drifting

[MikkoV]

Heck, engine braking must be one thing that makes Camaro transitions so quickly, haven´t give any thought to it.

But it´s not bad thing, when you know it, you can control it. And when thinking of it more, it can give nice advantage when following close at tandem runs when comparing cars with less engine braking...

I dont see big advantages in IRS at drifting, all guys here set Cambers pretty much at 0 anyway in their imports, and with these spring ratios / axle movements unsprung masses don´t mean **** IMO.

I dont say anythin about grip when talking solid vs. irs, but dont see any reason why not stick to solid axle, leaf springs im gonna ditch in some point and go with 4-links, i´ve allready added panhard bar to prevent axles sideways movement.

I´m from Finland and you may know that rally is popular sport in here, pretty much all RWD rally cars use solid axle and 4-links + panhard or wtt link setup.

But what i said about Camaros transition speeds, when comparing my previous racecar -> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgK8RmynY4c which was lots smaller and especilly when talking at wheelbase, Camaro is faster in it´s movements alltough it weights 300lbs more.

[79PonchoUK]

Yeah, it's quite a difference - I can chirp the tyres in first just by lifting off too quickly in the trans am....I bet a high compression car is even more severe.

Most imports I've dealt with are mcpherson at the rear and have a substantial amount of camber gain when they squat. They never come close to the sort of forward bite a live rear has. Well, none of that kind of car does here anyway....S13s, S14s, 3 series and cosworths.....particularly the sierras.

[PinkNinja]

Another reason I think the imports are used so much (besides fashion), particularly at entry level is that IRS tends to give less forward bite than a live axle. I know for a fact it's easier to get an s14 spinning the wheels than my stock trans am live rear setup. IRS is generally rubbish at getting engine power to the ground....particularly when they run the camber they do after lowering the cars.

One further reason could be the reduced engine braking a little turbo engine provides. A big V8 with high compression will engine brake substantially more making the transitions a bit harder (I'd imagine...don't know for sure).....where as the wheels will keep the little turbo engines spinning more easily and keep it more predictable when back off the throttle.

Obviously in proper racing, engine braking is a useful feature....but in a slide, the throttle makes my trans am more snappy on the lift-off than little engined cars.

After lowering there is usually a lot of camber correction that goes on.
Our IRS actually isn't that bad.
It actually does pretty well for drifting.. Lots of adjustment. the toe arms and traction arms tend to play a big part.

Plus, with the proper modifications we can drop the car on the ground and keep all of our suspension geometry intact. If not improve it.



Response to the bold selection.
In most cases you have that backwards.
A V8 in an S-chassis makes transitions like skating on ice. But with traction... Even though that doesn't really make sense.

Our 4 cyl turbo motors don't keep the wheels turning during a transition, lol
especially with the stock 4.08 rear end...
The boost falls off really quickly and we're left waiting for it to climb back up. Then it's a sudden surge of power. And you end up having to be far more aggressive with the clutch...

Needless to say that stuffing a V8 into a s-chassis makes things much easier... Plus it's not so highly strung out.
Which is why I'm putting a LQ4 in my S14.

[MikkoV]

After lowering there is usually a lot of camber correction that goes on.
Our IRS actually isn't that bad.
It actually does pretty well for drifting.. Lots of adjustment. the toe arms and traction arms tend to play a big part.

Plus, with the proper modifications we can drop the car on the ground and keep all of our suspension geometry intact. If not improve it.

S bodys IRS can´t be all bad when talking about grip. If i remember correctly 8.8s is best 1/4 mile time with S14 and original style rear axle setup.

And yes, it is that way very good axle for drift/track use that you can get all aftermarket parts you can think of to improve it.

But when talkin of it´s advantages vs. solid axle with 4-links, are there any in drifting use? I can´t think of any real ones.