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Better tires on the REAR! Posted by Larry West [Email] (#1140) [Profile/Gallery] (more from Larry West) on Wed, 28 Oct 2009 18:29:06 In Reply to: Re: How would you positioin these mixed/matched tires?, Greg Pfeiffer, Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:53:38 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
The reasoning is this: Deeper, newer tread has more grip than shallower, older tread. On a FWD car, you want the better traction on the rear.
If you put the worse tires up front, the car will have a greater tendency to understeer. Understeer (plowing, tight, pick your racer's term) means that the car does not turn as much as you want it to. TO correct, you add steering input, and perhaps gently come off the throttle.
Worse tires to the rear on a FWD car, and the car has a tendency to oversteer. Oversteer (loose) means the back end can start to steer on its own, usually with a unfamiliar driver along for the ride, and staring following traffic in the face. Often, this happens so fast you can't control it without a lot of experience in doing it.
To top it off, the way you stop a FWD car from further oversteering is counter-intuitive. You must ADD power at the front wheels, and - assuming the front has grip - the rear end will fall back in line.
Of course, with enough practice, you can use this to your advantage.
So, if the better tires are on the back in an FWD car, it will have less tendency for oversteer, and be somewhat safer because of it.
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