Muppet oversteer on RWD

[richyd]

Bit of a numpty question this, but after parking an Elise backwards in a hedge last year, I want to avoid making the same mistake again. I am about to buy a cracking little Caterham but am a little nervous following my elise "incident". I crashed the elise by backing off the throttle during a fast, progressive LH bend, it was a classic lift-off oversteer moment. Only problem was when the elise stepped out, it happened so fast I caught it and held it, but ran out of road before the car corrected. Will the Caterham snap out as fast if I go wrong, and what are the general rules about cornering in a RWD.

PS - My car history is Golf and Pug Gti's and Scooby's, so am clearly not a RWD expert.

Also, can anyone recommend a RWD driving course in the Kent/Sussex/Surrey area??

Cheers

[richyd]

m12_nathan said:

carlimits.com - brilliant and worth every penny.

Caterham should be more forgiving than the Elise due to the engine layout.

That's what I'm hoping....

[richyd]

Don said:

Something else to consider:

You induced a rear wheel slide by lifting. You can induce a seriously big one by braking.

The only reason (I can think of!) for braking in a corner is because something has happened around it that you couldn't see - and a brake was absolutely necessary. It means that your corner entry speed is too high to be able to stop in the distance you can see to be clear.

Of course - some corners you can see all the way through - but most aren't that way.

So whilst you are getting some tuition you might find you want to do an Advanced Driving course where they teach you about "Limit of Visibility" (Limit Point) cornering - a useful technique for judging corner entry speed so you don't go in too fast (or too slow for that matter).

A handling course is brilliant fun and I recommend it completely - but you should couple it with some general road driving tuition too as by itself its just a more skilful way to put the car in a hedge.

If you want something concentrated you could spend a day with RideDrive. If you want something inexpensive (£85!) you could consider the IAM or Rospa.

yep - thanks. My spin was lift-off induced, as the road was a little damp and I noticed a shiny manhole cover in the road at the last point. I wanted to slow a little, not stop, but I think now that if I'd stayed gently on the gas I would probably driven cleanly over the manhole cover without any problems...