Deadly in Wet

[james22]

Hey guys.

Just drove my new xr8 for the first time in the rain.

I was s**tting myself, it slides real bad. I wasnt even trying and was sideways in a big way. Didn't like it to tell the truth.
LSD + Rain = Unbalanced Car :

Is everyone elses the same, or do I just have crap rubber?

And to top it off, I went round a corner & the engine cut out for a second, unbalancing the car halfway round the corner & nearly put me up the gutter.

[zhodak]

I learned real quick to be gentle on with the throttle on my AU1 XR6 ute.

[Sapper]

The quality of your rubber makes a HUGE difference in the wet. I got my car with these crap firenzas that had 80% wear on the front and 90% wear on the rear. Even switching the old fronts to the rear when i got 2 new dunlops made a noticable difference in the wet. I'm always a fan of spending good money on your rubber.

[Orbit]

what tyres have you got on it now?
i'd be thinking it's more a tyre issue then an lsd issue.

[james22]

Front = Maxxis Victra MA-z1
Rear = Sava Intensa

[Sapper]

Whack on some dunlop sp3000a's and that should fix the problem. "No name" tyres genuinely scare me for the most part.

[Orbit]

haha well to start with go and get 4 tyres the same... :sm_headba
What is the state of wear on the fronts and rears?

But the maxxis ma z1 are usually a ok tyre in the wet....so if wear is ok i'd swap front to back to start with...
the sava's are on the cheaper end of the performance side of things but are usually "ok" until wear gets down a little.

That said, i wouldn't by either but that is personal preferance.

If the tyre wear is not so crash hot i'd be looking for some new rubber.
and it is always better to have the same tyre on all 4 corners.

[S3SR]

the trick is not to turn so fast and sharp and take it VERY easy on the throttle.

i to have LSD but only a 6cyl and dunlop sp3000a's and man its scary going sideways with cars all around and you werent even trying to hoon.

take it easy and change gear before you hit a corner/roundabout

[b2tf]

Originally Posted by james22

Front = Maxxis Victra MA-z1
Rear = Sava Intensa

Try having a ute! Then you'll see scary in the wet!

Mine's not too bad though on account of having basically brand new SP3000's on it, a superb tyre. Sure, if i want to I can spin the thing round but I can give it a bit of a squirt in the wet (not round corners though) and it will hang on fine. The handling is so good I even trust mrs b2tf to drive it in the wet, although my doctor keeps telling me not to :

[james22]

Originally Posted by Orbit

What is the state of wear on the fronts and rears?

The tyres are in good nick i'd say 80% all round

Originally Posted by FALCONSR

the trick is not to turn so fast and sharp and take it VERY easy on the throttle.

take it easy and change gear before you hit a corner/roundabout

yeah, very easy on throttle check 1. The problem is the car is either GOING or not, theres no halfway. And i only have to look at the accelerator to start spinning. Practice lol. :hihi:

Might rotate the tyres aswell 2

[nat_daly]

opposite lock is your friend

[GT290]

Originally Posted by james22

Hey guys.

Just drove my new xr8 for the first time in the rain.

I was s**tting myself, it slides real bad. I wasnt even trying and was sideways in a big way. Didn't like it to tell the truth.
LSD + Rain = Unbalanced Car :

Is everyone elses the same, or do I just have crap rubber?

And to top it off, I went round a corner & the engine cut out for a second, unbalancing the car halfway round the corner & nearly put me up the gutter.

I have a GT with 277kw at the blacktop and when its wet you gotta be gentle with her or she will kick its rear out and you don't want to hit the kirb on a roundabout with the rear, Ive seen the damage it can do to your rear axle assembly. I wouldn't go as far as to saying it was an unballanced car. put you traction control on in the wet always.

[DOC]

Originally Posted by james22

The problem is the car is either GOING or not, theres no halfway.2

Well your problem is self imposed, these cars in the wet require a different driving attitude, and if you play with them you will loose them, always back them of in wet weather and if the road is not draining ( sleety ) back right off. Once you have driven a few times in the rain and are used of it, all will be fine, In the end i had no problems giving the au xr8 full throttle in the wet, yes your tail hangs out and you step out the back end, where people get unstuck is when they don't grasp where the front wheels are pointing and adjust steering as they think they are loosing it.

In general the AU is a brilliant car once you tame it, but then again thinking about it the AU i had definatley had some issue's.. It was sideways in the wet or dry.

[GT290]

Originally Posted by DOC

Well your problem is self imposed, these cars in the wet require a different driving attitude, and if you play with them you will loose them, always back them of in wet weather and if the road is not draining ( sleety ) back right off. Once you have driven a few times in the rain and are used of it, all will be fine, In the end i had no problems giving the au xr8 full throttle in the wet, yes your tail hangs out and you step out the back end, where people get unstuck is when they don't grasp where the front wheels are pointing and adjust steering as they think they are loosing it.

In general the AU is a brilliant car once you tame it, but then again thinking about it the AU i had definatley had some issue's.. It was sideways in the wet or dry.

Exactly, These cars, the BA anyway will go where you point them weels pretty much. I highly recomend for someone that is not familure with these cars should go and do one of them driver trainer days or with a club, lots of fun and you learn the sience of these cars and develope better control through confidence and understsnding how they will behave in an exstreme curcumstance or condition. I think its great value for the experiance.

[Falcon Freak]

Originally Posted by nat_daly

opposite lock is your friend

Opposite locking is fun. Easy on the go pedal junior and your problems will be reduced significantly.

FF

[MRJUCY]

The Good Year F1s are awesome in the wet.
The trick with driving in the wet is slow your movements, be gentle on the wheel & ease on the power & you can drive much faster & cleaner then someone driving slowly & making sudden movements unbalancing the car.

