I'm sure that the topic of driving in the wet/rain has been discussed many times but I just need to vent. I got out of church this afternoon to find the roadways very soggy and unusually slick. Having summer tires and not feeling the need to get into trouble, I drove very cautiously around turns and in and out of stop lights. I was driving around an S curve on ramp to get onto the freeway when I hit a small bump in the road and that's when all hell broke loose. I was only going about 20-25 mph and the tail end came around putting me into the wall. Luckily damage was only sustained to the front end (cracked bumper, front lip, underlining, etc...). I know that the S loves to get squirmy when the sun don't shine but I don't understand how I could've avoided this and it just rubs me the wrong way because I was driving by the books (slow and cautious) like I always do in wet weather conditions. In my 10+ years of driving, I've never felt so excited and scared at the same time behind the wheel of a car. She's just too damn unpredictable!

btw, you guys with all season tires... does it really make that much of a difference in the wet?

 

Replace rear tires before they get down to wear bars.

Or put on a Racelogic Traction Control system for less than your deductible + insurance increase.

 

i would recommend you go to a parking lot when its wet and practice. The car is very controllable and progressive, you just have to be aware of its balance. If you are in a situation where the back comes out, it happens for a reason. Either you had insufficient tread on the rear or the balance of the car was upset!

 

My tread on my stock RE050s are about 35% and I am well aware of the tendency of the car esp. given certain weather conditions - hence the reason she's driven the way she is. That's why I'm so baffled by what happened. I guess what I'm really trying to get at, is were my tires to blame? (given that everything else was done correctly)

 

You stayed away from VTEC, right? That can really upset the balance of the car, esp on a turn.

 

I have no idea what happened to you, but I'll say without reservation that my early AP1 is not that volitle, even with the supercharger, gears, and other mods, and your car should be less so, so to tell the truth, your story sounds impossible, unless your tires are more worn than you realize. You have to measure the tread depth on the INSIDE of the tires, and I'm betthing you're out of tread on the inside of the back tires. If you're not, you should seriously consider selling the S2000 and getting something with more forgiving handling (or do as CKit suggested, and put a RaceLogic Traction Control system on your car).

You should clearly NOT be having this kind of problem if you're driving the way you say you are and the tires are really OK.

Is it possible that you hit an oil slick or something else that might have caused the loss of traction?

 

^ I agree. I can't see how this car would spin like that at 20-25mph. Something else is wrong or you found some diesel.

 

let's say his tires were worn way down. would that racelogic traction control thing even do anything?

 

If it has been dry for 2-3 week with high temperatures (oily road surface) and it rains afterwards it can be very slick. even at 3000 rpm in 3de the back can break out.
I had this happen on a small bump coming from a roundabout (also about 30 mph). with some gentle countersteering and easing of the gas a little bit, I controlled the drift and didn't crash.

in conclusion: the S2000 can react that way in slippery conditions on bumps but I suspect that you completely let off the gas making it spin out of control.

I suggest you take it to a parking lot and practice how the car reacts to your (re)actions when it breaks away. Also a driving training can do wonders in such conditions.
With the S2000 correct countersteering and trottle control needs to be an instant reaction. you don't have time to think if it happens so practice is very important.

 

[QUOTE=rustywave,Nov 5 2007, 01:09 AM] let's say his tires were worn way down.