how to make steering more stable?
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 19,352
Likes: 654
From: Tampa, Florida
Re: how to make steering more stable? (CPT Z06)
Dude, your like in Illinois. How long do you plan on driving at 140mph? Are there roads long and straight enough to handle those speeds?
Have you had it aligned yet? Untill you have your search for a solution is useless.
Try these specs:
http://www.vettebrakes.com/align.htm
Have you had it aligned yet? Untill you have your search for a solution is useless.
Try these specs:
http://www.vettebrakes.com/align.htm
Racer
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 483
Likes: 0
From: Austin Tx
Re: how to make steering more stable? (tt_vette)
In Milliken and Milliken there is an analysis of steering sensitivity with respect ot the speed of a car. It turns out that if you have the car set up so that it neither understeers nor oversteers, that steering sensitivity increases (alomst) linearly with speed. You can decrease this sensitivity by increasing understeer, or you can adjust your driving style to apply lower forces to the steering wheel.
If you find yourself holding onto the steering wheel (at speed) with more pressure than you use to squeese a tube of toothpaste, you are using too much pressure!
If you find yourself holding onto the steering wheel (at speed) with more pressure than you use to squeese a tube of toothpaste, you are using too much pressure!
Racer
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 294
Likes: 15
From: South Orange Co. CA
Re: how to make steering more stable? (City_Cobra)
How about raising the caster???
Anyway, the answer was to increase the caster slightly, and make sure that the cross caster (difference from one side to the other) is small. According to the alignment technician, who I respect (he did the alignment on a Ferrari I had), most alignments have more caster on the right to offset the slope of most roads to the right. This gives the casual driver the impression of the car going straight when the road slopes to the right.
At the beginning of the alignment, my front end had 6.3 degrees caster on the left and 6.8 degrees of caster on the right. Now I have 7.1 degrees on the left and 7.3 degrees on the right. Even though these numbers are at the high end of the spec, the car is easier to steer. (BTW, toe is about neutral.)
So for more stability, you can either increase the toe in, or decrease the caster.
:cheers:
Racer
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 366
Likes: 0
From: Antioch, CA
Re: how to make steering more stable? (jim2527)
Maybe you are feeling the front end get a little light at speed. While my car is totally stable and the steering feels great and precise to me, I do notice at speeds 140+ that the front end lightens up a little.
Maybe you could try a front spoiler or lower the car a little more in the front. If you have lowered the car and lowered the rear more than the front, the lack of rake that was designed into the chassis is comprimised. Kind of sounds like you have an aerodynamic issue. This is assuming your alignment isn't screwed up, tires are in good shape and properly inflated, suspension/steering isn't damaged or worn out. I have never heard anyone complain about the steering on a C5 and the steering is one thing that many of the car mags raved about when the C5 first came out. Hope you figure it out... :cheers:
[Modified by daveydc5, 1:58 PM 6/17/2003]
Maybe you could try a front spoiler or lower the car a little more in the front. If you have lowered the car and lowered the rear more than the front, the lack of rake that was designed into the chassis is comprimised. Kind of sounds like you have an aerodynamic issue. This is assuming your alignment isn't screwed up, tires are in good shape and properly inflated, suspension/steering isn't damaged or worn out. I have never heard anyone complain about the steering on a C5 and the steering is one thing that many of the car mags raved about when the C5 first came out. Hope you figure it out... :cheers:
[Modified by daveydc5, 1:58 PM 6/17/2003]
