problems during high speed turns
 

a couple days ago when i went out racing with a couple of my friends, i ran into some difficulty when i trying to take a U-turn at high speeds (about 110mph) it was not a tight U-turn like on regular roads, it was much more wide

when i started to take it, it was fine, but at the crest of the U, my car started to, or at least what seemed like, break then release, giving the feeling that i just smashed on my breaks and ABS just kicked in...but i was definitly not breaking at all, just turing

is this a suspention problem? or was my traction control pretty much saying "you are an idiot"?
also, if it was my tcs, would it be safe to take a turn like this with it off? or would this send my car into an uncontrollable skid?

thanks

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

i dont think flippin Uturns @ 110mph is such a great idea... i dont think only your traction control is gonna be saying you're an idiot...

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

HAHAHAH.. my car does the same thing! .. I dont think ford planned people taking turns at that speed.. hehe

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

lol...this U-turn would be around the width of about 8-10 highway lanes...so it is not that crazy

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

ah ha, i stand corrected. i dont have any of them 8 lane highways around here...nor any open space even close to that. where do you find space like that?

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

we have a lot of huge main roads here that are not really part of any city, but that are still in the county which are all blocked off by cones (but in completely fine condition) and the great part about it is that there are no cops that go there, because it is not part of any city

they are not actually 8 lanes, what i meant is that between the two different directions of the U-turn there is about that much room. the road itself is actually a 4 lane (which is nice because even though they are supposed to be in different directions, we can use them all in one because there are no other cars there)

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

traction control has nothing to do with cornering. all it does is prevent your tires from slipping (in a straight line, preventing fishtails or uncontrollable fishtailing)

i could see traction control coming on in a hard turn like that if a tire spun a little, were you powering thru it? (ie foot on the gas) or just coasting?

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

big empty parking lots, lol

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

sounds like fun man...
you have a v6, are you Uturning to the right or left? you might be sliding when you turn to the left because all the power on our V6's comes from the rear right wheel... so the outside wheel has the power. unless i'm mixed up. would power on the outside or inside wheel cause slding?

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

i coasted into the turn, then powered through the arch and out of it...so that could have been it, but it was definitly the feeling of the car attempting to make the turn a bit wider than what i was trying to do, but then again, that could have just been physics working against me

however, i did have that jerking feeling the whole way thorugh the turn, even when i was coasting at the beginning


oh, and forgot to mention, right before i took the turn, i was on the very outer lane, so when i was changing into the most inner lane (passing from the 4th to 1st lane), i was already feeling this

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

sounds to me if it felt as though it was turning wider than actualy was then its possible understeer (front end slides out) then when you powered up at the apex the over steer (rear sliding out) corrected or counteracted the understeer

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

Sounds like understeer to me also, especially if you have a stock suspension.

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

Well...

The 05/06 Mustangs aren't designed for road racing. They were designed as strip cars that can be driven on the road.

Your problem is caused by the design of the suspension - - DON'T make high speed turns with a stock mustang!

You have a slight disadvantage because of having a fixed ridged rear axel. A reason most road rally cars have IRS.

Now... There are things you can do to make it a better road car. Anti-roll torsion bars, stiffer suspension, and active hydraulic shocks that pressurize on load are what you need.

The sensation you are getting is:

As you make your highspeed turn, your car wants to continue in a straight line.

As you make the turn, inertia is causing your car to “Roll” to the outside of the radius.

The stock suspension – being to soft – allows the side of the car outside the radius to drop and the inside of the radius to rise.

Since the rear axle is solid and mounted at each side of the car, what the car does, the axle tries to do to.

The motion then causes the inside tire, in the rear to actually lift slightly off of the road losing traction.

Since the outside tire is no longer riding flat from the tilting of the axel, it too is losing traction which allows the car to start to drift to the outside.

The motion of the drifting removes some of the energy of the inertia that is causing the roll and so inside rear tire gets a grip again giving you that “jitter” that you feel. This motion can also activate the traction control because it senses that the inside tire is not gripping the road.

Slamming on the brakes will remove more of the energy of inertia, and allowed your rear axel to come in full contact with the road, but since your still turning, the slip sensors think the inside tire is slipping since it is turning slower and so the ABS and Traction control is activated.

To resolve some of this you need an Anti-roll Torsion Bar - - it transfers roll from the outside radius to the inside radius attempting to keep the inside tire on the ground. Active Hydraulic shocks will pressurize when “roll” is sensed by the sensors and will attempt to keep the outside suspension from collapsing under the roll motion.

Lowering your car and tightening up your overall suspension will also help a great deal if you want a “Road Car” verses a “Strip Car”.

You will also get “skitter” from the front end if your speed/weight/traction ratio is to high – the front tires are trying to turn the car, but your car WANTS to go straight. The tires will skitter giving you the sensation that the car is not turning correctly for the amount of steering wheel your giving it, may also give you a vibration in the steering wheel. Stickier tires and a stiffer suspension along with a steeper caster/camber angle will alleviate most the steering issue.

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

There is no way that these cars will turn 180 degrees at 110mph within a 140 foot radius. Not unless you're just spinning around.

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

yup thats what i call the UNDERSTEER happens to me alot i like goin in turns at high speeds i think the strut bars would help you steer better at high speeds cuz it improves the handling as i heard...

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

It was your tac control applying brake, sensing the rears were slipping a bit. Totally normal, but it is a bit intrusive. I actually always drive with the trac control off, even in the rain. I always want to know where my car's limits are, and my trac control is my right foot.:D

RE: problems during high speed turns
 

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