I am making this thread to generate POSITIVE feedback towards the issue!!! I'll start out by saying if the only thing you have to say is... "learn how to drive" or "please for the love of god, sell your s2000"....... PLEASE DONT POST!!!

Some background info: I am running on REO1R's 225/255 with kw clubsports! I'll be honest, the main enjoyment I get out of the car is just being a highway monster! Im not a "DRAG" racer by any means nor do I want to be..... I just want to be able to go on a spirited drive and be able to utilize the car for what it is!!! I am always open to learn from people that have more experience than me!!! Having said that..... The reason I posted in the R&C forum, obviously seeking a higher degree of knowledge concerning this issue!!!

The car is more or less a shell with 400hp, and the reason for the post is I can no longer downshift on the freeway without the car slipping right out from underneath me!!! I obviously know this is normal, and I AM NOT WONDERING WHY the car does this!! I am simply wondering, what I can do to maximize the traction to ultimately reduce this effect as much as I possibly can! Granted there is only so much you can change on the car before the rest is up to the ability of the driver! I understand this and welcome any feedback of helpful shifting techniques that will minimize the shock to the differential which sends me sideways!!!

The problem I want to solve.... After cruising at 80mph in 5th, I want to be able to downshift into 4th, catch vtec and accelerate without the rear sliding! The same goes for 3rd gear drops to 60mph!!! Consider NO CORNERING of any kind.... only straight driving as I know the rear will slip easier accelerating into turns etc!

Things that have crossed my mind..... (feel free to educate me on the ramifications of each issue)

1) tossing the 17's and going with 18's which would enable me to run a wider rear tire like a 285 or 295/30 while maintaining my 225 front! How much would something extremely wide even help this situation?

2) my rear suspension is already set to MAX SOFT and the high speed handling characteristics have been compromised by doing so!!! This increases transfer of weight potential which reduces the slide effect! How important is the front suspension stiffness in comparison?

3) adding a stiffer front sway bar and taking off the rear sway completely, although I dont know the negative effects from removing the rear!

4) when downshifting wait atleast a second after the shift before giving any throttle!! (just to ease into the transition) instead of simply dropping and immediately accelerating

5) since the car has NO weight on the rear, maybe I should add a full size spare or something to the rear????

6) Just simply realize with 400hp you just cant downshift like you could NA, PERIOD!!

7) maybe Im not allowing the tires to properly warm up before I expect them to hold the car in one place!!!

8) possible differential/LSD changes/upgrades that would minimize this effect????

9) run something with more tread like a 760sport instead of the re01r for the street?????

10) after playing with the transition, havnt decided if its best to shift as FAST as possible to accelerate out of the slide... or to slow down the shift??????

11) possible revmatching may help (although easier on parts the abrupt change of speed still throws the car into a slide, so I dont think this helps)

12) adjust my vtec engagement so its LOWER, so upon downshifting I dont time the shift simultaneously with the extra jolt of vtec????? The lower vtec engagement insures momentum change is at LOWER rpm's which reduces slide????

13) possibly adding negative camber will help??????

, Again... I know there is no substitute for driving experience! However what can I do to HELP eliminate this problem in regards to my set up?????

Any and all feedback is appreciated!!!

 

everything i write is "in general..":

i think LSD would give you copious amounts of lockup during exit (1.5 or 2.0 way) which means you will see oversteer more (correct me if i'm wrong).

also getting wider / bigger tires aren't gonna give you more grip (generally speaking they do, but there's a point where they don't) it has to do with the x and y contact patch blah blah i don't know too much in depth about it but u can look into it.

get lower offset rear wheels - this will decrease your wheel rate even more.

u can add more weight to the back

run better tires. sometimes having a high horsepower car leaves you with no options but to run better tires (r comps).

getting bigger wheels means more weight so you end up compensating (generally speaking. 18'' same brand / model will of course weight more than 16'' in the same or wider width for the 18'' wheel).

if your interior is stripped, you dumped all the weight off the rear portion of the car. getting a bigger sized battery and locate it somewhere in the back (tiny batteries won't work since the wire is too long).

do stuff to your suspension so that the rear transfers less weight (or transfers weight slower).

get a wing

these might not be the best ideas.. but just good for last resort

...give it a slower throttle after you downshift
or just wait til your clutch wears out

or buy my oem seat and door panels and put them in ur trunk

 

Your tires are pretty good, but running RA1s is even better. Bigger is also better.

More negative camber will exacerbate the problem. For max straight line traction you want less camber not more, of course this will compromise your cornering traction. But considering you do have corners in your life I really wouldn't mess with the camber up or down.

I think the weight in the rear is the simplest answer.

It's interesting that 400 hp in an S makes the backend hairy and 500+ hp in a Viper is quite docile. You don't have to worry about the backend coming out at all.

There is the whole 335/30 tire thing onthe Viper, but the car is much more planted under power than is the S.

 

seems most cars are more stable in the rear with power!!!! sucks not being able to accelerate without wondering when the rear will slide out!

 

learn how to drive!!

 

Increasing rear downforce will help

Increasing the Tire contact patch will help

Going with a stickier compound will help (as long as the compound is matched to your climate).

As to the whole "remove the rear swaybar" bit...I've never heard of anyone doing so and that sounds incredibly dangerous. That would allow the shock towers to move independently of one another and could make for very unpredictable performance. I'm no suspension guru, but that sounds like a terrible idea to me.

 

 

Learn how to drive, spend your money on driving lessons and track time instead, and this is a R&C forum, not how-do-I-drive-my-S-on-the-street forum!!!

Just kidding!, purposely being an arss cuz that's too often the answers I see here (sadly). It seems like if you're too ignorant now, you're a lost hope unless you go to driving schools. Though, not all of us have that time, money, or other things to do so.

To answer your questions, it seems the easiest ways to increase rear traction would be:

- wider tires
- softer compound tires (R-compound?, but they'd wear quick on the street)
- adjust rear ride height to lower than front (it will look funny but will transfer more weight)
- let the clutch slip a bit during throttle
- rev-match (less abrupt application of power to the tires)

As someone mentioned, if you want more straight line traction, you want less neg camber, not more, but this sacrifices cornering grip.
I don't think removing the rear sway will do anything fir straight line grip. The sways are for lateral suspension changes.

Good luck & I hope you don't get asked to put this thread in s2000 Talk.

 

This thread belongs in S2000 Talk, and this post proves it.

 

[QUOTE=ECale3,Nov 22 2008, 02:55 PM]As to the whole "remove the rear swaybar" bit...I've never heard of anyone doing so and that sounds incredibly dangerous.