[OzJavelin]

Originally Posted by b2tf

Try having a ute! Then you'll see scary in the wet!

Agreed! My 1-tonne AU V8 (with LSD) was shite with the OEM GoodYear Cargos .. put any half decent tyre on and it's fine with some respect on the throttle. I doubt this is anythign to do with the LSD.
BTW: If my GenIII VY didn't have traction control I wouldn't drive it in the wet!! Even with the Bridgy's it's nasty ..

[TheSneakiness]

Originally Posted by b2tf

Try having a ute! Then you'll see scary in the wet!

Oh yes.

There's been a couple of times I've noticed the back end slightly sliding out in the dry, if I stomp on it in the wet, I don't move, simple as that.

Good old LSD.

[plext]

You need to adjust your driving style in the wet, and you need to get some tyres with a higher coefficient of friction on wet roads than the ice on ice numbers I would suspect those of producing.

I never once unintentionally lost traction on wet surfaces in the 4.5 years I owned an AUII XR8 ute, I assure you it's not the lsd.

It comes down to attitude. The attitudes "My tyres are the only thing keeping me out of the shrubbery and therefore worth spending money for quality products." and "Wet roads are slippery, I will modulate my throttle usage.", can save a lot of pain.

[james22]

Originally Posted by GT290

I wouldn't go as far as to saying it was an unballanced car. put you traction control on in the wet always.

Problem is, I got no traction control. Manual

[james22]

Originally Posted by plext

''My tyres are the only thing keeping me out of the shrubbery and therefore worth spending money for quality products." and "Wet roads are slippery, I will modulate my throttle usage.", can save a lot of pain.

True there, Wasnt a throttle problem though, I was being very gentle on it.

The prob is it doesnt cruise, your either accelerating or decelerating.
To hold speed in like 4th gear just doesnt work. The RPM is that low that when you put foot on accelerator you either go or don't. If you hold it in 3rd or something you have to hold your foot further down on the pedal revving it more, then you can cruise & choose whether to accelerate or not. Its kinda hard to explain

[plext]

Sounds very odd mate.

Perhaps best to have it looked at?

[DOC]

Originally Posted by james22

Problem is, I got no traction control. Manual

I don't think your reading what people are saying, the problem is not that you do not have traction control, it is down to your experience, ability, the set up of the car etc etc, if your loosing it in the wet you need to back off and take some time to learn the car and the way it reacts in all conditions.

You wont go out there overnight and step the back end out at 140 - 150 kph in the wet and keep the pedal flat to the floor if you have not had plenty of practice and even then you need big aggots to step a car out at that speed, have your car pointing at 12 o clock while your looking at 1 o clock, there is a fine line between pleasure and pain.

As Gt has said they go where you point them, and Mr Juicy has said extra gentle on all movements.

But as also mentioned get of to an advanced driving school, and get some experience and don't even consider trying anything half stupid on the roads or it will bite you hard.

EDIT: Just read your post re the car having problems, ? get it fixed wet or dry.

[JC]

James - I would prefer to have steering than power in the wet, so I wouldn't rotate your tyres. I had the Sava Intensas on my (less powerful) AU1 XR8 auto, and they were actually pretty good in the wet, as long as you take it easy. The autos are easier to drive in the wet because of the torque reduction strategy built into the ECU for autos.

You say the power is on or off - is your clutch adjusted correctly? Maybe try slipping the clutch a bit when you turn corners/take-off etc. It does take a while to get used to the wet in a V8, but the LSD is actually more stable and predictable than a single spinner once you get used to it.

[james22]

Originally Posted by JC

James - I would prefer to have steering than power in the wet, so I wouldn't rotate your tyres.

You say the power is on or off - is your clutch adjusted correctly? Maybe try slipping the clutch a bit when you turn corners/take-off etc. It does take a while to get used to the wet in a V8, but the LSD is actually more stable and predictable than a single spinner once you get used to it.

Yeah just checked tyres then, the Maxxis ones on the front have a lot more tread so i'll keep them where they are. As you said i'd rather have steering than drive/traction.

LSD is more stable? I liked my single spinner in the I6 AUII, was very predictable for me, but like you said i'm prolly just not used to the LSD + Extra power in the wet

[Mechan1k]

I have run Sava Intensas on the ute .... great tyre for wear ... and not bad for dry grip.

Wet grip .... not the best ... they are made to wear well ... not grip well.
Put it this way I managed 70,000km from them doing Sydney metro heavy load driving ... and that's for a 235/45R17.

I suggest keeping the front Maxxis and replacing your rear rubber ... probably for 2 more Maxxis rubber (as I have heard they are pretty decent in the wet).

But always in the wet .... gentle on the throttle ... I always take it easy in the wet ... had a bad accident about 6 years ago in the wet ... I learnt from that lesson. Must respect the road and it's conditions in the wet.

[sbcb]

Your've got crap rubber i'd say mate. My AU2 XR8 is as safe as houses in the wet, most danderous car I have ever had the misfortune of driving in the wet is a toyota MR2, all that engine weight over the back wheels just made it nearly undriveable, really scary not fun. The XR8 though is very well mannered (unless provoked!!). I wouldn't let my wife and bubs ride around in it otherwise.

[mr_xr8]

my xr8 was crap with falken ziex would slide without warning in the rain now it has goodyear eagle f1's and is great in the rain

[Mechan1k]

I had Falken Ziex tyres on a previous FWD car ... and in light rain .... it would plough understeer at low speeds .... scarey stuff.

Have never touched another Falken product since ... as they are pure crap.

[james22]

ok note to self, dont buy Falken tyres, lucky you guys said that cause I was just looking at some prices lol