Driving Techniques

Understeer

Understeer is when traction is lost at the front wheels while cornering, forcing you wide on a bend despite applying the correct steering angle

Understeer is most likely to result from the following scenarios (which are more difficult to correct as you move down the list):

1. Accelerating into a bend
2. Braking into a corner
3. Ploughing into a corner too fast
4. Low traction conditions on the corner such as ice or oil

What to do in an understeer situation?

1 and 2 are relatively easy to fix - stop doing them!

3 and 4, the bottom line is that it may all be too late. If you could have steered less in the first place, you would have done! But not all is lost.

First thing is to put less steering in. That's it. That's the best thing you can do. Just remember that if nothing else.

However, this is probably now pointing you at the tree on the outside of the corner. But it will allow you to brake a little, and with a bit less speed you will now be able to put more steering back in. You then need to balance your steering and braking at the optimum to maximise your chances of making the corner.

If you fail, game over. Fix your car and broken leg and book yourself into www.carlimits.com or similar. Expensive, but worth it. It's the only place you can practice and analyse this sort of thing (without upsetting a car park's owner... )

If you make it round the corner with minimal things bouncing off your bonnet, sit back, relax and wait for your heart to realise the terror you just went through. When you get home, clean the poo from the seat and book your driver training because it was probably luck this time.

Do not brake first (unless you are a driving god) but you can brake after you've corrected the understeer. You will only be able to brake gently as your tyres are already 90% stressed trying to make the corner and if you brake too hard you'll understeer again.

If you hit the brakes hard before removing some steering then you will keep understeering (even worse than before you braked) yet slowing down to the point where your tyres will suddenly grip again - with lots of steering still applied - and if you have lots of speed still the front then shoots off violently to one side, sending you sideways into a spin (which usually results in the feeling of being a passenger until impact, severe pain, and loss of wallet contents.)

External links

Another simple overview: www.drivingfast.net

More complicated review: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Understeer