ice_g

Hi all, i had my MY99 for 6weeks and must say that the handeling is some what tricky, as if i go into a tight-ish corner a little hot, i have the back end stepping out as if i am on a rally. I am not a boy racer as i am 34 (so not a boy anymore boo-hoo) i drive normally but now and again as i get near home where traffic is thinner and country lanes are coming i like to give it a bit, as if none of us did we might all as well drive fiesta's or something, (not that all fiesta's are crap). First time was in the wet on a cold night in the country lanes, 2nd gear r/hander car went side ways, i put opp lock and got it back, but my *** was twitching i can tell you. As other peeps said scoobies are all grip etc etc. I put it down to cold damp conditions and old worn P-Zero's. Second time and hopefully last was mid afternoon dry and mild, 3rd gear left hander quite tight but nothing to get exited about, i probably was doing 60-70 on approach, slight dab of brakes before i was commited and a little throttle to pull me threw, but again out she went not by much a foot or so, but i felt everything and put a bit of opp lock on and gassed it straight. This time i was on toyo T-1S tyres.
Does other people have this sort of thing happen or is it down to maybe faulty suspension, tyre pressures (I was a 30psi rear) or roll bars or something else, or maybe i was at the cars limit as they all have one, probably down to my biking days on R1's and ninja's.
Or is this a subaru for you and it might slide threw corners now and again, but seems to handle it ok and i must admit that it is scary but afterwards, you turn to the passenger and say did you like that, and they think you are a rally driver or something lol.
Anyway thanx for your time.

scooby_si

hmm sounds a little uncharacteristic but then i guess it does depend just how hard yer talkin about these corners yer taking. I totally lost mine about 6 months ago when i pushed it round a roundabout in the wet but this was due to the crap rubber on the 15"ers which came with the car Since gettin 17"ers with toyos aint really had any oversteer or step out moments even in wet, mayb i drive like a saint too much lol.
Generally my understanding is the car is generally more likely to oversteer when lifting off as the weight shifts forward & while a no of the "special" scoobies will have adjustable diff is it so u kud have neer rear wheel drive i shudn't fink yer hass this so that's unlikely 2b cause?
Sounds daft & i presume u woodn't of but u aint put wheel black or sumin else over the treads or even on the sides of these & the other set i guess of wheels, as this can cause merry hell with grip levels
Dunno how much it may also affect yer rear end but have u had geometry tracking etc sorted out as this i suppose might also play up with stayin stuck on road like I need mine doin as front tyre has totally worn out on inside , fek [img]images/smilies/mad.gif[/img] after only a few months on, still my fault i shuda dun that straight off but as i say mine feels like it has pretty good grip so that's a few forts of mine 4 wot it's worth i often talk poop
I recall u r kumin 2 the cov meet next sunday so u may get a few more knowledgable bits of info from peaps there & they can always take u 4 a spin so u have sumin 2 measure against as 2 whether yer duz have less grip (although remember this is a cossie meet we're going 2 so dont mention the scoobies lacking in any area when they is in ear shot dont want em gettin all high & mighty lol kiddin of course)
Si

P1Fanatic

Know what u mean. U hear so much about AWD invincibility but you gotta appreciate the limitations. Under acceleration they are fine but step off the gas, or even worse hit the brakes and the back end will want to come out - I learnt this the hard way! Of course sometimes you cant help it - last night I was blasting around a roundabout (large) in 3rd and some ford pulled out in front 4 up so dog slow - I had to hit the brakes but was really loathe to put to much weight on them after past experience.

Swapping standard P-Zeros to Toyo T1-S proxes with a bit more width and hopefully a lot more grip. I suppose it doesnt help my current offside front tyre has a slow puncture

Simon.

chiark

Check your geometry, your back could be way out. Mine was, and now it's a lot more planted on the rear.

