The Physics of Racing

While riding shotgun in my dad's car at a race-type event (no it wasn't racing), a red Corvette spun out in front of us. I blurted out the physics behind the spin without trying, thanks to my physics class!

Some terms to know in the Physics 101 portion:
Static Friction - the type of friction at work when two surfaces aren't sliding on each other (this is what makes driving a car possible)
Kinetic Friction - the type of friction at work when two surfaces are sliding on each other; it is considerably weaker than static friction (this is why we have ABS on modern cars)

Subtitles read:
-Whoa!
-Oh he's gonna lose it!
-Took that too fast!
-The force of friction wasn't enough to keep him from spinning out!
-That's physics at work Ladies and Gentlemen! Woooo!
-"Physics Lesson 1: Kinematics"
-Car breaks, maximum static friction in the front increases, maximum in the back decreases. (Potential for spin-out increases)
-Maximum static friction force reached in the back (Spin-out imminent)
-Kinetic friction takes over in the back; back end accellerates (Back end looses control)
-Maximum static friction reached in the front (Front begins to loose traction)
-Kinetic friction takes over in the front (Car wheels around)
-Kinetic friction slows the car down (Car screeches to a halt)

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• physics
• racing
• spin-out
• cars

[SparkySubie]

I think you should download a racing simulator called lfs, it's free and you can actually view the force vectors on the tyres =)

[loehrcp]

cool