A skidpad or skidpan [1] is a circular area of flat pavement used for various tests of a car's handling. The most common skidpad use is testing lateral acceleration, measured in meters per second squared (m/s2) or the scaled unit g-force. This usage has similarities to that of using a kick plate. [2]
A car's maximum g-force on a skid pad says something about the grip of the car on winding roads, or how fast it can drive in corners without losing grip. Some factors which can aid in achieving higher g-force are high power, wide tires, low mass, appropriate suspension setup and large downforce.
The test is carried out on a circular track with a defined radius. A car driving on said track is slowly accelerated, until the outermost tires on the car begin to slip. Going any faster would cause the car to drive outside the defined radius. At this point, the speed of the car is recorded, and given the centripetal acceleration formula (by the formula v²/r, that is velocity squared divided by radius) the car's handling in terms of the maximum of lateral gs can be derived. [3]
A new world record was accomplished in November 2020, when the Porsche Taycan set the Guinness World Records best mark for longest electric vehicle drift on the skidpad (measured in time). The car stayed sideways for 42 km (26 mi) in 55 minutes. [4]
The world record for the fastest skidpad run in an official competition was achieved by Joanneum Racing Graz from the UAS Joanneum Graz. With a final time of 4,405 s at the Formula Student Austria competition 2023, the team beat the old record by 0,025 s.
For motorized vehicles, such as automobiles, aircraft, and watercraft, vehicle dynamics is the study of vehicle motion, e.g., how a vehicle's forward movement changes in response to driver inputs, propulsion system outputs, ambient conditions, air/surface/water conditions, etc.
Understeer and oversteer are vehicle dynamics terms used to describe the sensitivity of a vehicle to steering. Oversteer is what occurs when a car turns (steers) by more than the amount commanded by the driver. Conversely, understeer is what occurs when a car steers less than the amount commanded by the driver.
A racing slick or slick tyre is a type of tyre that has a smooth tread used mostly in auto racing. The first production slick tyre was developed by M&H Tires in the early 1950s for use in drag racing. By eliminating any grooves cut into the tread, such tyres provide the largest possible contact patch to the road, and maximize dry traction for any given tyre dimension; see Performance. Slick tyres are used on race tracks and in road racing, where acceleration, steering and braking require maximum traction from each wheel. Slick tyres are typically used on only the driven (powered) wheels in drag racing, where the only concern is maximum traction to put power to the ground, and are not used in rallying.
Automobile handling and vehicle handling are descriptions of the way a wheeled vehicle responds and reacts to the inputs of a driver, as well as how it moves along a track or road. It is commonly judged by how a vehicle performs particularly during cornering, acceleration, and braking as well as on the vehicle's directional stability when moving in steady state condition.
A highsider, or as it's more commonly referred to, a high-side, is a type of motorcycle accident characterized by sudden and violent rotation of the bike around its long axis. This generally happens when the rear wheel loses traction, skids, and then suddenly regains traction, creating a large torque which flips the rider head first off the side of the motorcycle or over the handlebars.
The lowsider or lowside is a type of motorcycle or bicycle crash usually occurring in a turn. It is caused when either the front or rear wheel slides out as a result of either too much braking into the corner, too much acceleration through or out of the corner, or too much speed carried into or through the corner for the available grip. It may also be caused by unexpected slippery or loose material on the road surface.
Aquaplaning or hydroplaning by the tires of a road vehicle, aircraft or other wheeled vehicle occurs when a layer of water builds between the wheels of the vehicle and the road surface, leading to a loss of traction that prevents the vehicle from responding to control inputs. If it occurs to all wheels simultaneously, the vehicle becomes, in effect, an uncontrolled sled. Aquaplaning is a different phenomenon from when water on the surface of the roadway merely acts as a lubricant. Traction is diminished on wet pavement even when aquaplaning is not occurring.
The Nardò Ring, originally known as Pista di prova di Nardò della Fiat when it was built in 1975, is a high speed test track located at more than 23 kilometres (14 mi) north-west of the town of Nardò, Italy, in the southern region of Apulia, in the Province of Lecce. It was acquired by Porsche Engineering in 2012 from its former owners, Prototipo SpA. Porsche now calls the site Nardò Technical Center.
Trail braking is a driving and motorcycle riding technique where the brakes are used beyond the entrance to a turn (turn-in), and then gradually released. Depending on a number of factors, the driver fully releases brake pressure at any point between turn-in and the apex of the turn.
The Thruxton Circuit is a 2.356 mi (3.792 km) motor-racing circuit located near the village of Thruxton in Hampshire, England, United Kingdom, about 30 miles north of Southampton.
Lift-off oversteer is a form of sudden oversteer. While cornering, a driver who closes the throttle, usually at a high speed, can cause such sudden deceleration that the vertical load on the tires shifts from rear to front, in a process called load transfer. This decrease in vertical load on the rear tires in turn decreases their traction by lowering their lateral force, making the vehicle steer more tightly into the turn. In other words, easing off the accelerator in a fast turn can cause a car's rear tires to loosen their grip so much that the driver loses control and drifts outwards, even leaving the road tailfirst.
In motorsport, the racing line is the optimal path around a race course. In most cases, the line makes use of the entire width of the track to lengthen the radius of a turn: entering at the outside edge, touching the "apex"—a point on the inside edge—then exiting the turn by returning outside.
The Caterham Seven CSR is the latest model from sports car manufacturer Caterham Cars. The CSR is the most heavily modified Caterham, though it still retains the basic look of the Super Seven. The CSR has two engine options based on the same Duratec block, though modifications and power output differ. The entry level engine produces 200 bhp (149 kW), with a 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) time of 3.7 seconds. The upgraded engine produces 260 bhp (194 kW), with a 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) time of 3.1 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph (249 km/h).
In railway engineering, curve resistance is a part of train resistance, namely the additional rolling resistance a train must overcome when travelling on a curved section of track. Curve resistance is typically measured in per mille, with the correct physical unit being Newton per kilo-Newton (N/kN). Older texts still use the wrong unit of kilogram-force per tonne (kgf/t).
The 7 post shaker is a piece of test equipment used to perform technical analysis on race cars. By applying shaking forces the shaker can emulate banking loads, lateral load transfer, longitudinal weight transfer and ride height sensitive downforce to emulate specific racetracks.
Falken Tire is a brand of passenger car, light truck, and medium truck tires owned by the Japanese company Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI). It was launched in its native country of Japan in 1983, and was introduced to the North American market two years later and in Europe in 1988. Falken has now become a stand-alone brand that focuses on UHP products while utilizing professional motorsports to further develop and improve products for worldwide distribution.
The Tyre Label is a mark for motor vehicle tyres. Manufacturers of tyres for cars, light and heavy trucks must specify fuel consumption, wet grip and noise classification of every tyre sold in EU market starting in November 2012.
An automobile skid is an automobile handling condition where one or more tires are slipping relative to the road, and the overall handling of the vehicle has been affected.
The Porsche Taycan is a battery electric saloon and shooting brake produced by German automobile manufacturer Porsche. The concept version of the Taycan, named the Porsche Mission E, debuted at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. The Taycan was revealed fully production-ready at the 2019 Frankfurt Motor Show. As Porsche's first series production electric car, it is sold in several variants at different performance levels, and may spawn further derivatives in future models. More than 20,000 Taycans were delivered in 2020, its debut sale year, representing 7.4% of the total Porsche volume. A modified Taycan Turbo S is the current Formula E Safety car.