B
bluefoxicy
So it snowed saturday!
Some people I've talked to are pretty mad at me on this, but I actually went out (and on the highway) in a Mazda3 with Dunlop Signature Sport tires. At points, I could gently touch the brakes at 20mph and feel the ABS kick in. ... at one point, the ABS made me spin and I had to correct for it.
I love snow.
At a point I decided I wanted to go harder, though it didn't make me go faster. I shifted into third, hit the accelerator, and of course the car slides... well, no. The car went straight; I however wound up rotating the wheel as far as 1.5 full turns left, though mostly between 15 and 60 degrees either way, CONSTANTLY, keeping the car in control. Gear shifts, playing with the throttle, tons of countersteering, anything to keep it from rotating or sliding. Great fun. I saw cars with traction control (none in mine) shaking around worse than I was, so I'm better at this than the computer.
Oh, right, the highway.
So some idiot was tailgating me at 20mph on 695, because I was going 20mph on 695. In snow and slush.
My response? Third gear, power, torque steer takes me to the right. I start applying countersteering carefully, making my car continue to travel straight but shaking the back end 30 degrees each way from center at him. He backed off
The next thing I did was angle my car left... you know how front wheel drive sucks in the snow, and when you hit the gas too hard it travels diagonally due to torque steer? I did that on purpose, except I compensated, so my "diagonal" motion was straight down the highway... with my car significantly sideways. :woot:
I straightened it out when I saw a Benz doing donuts in front of me... not on purpose, no; the driver pulled off the road and looked like he crapped his pants, frankly. Actually a lot of people were sliding around and then just coming off the road. A lot of people were trying to go 40mph too... bad idea, any clue why I was going so slow?
I love the snow. I don't know why, everything's reflexive; I don't know HOW I control the car, at all, I just know I decide it's going to be going this way or that, or sideways, or whatever, and it does it. I shift gears a LOT to adjust for the constantly changing traction conditions. It's... intense. I never go fast, I always slow down even to like 5mph for curves I'm remotely unsure about, and 10mph below what I'm certain I can take a curve at if I'm sure about it. But speed isn't everything, you know.
Anyone else have fun playing in traffic over the weekend?
Some people I've talked to are pretty mad at me on this, but I actually went out (and on the highway) in a Mazda3 with Dunlop Signature Sport tires. At points, I could gently touch the brakes at 20mph and feel the ABS kick in. ... at one point, the ABS made me spin and I had to correct for it.
I love snow.
At a point I decided I wanted to go harder, though it didn't make me go faster. I shifted into third, hit the accelerator, and of course the car slides... well, no. The car went straight; I however wound up rotating the wheel as far as 1.5 full turns left, though mostly between 15 and 60 degrees either way, CONSTANTLY, keeping the car in control. Gear shifts, playing with the throttle, tons of countersteering, anything to keep it from rotating or sliding. Great fun. I saw cars with traction control (none in mine) shaking around worse than I was, so I'm better at this than the computer.
Oh, right, the highway.
So some idiot was tailgating me at 20mph on 695, because I was going 20mph on 695. In snow and slush.
My response? Third gear, power, torque steer takes me to the right. I start applying countersteering carefully, making my car continue to travel straight but shaking the back end 30 degrees each way from center at him. He backed off
The next thing I did was angle my car left... you know how front wheel drive sucks in the snow, and when you hit the gas too hard it travels diagonally due to torque steer? I did that on purpose, except I compensated, so my "diagonal" motion was straight down the highway... with my car significantly sideways. :woot:
I straightened it out when I saw a Benz doing donuts in front of me... not on purpose, no; the driver pulled off the road and looked like he crapped his pants, frankly. Actually a lot of people were sliding around and then just coming off the road. A lot of people were trying to go 40mph too... bad idea, any clue why I was going so slow?
I love the snow. I don't know why, everything's reflexive; I don't know HOW I control the car, at all, I just know I decide it's going to be going this way or that, or sideways, or whatever, and it does it. I shift gears a LOT to adjust for the constantly changing traction conditions. It's... intense. I never go fast, I always slow down even to like 5mph for curves I'm remotely unsure about, and 10mph below what I'm certain I can take a curve at if I'm sure about it. But speed isn't everything, you know.
Anyone else have fun playing in traffic over the weekend?
