Track/Camber setting for optimum grip

[lofty]

Captin or others who have racing experience etc,

i do my own tracking adjustment in work,

the manufacturers settings are for best tyre wear etc, and compromise grip, hence alot of scoobies and evos having camber adjustment,



i cant accuratly adjust camber but i can easily adjust my tracking to optimum handeling setting, std 16v willy settinf is +20 tollerance +/- 10



any ideas?

 

[BenR]

well, trackin should be straight.



cfile://\\amber">amber for teh road you should run what the car feels good at, start @ 1 deg and work up or down. but since you cant adjust it, dont worry bout it.

 

[BenR]

on my track XR2 it likes...well, i like 2.3 deg neg camber....excessive. but its got very very basic suspension with no ARB on the front.

rear is about 1 deg......tyres last about 1800 miles....i want tome new ones wheni get back lofty!!! lol

oh, and it goes sideways alot.....ill show you nxt time.

 

[Captain Slarty]

agree with ben,

Often its a matter of measuring tyre temps on a known track.

Neg camber is often very useful on fwd cars to reduce understeer.

Joe.

 

[petes]

Tracking - agreed - leave it alone.

Camber generally affects grip once turned into the corner (i.e. the tyre should be upright once body roll has taken effect).

Caster affects how the car turns into the corner and how it reacts to steering inputs once turned in. Again in general terms more caster will make the initial turn-in more positive and will make the car twitchier once turned in. Too much caster and you will lose grip.

Road cars are set up on the conservative side. I expect that most FWD cars would benefit from a slight caster/camber increase, but at the expense of tyre wear. For instance, I believe the Cup runs a little more caster & camber than the 172 to give it better track handling.

Caster/camber is adjusted on race cars according to available grip, corner speeds, temperature etc. (wet = more caster, less camber).

All irrelevant if you cant adjust them though!

 

[Captain Slarty]

"
Caster affects how the car turns into the corner and how it reacts to steering inputs once turned in. Again in general terms more caster will make the initial turn-in more positive and will make the car twitchier once turned in. Too much caster and you will lose grip."



Ok.. yes.. the above applies, but however ya call it... its feel - nothing more....



To understand this feel, one needs to understand both WHAT happens and, WHAT PROGRESSES.. this forms the basis of handling...

Its all good fun though ......

 

[Eddd]

A bit of toe out actually worked for us on the track. A toe out car seems to turn in a bit better and since you are on the power on the straights, a 0 toe car will actually be toed in a bit and scrubbing a bit of speed.

Having said that I could be completely wrong about the toeing in on full throttle but one way or another a bit of toe out seemed to work for us.

 

[Eddd]

Camber: It seems you cant get enough negative camber. Tip those buggers in and you will see the difference. And the outside shoulder of your tyre will thank you.

 

[BenR]

i see u like teh colours Capt.......oh dear.....italics too.

Capt is right, in all my racing experience, handling is a non definable subject, you set the car up to your style or what ever is fastest round the track......that is all, you live with it.

On the Rd, its best to adopt teh slightly conservative approach.......being able to control it when you reach 95% of the limit is needed, incase something unexpected happens (i.e. car pulls out, wet patch, dog etc) and you need that 5% in reserve to help you cahnge attitude and direction.....

oh dear, i hope this doesnt start.

 

[lofty]

16vs and williams should toe IN 20 minutes, and generaly all FWD cars toe IN a bit, and all RWD cars toe OUT a bit, but the UHP stuff all seems to be very close around parallel although the same rule applies to a far lesser extent, i checked mine a few months ago and it was c**k on in 20, so i left it, i checked it again 2k later and its out 30 which is a long way off what the book say it should be but its what some cars should be set too, (if this makes sense)

i was basicaly hoping that someone could say "oh yes toe it out and it will be pukker!"

all the track/race cars we do and normaly set to parellel, but they are always ultra low and i dont know if this is a fair comparision,

basicaly i dont car if the tyres wear out quick provided its worth it, i will set it to parellel on friday unless anyone can come up with a better idea in themean time