Auto Car | Ferrari F355 Racecar - Red - Front Angle | No test quantifies the complex interactions of chassis and tires more clearly than the skidpad. A perfect circle 200 feet in diameter is painted on clean, level pavement. The car laps at the highest speed possible without skidding wide of the circle or spinning out of control. Electronic timers read the car's time to circle the pad (the first or second lap is normally the best, before the tires overheat), then the best elapsed time is fed into a formula and converted into a maximum lateral g figure.
The skidpad tells you not only the car's outer limits of handling, but also its controllability as those limits are reached. On a 200-foot pad, most cars understeer (slide the front tires first); however, the same vehicle's balance can shift toward oversteer (sliding the rear tires) at higher speeds. It's up to the driver to compensate with correct steering and throttle inputs. Most of our seven "High-Speed Gamble" cars exhibited nearly neutral balance on the skidpad, and retained much of that same fine balance even under the much higher cornering speeds encountered in our other testing. These are some exceptional automobiles.The standard proved remarkably high on the dry skidpad, with the lowest-ranking car, the Corvette, still generating a dizzying 0.93 lateral g. Driven with its traction control switched off (the fastest way around a dry corner with an alert driver at the wheel), the Vette was secure, easy to place, and remarkably tolerant of even sudden changes in throttle position.
So was the pair of cars that tied for fifth place with a 0.94g pad performance. The mid-engine NSX-T has a well-earned reputation for precise steering feel and overall chassis composure. Like the Vette, it was a bit quicker on the pad with its traction control switched off. The Supra also has a poised, balanced nature as its tires transition into large slip angles, making it easy to go fast in.The 3000GT's all-wheel-drive system takes all the drama out of at-the-limit cornering. The big, red VR-4 went around the skidpad like it was tethered, with the grip of its front tires setting the absolute speed limit. It logged a 0.95g best, good enough to slot it in fourth place.
The skidpad tells you not only the car's outer limits of handling, but also its controllability as those limits are reached. On a 200-foot pad, most cars understeer (slide the front tires first); however, the same vehicle's balance can shift toward oversteer (sliding the rear tires) at higher speeds. It's up to the driver to compensate with correct steering and throttle inputs. Most of our seven "High-Speed Gamble" cars exhibited nearly neutral balance on the skidpad, and retained much of that same fine balance even under the much higher cornering speeds encountered in our other testing. These are some exceptional automobiles.The standard proved remarkably high on the dry skidpad, with the lowest-ranking car, the Corvette, still generating a dizzying 0.93 lateral g. Driven with its traction control switched off (the fastest way around a dry corner with an alert driver at the wheel), the Vette was secure, easy to place, and remarkably tolerant of even sudden changes in throttle position.
So was the pair of cars that tied for fifth place with a 0.94g pad performance. The mid-engine NSX-T has a well-earned reputation for precise steering feel and overall chassis composure. Like the Vette, it was a bit quicker on the pad with its traction control switched off. The Supra also has a poised, balanced nature as its tires transition into large slip angles, making it easy to go fast in.The 3000GT's all-wheel-drive system takes all the drama out of at-the-limit cornering. The big, red VR-4 went around the skidpad like it was tethered, with the grip of its front tires setting the absolute speed limit. It logged a 0.95g best, good enough to slot it in fourth place.
Source : www.motortrend.com
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