Welding Diff vs Spool Diff centre vs 1.5 way vs 4.3

[Jimmynb]

Thank you Kansei!!

Now I understand how the welded diff/spool diff can damage other components, I appreciate that.

Also you gave me a stronger insight into diffs.

Thank you!

[Magpie]

[pepejesus]

Can someone please give me more insight as to what i am after for oversteer and control without damage to the car?

Practice.

[Magpie]

^^^^^^

[hks_kansei]

As above, practice.

Do it with as little risk to others and yourself as possible.

Ideally do a course on the basics, Driver Dynamics do them here in Vic and they are quite good.

Otherwise practice at low speeds on slippery surfaces, this gives you a chance to learn how the car feels and what inputs are needed at a slower speed (so you dont need the super fast reaction time, AND when you make a mistake it's at 30-40kph and not 100)

Best way to learn is dirt/gravel roads in a paddock, dirt and gravel feel more like dry bitumen as far as how this stuff goes than wet bitumen (wet bitumen always feels pretty snappy, dirt is more fluid like a dry road just with a lot less grip)



As far as i'm concerned drifting on public roads is stupid, and frankly i'd have no issues with letting the local police know the rego.

Just do trackdays, skidpan days, and motorkhanas instead. They're more fun anyway since you dont have that constant niggling thought of getting caught, or having a local come around the corner and be killed by you.

[Jimmynb]

I am looking to attend track days and skid pan days of course. As for my danger, as I previously mentioned I take all the precautions I can in order to minimise risk to myself and others. I dont go out every afternoon and take every corner sideways. Im not stupid. I am looking for a quiet closed carpark to practice with no people or cars, walls or pillars. I know it's dumb and i know it's illegal, I get that. As i said i invite your judgement and criticism because it makes me even more cautious.

A dirt patch or gravel patch is a good idea. Ill see if i can find something.

30-40kph is faster than anything i have done so far. I am not taking anything at high speed.

I simply want to be able to perform a countersteer donut and a then a figure 8 before i attempt anything further.

[Magpie]

I agree with the driver education sessions, best money you can spend.

This was my first experience with the 2 way, understeer was ridiculous


After a bit of seat time the understeer can be managed


This is what a 2 way diff is like in a non drift environment.

[slug_dub]

I think you should go home and rethink your life.

[smy0003]

Hahahaha nice catch there Magpie!
Can't believe the difference the seat time made, ~17seconds is ridiculous.

Anyway, the MX-5 is a great car, please don't ruin it and our good reputation by doing skids in your local KFC car park. We've all watched the Best Motoring vids and thought 'Hey I want to do that!' at some point, but the reality of of chirping tyres whilst trying to parallel park with a spool or aggressive clutch pack diff is embarrassing.
If it's a daily driver, stick a Torsen in it and enjoy driving it the way it's supposed to be dríven.

If you want to rip hekkas skidz, buy an S-chassis so I, and the police, can easily identify you.

[Magpie]

smy0003 it was different tracks, 17 seconds faster and I would be more than happy.

The 2 way does make it easy to 'catch' oversteer however it is a little more 'brutal' than a torsen. You really feel the 2 way kick in on deceleration and it takes a lot more effort to get the car to turn in. However track is different to drift but I have on more than one occasion enjoyed a small drift and thought that it could be fun to do longer ones.

[smy0003]

smy0003 it was different tracks, 17 seconds faster and I would be more than happy.

Ahhh, yes, that would do it.

[hks_kansei]

As i said i invite your judgement and criticism because it makes me even more cautious.

A dirt patch or gravel patch is a good idea. Ill see if i can find something.

30-40kph is faster than anything i have done so far. I am not taking anything at high speed.

I simply want to be able to perform a countersteer donut and a then a figure 8 before i attempt anything further.

It's partially safety, but mainly society.

People with modifed cars already have a bad name, the last thing we all need is people drawing attention to us. (most of society sees us the way A Current Affair shows them)
I have to deal with it when the fuckwits a few houses down (who are members of a well know local car related club) decide to do burnouts down the street.
The more they do sh*t like that, the more I get dirty looks from the neighbours when I drag the MX5 out of the garage.

Personally, my opinion is that if you can see a house or main road, you're too close to be doing stuff like that.
When I used to do that stuff i'd head way out far from anything, the nearest house was easily 15km away


I can really recommend the Driver Dynamics training days, I did the slide day which was a great help and pointed out a few bad habits i'd picked up over the years.
They also do a specific intro to drifitng day, which sounds like it would be good for you.

As far as the gravel/dirt/grass, unless you know someone with a property the easiest option is to chat with the local Motorkhana groups, many of their events are on those surfaces, and even though you have to follow a set course, it's a great way to learn how to throw a car around. Entry is cheap too, usually under $50 per event.

[pepejesus]

A dirt patch or gravel patch is a good idea. Ill see if i can find something.

30-40kph is faster than anything i have done so far. I am not taking anything at high speed.

I simply want to be able to perform a countersteer donut and a then a figure 8 before i attempt anything further.

Ok, so you are very much a beginner, which is fine, that's where we all started.

The best thing you can do to your car is... nothing at all. Don't touch the diff. At your skill level you will only make it more difficult by adding an LSD at this stage. The LSD will actually give you MORE traction, which may in turn mean you will need to up your speed to get the thing properly sideways.

You're already up against it with the MX5 as it's such a low-powered car, you need to use momentum more to break the rear end free, rather than just being able to overcome traction with the throttle at any speed like you can do in a high-powered car.

What you want to do is REDUCE the grip, and REDUCE the speed, so you can learn some basic car control in a relatively safe manner. The easiest and best way to do this is on a loose surface like gravel, or a really slippery surface like a wet concrete skid pan.

Join a local MX5 club or other car club, and just do as many driver training events, autotests/motorkhanas, sprints, track days, whatever you can, just drive drive drive drive. Even if it's not exactly the type of event you ideally want to do, it will all help you learn car control and it will help you become a better driver, drifter, or racer, whatever path you go down.

[Jimmynb]

Kansei:

Thats exactly the sort of environment I am looking to do any of this in. Far away from anyone. Thats exactly what I mean.

Jesus:

Can i say that you were most persuasive. Ill keep it to a minimum to none on the roads and just get involved in other areas. Do it the right way I guess. Thanks man!

[Jimmynb]

Also, to everyone who judges, to whom i have no hard feelings;

I imagine most of you love speeding through curvy country roads and mountain terrain, as most mx-5 owners procalim.

Statistically most accidents occur on these roads.

I wouldn't necessarily say that sliding is notably more dangerous than speeding. Especially not with the precautions I take and the minimal chances I take in areas or speeds that could hurt anyone but my car.

It's just a different form of car appreciation.