oversteering

[Grizzwald]

"This is how i started and how i believe you should start. Get in your car put it in low gear. Begin traveling in a straight line at about 20 miles an hour, now with out slowing down, try to make a U turn.

Ah? what happened? most likely you simply understeered: Your car kept moving in one direction dispite the fact you were turning the wheels. In other words your front tires lost grip before your rear tires, UNDERSTEER. Most drifts involve initiating the oppisit OVERSTEER, that is where the rear tires loose grip first."



FRom the guide to drifint, i had in-car drivers ed, and i started to argue with my driver that understeering is where the front tires lose traction, hes like no! saying it was the opposite, so i just read that and thought about that he is wrong....

so then what should i tell him? exactly what i read there?

[Craftsman]

If he doesn't want to believe you... Don't worry about it... If he doesn't want to believe you #&%# him..

Matt.

[CrazyHawaiian]

I think of it in terms of weight transfer. When the majority of the cars weight (inertia) transfers to the front tires then you are more likely to understeer. When the majority of the weight is on the rear tires, then the car is more likely to oversteer. In the example of driving 20mph and making a U-turn, the turning of the wheel will cause the front tires to resist while the rear tires have no change. This resistance in the front tires moves the weight of the car forward. You wouldnt automatically understeer but you're almost there. If you applied enough throttle to spin the rear tires while turning at 20mph then the rear tires would be pushing the car forward, which transfers the weight back to the rear and causes the car to oversteer.

[f8ldzz]

Oversteer / understeer describes the balance of traction of the vehicle.

oversteer = front has more grip that the rear
understeer = rear has more grip that the front

oversteer = spin
understeer = slide into the guardrail

NASCAR lingo...
oversteer = loose
understeer = push

[malcolm]

tell him to think of it in terms of what the CAR is doing, not the wheels.

if the front tires are sliding, it is not turning tight enough for the corner, therefore the steering is under the level that it should be, hence: understeer.

if the rear tires are sliding, the car is turning too much for the given corner, therefore the steering is over the level that it should be, hence: oversteer.

if he still refuses to accept that, slap him upside the head.

[GRiDRaceTech]

In absolutely technical terms, understeer is the state a car is in when the front tires' slip angle is higher than the rear tires'. Oversteer is the state a car is in when the rear tires' slip angle is higher than the front tires'.

Thus, everything happens like Malcolm said.