urdad

I was out today in the rain,not going tooo fast but as I went round a roundabout the front of the car decided it didn't want to turn in and decided to go straight on.
Fortunately I wasn't going very fast so was able to recover..
I've a few ideas why it happened but I'd rather you made suggestions so I can eliminate the ideas I have.
BTW I'd covered over 60 miles in the rain prior to this...cheers...

nixxon

Understeer?

corradoboy

Yup, understeer. Common on Scooby's.

To remove a lot of the understeer you need to stiffen up the rear ARB, so that when cornering the weight transfer of the car is reduced allowing the front tyres to retain better alignment with the road surface.

mattwrxCS

iTrader: (1)

Think that should read, Understeer.

As above

escott

iTrader: (1)

As above, it's understeer.

Stiffer rear ARB is supposed to help, but you can also help a little with driving technique. If you feel it happening, winding off a bit of lock helps the front start to grip again, also backing off the throttle will also help.

Other obvious cause is worn/poor quality fronts if it was wet...

urdad

I knew it ended in steer.
I'm not overly confident in the front tyres at best,the first incling I had of their quality was the first time it was wet and I went out the meerest push would cause them to lose grip.
The car is all std,I thought me backing off was one of the causes hence my original post,sorry what is(are)the ARB....
If they are the rear drop links they are first on my mod list as reccomended by most on here...
I think it's mainly tyres...next I'll ask for tyre reccomendations....
Thanks and please forgive my scooby~naievety.....

Xia

errr too fast for the condition of the road?

corradoboy

Sway bar - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia or ARB

If you're gonna fit solid drop-links then pop a decent rear ARB on whilst you're at it. they aren't expensive, are easy to fit, and will give you a significant improvement in handling relative to the expenditure. Whiteline 22mm adjustables are popular and can be got with a Scoobynet discount (if they still do it) from Demon Tweeks or others. Perrin are also well respected bars.

dunx

iTrader: (3)

Best value mod on my car.... KojaK fitted one to his and he loves it.

In the dry you will not believe the change to your car's handling, in the wet it should help but good tyres are a better bet ! (IMHO)

DunxC

P.S. Bus routes usually have a greasy deposit that helps reduce grip in the rain....

NorthDownsScooby

If it was literally "straight on" then it was likely to be oil mixed in with the rain water on the road, and nothing to do with the supsension setup.

SunnySideUp

I would go with the 'Too Fast' for the conditions offering too .... unless you have bald tyres that is?

I've never experienced it myself, but I do keep within the limits of the car and conditions

urdad

I'm hoping it's the ****e tyres and the drop link combination..
I was not going excessively fast and pretty sure I could have done better in a lesser car..
The seller prolly stuck some economy specials on prior to selling it to me,I will be changing them shortly.
As for mods I want to do as little as possible and just generally improve the handling,I don't intend racing it around(too much).
I'll do both but one at a time just to see which makes the most difference.
As I said the tyres never instilled confidence straight from the off....
So it'll be drop links,tyres and an ARB to start..thanks for the advice.

GazTheHat

Uprated rear anti roll bar from Whiteline and a good 4 wheel alignment.

jasonius

iTrader: (1)

just to add to whats been said (rear ARB +DL's good geometry/alignment.. ) make sure you have decent tyres on the car and the correct pressures..!

I've recently gone from Toyo T1-R's to set of GY asymmetrics and the difference in the wet is unbelievable.. They're just in a different league, in every condition..!

Tyres are the single most important part of a car handling..

Saying that, I used to enjoy easy power slides with the toyo's..

STiFreak

iTrader: (4)

What make of tyres are on the car? There are some, like LingLong (no I'm not joking) that people have found are downright dangerous in the wet / cold.

urdad

Nothing oustanding that I can recall,I'll have a look later when I've finished work.
Could I set up a poll to check out the favourability if tyres...

GazTheHat

There's a gazillion tyre threads and even a sub-forum. Best go in with some knowledge first.

Toyo's are very favourable.
Yoko Parada2's are also.

Then you get onto the more expensive. GY, MPS2 etc.

You'll probably still want to ARB & 4WG anyway. About £80 + £20 fitting, + £60 geom.

urdad

I've found out I'm the proud owner of a pair of (front) INFINITY INF OS... extra load...205/50R 16 note R rated.
And rear KUHMO ECSTA SPT 205/50ZR 16....
When I change them I will take offers on them
Infinity's are made from reclaimed desert wellies and hardboard apparently,I don't want anybody slagging them off because they're jealous...
Cheers...

urdad

Are these the baby's--->TOYO,very reasonably priced.
Any other imput,criticism appreciated,any known issues with these and of course best place to purchase... do we have a preffered outlet,thanks for the help again...

NorthDownsScooby

yep those are the ones, and Camskill is also a good cheap supplier too - have used them myself for Toyos.

GazTheHat

Yep and Yep.

T1-R i got for about £75-80 a corner (18"). I've also had the T1-S.

scooby L

Roundabout= probably spilled diesel = slippery as ice in the wet

I was sat at lights, heavy rain, on a dual carrageway out of my local town... Leon turbo next to me (I was in my spec B Leggy) tried to pull off but actually didn't go anywhere and the revs shot up to 6k...changed to 2nd..same happend (still only just creeping forward) looked right expecting the Leon to be pulling past me, to see him further back than me and actually drifting sidewards..eventually pulling in behind... was in 3rd before I was actually moving 10mph... mentally slippy.

corradoboy

I drifted a mates car on a diesel soaked motorway sliproad at quite a speed and for quite a way. He never forgave me for it, an his concerns were validated a week later when one of our friends made a proper mess in the same circumstances there just a week later. It meant the bu99er wouldn't let me drive his Atom several years later

urdad

So are them loverly INFINITY's crap......

urdad

..doh! just noticed my fronts are odd to boot.
I mean odd in both respects,I.E not the same and strange..
Along with the Infinity I have a Champiro 50,which roughly translates into chinese to mean "weaping sore"..
The Toyo's are iminent,bit awkward due to shift work.......

stevie boy

if its every corner your sliding straigth on, whilst traveling at a sensible speed, then thats going to be a problem with the car. if its just one or two corners / islands your having issues with then thats going to be a problem with the road, if i was a betting man i'd put money that its diesel down from a trucks tank. no matter what the spec or how much $$ you've spent on your handling when you see rainbow effect on the road in the wet, take it steady and only use slow smooth steering, throttle and brakes inputs, as said before diesel on the road can be like ice.

stevie

urdad

Thanks for the advice everyone.
It's not every corner but as I said previously I did have an indication the first time I went out in the wet.
I want to be able to trust the tyres and I consider these the biggest issue...obviously and unmatched pair of budget skins.
Undoubtedly the road conditions will play a part but I was moving at a steady speed as the curve became more acute and it actually suprised me as I've heard so much about their handling abilities.
Iam looking for answers/reasons and hopfully something towards a cure or at least improvement.
Is it reasonable to start with the tyres,I've not seen anyone defend my beauties yet.....
Cheers..

Dan W

flick the **** out next time and apply moderate power, enjoy a drift if you got enough room.

escott

iTrader: (1)

First look at the tyres, then alignment, then Car Limits

And finally droplinks and rear ARB.

dunx

iTrader: (3)

I've got a pair of Wan-Li's that did a trackday at 40 psi, (on the front), and there's not a mark on them....

In the wet they were truly awful !

LOL

DunxC