the begginning of the year and I have been fairly competitive. I run a -1.5 F and -2.0 R alignment.

I am glad to see you test your cars limits at autocross and not on the street! I wish more people would develop that perspective.

 

good info OP, but with all due respect, i think your situation describes the easiest of situations. in an increasing radius where your on the gas, its easy to ease of to save your back end. Ive never felt 'snap' oversteer in this kind of corner either. the tendency to snap oversteer (in my car atleast), is in constant radius corners such as long sweepers where your not on the gas any more than needed to maintain speed. once you go over the limit, its very hard to use the gas pedal to manage a save. often, a clutch in save is even hard here.

 

That is a better way of explaining what I was thinking.

Another good reason to go in slow and come out fast.

 

Slow in. Fast out.

 

The S is really responsive to throttle steering in how much the car will shift. It was suprising to me when I first purchased the car about 4 years ago, but have since prfected its handling at the limit and find it to be a great asset compared to other more numb cars that only really respond in one way around a turn. To the novice it could be a big problem, but I find the S very balanced and exciting at the limit. You have more option for getting out of trouble and getting into trouble with this car which is why its not a great first rear wheel drive sport car for some. i guess they wanted to broaded the market some and the anwere was the Ap2 handling, which in my opinion leaves some to be desired and most it seems once they get use to its mushy seemingly predictable handling in comparison.

 

red mx5, does the color on this image stand for anything? Just didn't know if it was some relation to your speed.

mlc

 

[QUOTE=agent,Apr 3 2008, 02:39 AM]As for REDs video - i'm not sure it quite illustrates the point. Since the conditions were cold and damp, the rolling friction coefficient was little bit higher than the sliding friction, thus making a change from one "mode" to another much slower and predictable. The extreme example of that would be drifting on snow/ice, when rolling friction is the same as sliding (practically). You can feel the slide well before it's too late to catch, and catching it is extremely easy.

that's my understanding, at least