launching from a left hand turn onto a very wide road (no traffic at the time- or would not have taken it hard), suddenly lost the tail in the turn- i steered back but then power slid sideways as the rear came forward... ended up with the rear coming around and stopped barely hitting the (tall) curb with the rear. damage is pretty minor- dent in right rear bumper- i popped it back (will likely replace it i assume) and some minor scratches on the right rear wheel. never really even came close to losing the rear in the past. no idea what happened. tires were warm (or so i thought), pavement (new road too) dry. very lucky it was a really wide road (would not have taken it hard if it was not wide though)- embarassed, but glad the damage is minor... anyone else lost it on a dry road?

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by wanabe
[B]

 

Yep, turn 2 at Sebring

How many miles are on your tires? The SO2s will lose grip towards the end of their life. Also, different roads have different coefficients of friction, so even thought the road was new, it may not offer much grip. Was it asphalt, perhaps?

 

hmmm, could be that you let off on the gas and the back end kept coming around? tis difficult to determine, but it happened and you learn from it.

I always fear this happening when riding with a friend of mine. keeping the clutch in for the majority of a turn and then 2/3rd's to 3/4th's of the way through a corner, the clutch is released - gear engaged - and I'm crossing my fingers that the rear doesn't shift around because of the power / weight transfer.

 

Maybe just a bit too much rpm ,try it clutct down rev it about two times then go to a turn ,back end will go right pass you.

 

Is the intersection off-camber? Most roads are crowned which results in an off-camber turn when turning left.

 

I have to say that I've never encountered a situation, even under hard driving, when I thought I was going to lose it. Yes, there are times when it oversteers in turns, but the usual corrections work.

I you're driving the car at the edge all the time and being too aggressive with the inputs, I imagine you'll get into trouble, but this car is far more responsive and controllable than other rear-drive cars I've owned.

 

I spun my car when I first purchased it, since then I have come to the realization that its not a fault with the car but my driving.

Now that I have had my car to the limit at a track it behaves beautiful very predictable slide with a touch of oversteer. I feel Honda did a excellent job setting the car up with a semi loose character since it is very easy to adjust with a bigger front sway bar.

If I remember correctly when the NSX first came out alot of people were spinning them out. Does anyone else remember this? The verdict was driver error and also very quick tire wear due to soft compound used resulting in oversteer.

It seems our car has the same characteristics as the NSX so be careful and learn the limits and how to control the car at a track.

Oh and remember loose is fast

 

Watch out for turning onto a major road that's crowned ... like the following ... even if it's only very slight, it can really throw ya ... note that the *s are intended to be the road and .s are just there as place holders.

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Obligatory speech:

Take this as a lesson ... take it easy ... find someplace that's designed for you to learn your cars limits and abilities ... like a track or driving school ... etc ...

Have fun,
Derek

 

thanks for the thoughts-
about 2500 miles on the car- not the tires...
it was new asphalt which i thought would be a good surface- maybe not!