Hey there. So Obviously this is a problem FWD and I assume some RWD cars face as well. Many of the autocrossers know what it feels like to go "3 wheeling" around a corner.

I was just wondering about the problems this causes, ways to alleviate this, etc.

Currently using Progress CS-II's with 350F/350R rates and a 22mm rear sway bar with a Function7 Brace. No front sway bar just yet. Planning on doing that here in the next month or so. An ex front swaybar.

I'm guessing maybe tightening up the front end or perhaps some sort of chassis bracing for the rear might help with this. Maybe some kind of X bar going across the back? Is 3 wheels as bad as I'm thinking it is? or is it something I should be so worried about.

I was pretty torn as to whether or not to post this in the suspension forum or the autox forum.

 

lol it isn't a problem at all. As far as I know and can tell, there really is no negative effect of the car lifting the inside rear wheel. My car does it just about every single turn.. People always come up to me telling me about it lol.

FWD cars, if the suspension is stiff enough and/or using large swaybars and/or using shortened shocks, will lift the inside rear tire. RWD cars tend to lift the front inside tire for the same reason. (RWD cars tend to setup the front end to be very stiff..).

Here's my car, almost getting on 2 wheels..

and a random RWD car I found lifting the front inside tire


Like I said, no real problems when it happens. For us, the rear inside tire is doing nothing, whether it's on the ground or not. The vast majority of the grip will be on the front outside tire, the rear outside tire and then a little on the front inside tire. It's all due to forward-to-lateral movement.

Nothing bad will happen to your car if/when it does this, so don't worry about it.

With your suspension, you will probably get the inside rear wheel of the ground on some turns. But when you're driving, you don't don't feel it or notice it at all. Like I said, the wheel is doing nothing but getting some hang time. Which even then, it's only for a couple seconds and then it's back on the ground...

Leave the front end alone and don't worry about any "chassis" bracing. Those jungle gym x-bar's or w/e are just dead weight(and will bump out out of ST* class for SCCA). Stiffening up the front end won't do much to prevent this, it'll just make your car understeer more.

 

So with my 22mm rear swaybar and no front swaybar would you recommend I get the EX swaybar my mechanic said he'd sell me for cheap?

I can't help but feel like the front end rolls more than the back end. Some stiffer rates up front would be nice.

 

Making the front end stiffer *should* help keep the inside rear tire more on the ground during hard cornering, but like speedy said it's not really doing much anyway. Just keep your tires in mind when you stiffen the front as the car may want to push (understeer) more through corners.

You could also soften the rear end, either with softer springs or smaller sway bar. I can't remember but are those Progress dampers shorter than stock? If so, then that shorter damper plus the sway bar is what's causing you to lift the inside rear wheel (lack of droop travel as compared to stock).

 

Indeed, the progress shock body is a bit shorter. As soon as the NeoGens wear out I'm totally going to get some solid summer tires like S. Drives or something. It makes sense now that the inside rear tire lifting isn't a big deal. It's not like it would provide any meaningful traction if it did.

Definitely want to get summer tires once these wear out and a front swaybar in the near future. Otherwise my funding is being saved for my swap. Long road to travel on that one >.> At least the front ex swaybar is cheap. My mechanic said he only wants like $40 for the lcas and the bar. I need to get it before someone else sees it at his shop.

SoloAtlanta's novice school provided me with some really good insight into the handling characteristics of my car.