Horsepower cuts embarass Asians

The Flathead Fords with the Davis DOHC heads predate that by
many, many years, the flattie racers defined sports cars.

Ted

 

The Flathead Fords with the Davis DOHC heads predate that by
many, many years, the flattie racers defined sports cars.

Ted

 

Or a "truck". <G>

 

Or a "truck". <G>

 

Upgrading what? Engine upgrades won't help squat in the twisties.

Not necessarily. Independent rear will mainly help you on the bumps.
But other than that, it helps, but not a huge amount. Pre '99 Cobras
posted some impressive skidpad and slalom numbers. Using basically
stock Mustang rears. I owned a 97 Cobra - it did fine in the twisties.

By that token, the '87 Escort I used to have should have beat the Stang
as well - 4 wheel independent, decent weight, etc....

 

Upgrading what? Engine upgrades won't help squat in the twisties.

Not necessarily. Independent rear will mainly help you on the bumps.
But other than that, it helps, but not a huge amount. Pre '99 Cobras
posted some impressive skidpad and slalom numbers. Using basically
stock Mustang rears. I owned a 97 Cobra - it did fine in the twisties.

By that token, the '87 Escort I used to have should have beat the Stang
as well - 4 wheel independent, decent weight, etc....

 

True, but given that many pickups are driven with an empty bed, that
transfer should be negligible. With a couple inches of snow back there,
it should have improved the traction anyway. Point is that all 4 will
spin at equal speeds - those that slip will spin while those that grip
will pull/push the truck up the hill.

 

True, but given that many pickups are driven with an empty bed, that
transfer should be negligible. With a couple inches of snow back there,
it should have improved the traction anyway. Point is that all 4 will
spin at equal speeds - those that slip will spin while those that grip
will pull/push the truck up the hill.

 

i know that! he had torque control tubes, special springs and special
shocks on a limited slip rear, springs, shocks and rack & pinion
conversion on the front.

motor was a small block 5.0 with extensive mods.

but how much wider are cobra tires???????? the point is, my ratty
little civic, with stock spec suspension and stock "si" tires
embarrassed the 'stang. if tires alone were the criteria, the civic
would be a joke. it's very much not.

escort has mcpherson struts on front so i'm not surprised. mcphersons
are great off-road, but they just don't do on-road as well as the
civic's wishbones. we also took a subaru wrx out on the same road that
same day. it was ok on power, but nothing really special on the bends.
not as good as the 'stang or the civic.

 

i know that! he had torque control tubes, special springs and special
shocks on a limited slip rear, springs, shocks and rack & pinion
conversion on the front.

motor was a small block 5.0 with extensive mods.

but how much wider are cobra tires???????? the point is, my ratty
little civic, with stock spec suspension and stock "si" tires
embarrassed the 'stang. if tires alone were the criteria, the civic
would be a joke. it's very much not.

escort has mcpherson struts on front so i'm not surprised. mcphersons
are great off-road, but they just don't do on-road as well as the
civic's wishbones. we also took a subaru wrx out on the same road that
same day. it was ok on power, but nothing really special on the bends.
not as good as the 'stang or the civic.

 

If the tires can not gain traction, then there is no weight transfer to the
rear, especially at startup, which is why I thought that the truck needed
better tires.

All 4 tires will not necessarily spin at equal speeds unless the vehicle is
equipped with front and rear locking differentials and a transfer case or
center locking differential. If any of the differentials are open, then the
tire(s) with the least traction will spin while the others do nothing.

 

If the tires can not gain traction, then there is no weight transfer to the
rear, especially at startup, which is why I thought that the truck needed
better tires.

All 4 tires will not necessarily spin at equal speeds unless the vehicle is
equipped with front and rear locking differentials and a transfer case or
center locking differential. If any of the differentials are open, then the
tire(s) with the least traction will spin while the others do nothing.

 

I've seen a lot of cars with extensive (and expensive) modifications that
actually degraded performance. The people doing the modifications don't
really know what they're doing and end up unbalancing the suspension. The
limited slip rear is not a help on a twisty road.

McPherson strut suspensions are not great off-road. Take a look at
purpose-built off-road vehicles and see how many have strut suspensions.

 

I've seen a lot of cars with extensive (and expensive) modifications that
actually degraded performance. The people doing the modifications don't
really know what they're doing and end up unbalancing the suspension. The
limited slip rear is not a help on a twisty road.

McPherson strut suspensions are not great off-road. Take a look at
purpose-built off-road vehicles and see how many have strut suspensions.

 

not in this instance.

i'm sorry, /how/ many rally world championships have been won with
mcpherson struts??? i'm talking cars, not "purpose-built off-road
vehicles".

 

not in this instance.

i'm sorry, /how/ many rally world championships have been won with
mcpherson struts??? i'm talking cars, not "purpose-built off-road
vehicles".

 

that depends on the diffs you have.

http://www.quaifeamerica.com/

those are always "open".

 

that depends on the diffs you have.

http://www.quaifeamerica.com/

those are always "open".

 

According to the web site on the link, the Quaife differential is not an
open differential, although they say that it performs like an open
differential during normal driving.

An open differential is one that does not have any means of locking or
limiting slip. By definition, the Quaife differential is not an open
differential.

 

According to the web site on the link, the Quaife differential is not an
open differential, although they say that it performs like an open
differential during normal driving.

An open differential is one that does not have any means of locking or
limiting slip. By definition, the Quaife differential is not an open
differential.