The golden rule of scooby driving is "slow in, fast out". Don't lift off mid corner without knowing what'll happen - in short, you're unweighting the back of the car so it'll want to oversteer. Great when you want it, and after a while you'll love it, but be sure that it's there when you want it.

Go slow into corners, get the turn in sorted, then start experimenting with getting the power on. I find that I can now nail the throttle before reaching the apex... Again, get used to the power delivery of the car (turbo, spiky power) before getting carried away.

DO get the geometry checked. It makes a fantastic difference.

Enjoy it, and keep it pointing forward

Nick.

Steve Whitehorn

iTrader: (13)

A few suggestions

Check tyre pressures. This makes a huge differnce. Opinions vary on pressures but I run 30psi all round.

17' wheels with 4 very good tyres SO2, Goodyear F1 etc are a must. Personaly I love Goodyears

Get the geometery set up properly. Proper 4 wheel alinement.

My car sticks to road like glue with the above, unless I have to lift off ;-) . I do still get understear, which is what Scoobs do. I soultion to this in Powerstations bumpstear mod, which is reasonably priced.

Hope this helps
Cheers
Steve

Steve Whitehorn

iTrader: (13)

As mentioned earlier do you have an adjustable diff? this may be the cause.

Steve

ice_g

Thanx guys for all your comments, i now have a better understanding of the cars character. If i cast my mind back, i think on both occasions i lifted off the accelerator mid apex, just enough to cause the back end to oversteer, so now i know i will not be doing that in the future. I will however be getting the geometry checked and i did re-check my tyre pressures tonight, these are the results, Front left 32.5psi rear left 29psi, front right 30.5psi rear right 30psi, maybe this done it or helped it kick out, so i went to the garage and now have 33psi front and 29psi rear, took it for a spin down the country lanes and it was Cool :-) prbably helped by the slow in fast out, don't lift off approach, so again thanx guys.

Si - Yes i am coming next sunday m8 and it will be nice to get some of the others views etc and do not worry if a cossie owner asks me "does it handle" i will say it grips like a baby sucking tit! dude, so cya next week.
Laterz

scooby_si

lmfao but SHHHHHH dont mention rug rats, gettin in the way of a few mods 4 sum of the cov regulars
Si

Glenn_R

I noticed a couple of things when I had my MY00. When the front tyres got a bit too worn (but had decent tread in rears) the car oversteered dramatically should you happen to lift slightly mid bend. No probs with a new set of boots though - gripped all the way round!! Second, the car wasnt as stable cornering if rear tyre pressures were too high. Something I noticed to dramatic effect at Bedford Autodrome last year(still have nightmares about Turn 8!!!)

Now have P1 which doesnt have that problem. Add a little throttle and round u go!!!

TonyBurns

iTrader: (3)

All scoobs will step out if you lift off the gas mid corner (as your normally doing some speed ) no matter what it is (p1 or like wise )
Basically the way round it is to either go in slowly and come out quickly (which seems to be the best way of cornering ) or just take corners slowly (which is boring and you dont want to do that )
Owning a scoob will actually teach you how to drive a car properly (it has done to many an owner ) as you need to brake on the straight and accellerarate through the corners

Tony

ice_g

Thanx to all for your comments and tips :-) been out doing some practice, trying various techniques and am finally getting a feel for it, as long as i do not lift off seem to have no probs, even braked hard while straight, then went in at moderate speed and powered out mid apex or slightly before and car just squatted down and pulled in tighter to the corner, what a buz. But it was going from a normal 2 wheel drive to the AWD scooby that changed things for me and i am getting better at handling my car and understanding what she can and cannot do, so i am a very happy chap :-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-):-)
Thanx again lads:-)

Paloma

Jesus christ..

if i new all that i would open a garage

Ex_Pug

Once you know what to expect, you'll never want to drive a car that doesn't have lift off oversteer. My 205 is a little more extreme than the scooby in that sense, but still, a car that you can steer with the throttle when cornering hard is ideal, not to mention much fun indeed!!