Norm Peterson

Sanctioned and instructed autocross or open-track experience?The car is just one of at least threeparts to the overall puzzle. A well-driven completely stock car will run away and hide from a heavily modified but poorly driven version of the same vehicle. Hard street driving isn't all that hard, actually.

I don't see any mention of tire size, make, or model or any wheel size data either. That's ultimately where handling happens, and everything else (alignment, toe and camber control, roll steer, reducing compliances, front:rear distribution of lateral load transfer, etc.) is done to keep the tires happy.

I think you need to start there (tires and wheels). Drive it and try to figure out what things you want the car to do differently. Play around with inflation and alignment a little and try some more.


Norm

zkiller

Cool videos Norm.
How do you have the track illustrated in the rearview mirror?
What technology does that?

Norm Peterson

You must mean PonyGT's videos.

Argonaut

Very cool videos PonyGT2005thanks for sharing. Am I wrong - it looks to me not so much that the stang is handling better than the vetts (it may be,I don't know)but rather anexample of a superior driver in an lessor powered car. You are consistently out braking the vettes and hitting your apexes better than they are. After all, isn't racing success mostly the driver, not the car (assuming similar cars at least).

PonyGT2005

I actually have more video but I just picked a few that were of equally experienced (skilled?) drivers in relatively equally outfitted cars.

In the first vid (time trial) the driver is actually a very good driver and an instructor. We talked afterward and we were both running 9/10ths.

In the DE videos the red and yellow drivers are very experienced - I know them both.
That track really suits my car and you can tell. The yellow vette in front is slightly modded, she actually admitted to dragging me on the pass so I had to take the inside line, which actually helps demonstrate the setup of the car quite well.

In the videos I did take a significantly different line than the vettes and frankly I've never understood why the vettes all take such a wide line on the steady radius turns and such a tight line on the reducing radius turns....when I've driven Z06s I have a slightly different line than in the Mustang but it has the same characteristics. Just different drivers I guess, but the three vettes at MSR-C all had basically the same line everywhere so go figure.

If I am a better driver I give full credit to the braking and handling skill to Beaux Barfield - chief instructor at MSR-Houston. I worked with him for 3 days this past fall and he literally pounded on me wrt my braking skills - he was a former Rookie of the year in Champ cars and man can he driver the wheels off a car. I swear not..he helped me shave at least 10 seconds per lap off my time and 90% of it was in the braking zones. If you ever have a chance to work with Beaux, do it...you won't regret it.

So yes, the driver does count for something

SlideWRX

Actually, the solid rear axle isn't hurting the mustang on the track; it's the bumps on the street where a solid rear axle rears it's head. The solid rear axle is actually a very effective track suspension.

Tom

Sleeper_08

SlideWRX

No offence meant but if IRS is not better on a race track then why has every serious race car built in the last umpteen years have IRS?

RodeoFlyer

That's a question the GAC guys should answer. They seem to be tea-bagging Porsche and BMW with stick axles juuuuuust fine. They've had their horsepower lowered twice, weight added, and a rear gear change - and STILL win

Sleeper_08

RodeoFlyer

Yes but are the GAC cars 'real' race cars since are they not forbidden from switching to IRS? In addition as you point out the folks making up the rules keep chaging them and penalizing the faster cars to keep them all close together just like NASCAR.

Not flog it too far but when was the last Formula 1 car with a solid rear axle?

RodeoFlyer

When is the last time you saw a MUSTANG racing against a F1 car? Perhaps we should all get carbon fiber rotors like them too? Perhaps we should all add 30 wings to our car?

The whole IRS/ live axle debate is mostly led by ignorant people. I don't mean that to mean stupid - but rather misinformed. Everybody has this misnomer that "THIS part" will make their car faster. The Corvette's suspension is actually not all that great. You wanna talk about old school? The Corvette has springs like an 1895 buggy! The geometry of it's IRS is less than ideal due to it's packaging. The car is fast because it has a lot of horsepower,tires, and brakes. It also has a low CG, but contrary to popular belief is not all that light of a car. It is plenty over 3000lbs.