Pontiac and Bridgestone attack the problem of torque steer.
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Pontiac and Bridgestone attack the problem of torque steer.
Pontiac....an auto brand that I don't don't think very highly of in general, with their low-quality rattle-and-squeak plastic interiors, poor fit-and-finish, outlandish dash and gauge designs, and, above all, the Aztek, has nonetheless come up with a very interesting new approach to the age-old problem of torque-steer, which afflicts some high-powered front-drivers like the Acura TL and FWD Cadillac Northstars. Pontiac has attacked this problem head-on with the introduction of the new GXP's 5.3 L front-drive V8 with 303 HP and 323 ft.-lbs. of torque.
Most of you here at CL pretty much know what torque steer is and what causes it......so I won't do into it in detail. Pontiac engineers and Bridgestone tire designers, to their credit.....and I believe in giving credit to where it is due........have come up with some very interesting new ideas here that fly in the face of conventional front-drive wisdom and practice.....essentially doing the reverse of what Porsche does with its rear-engine 911 in using larger front tires and other modifications. Car and Driver magazine (one of my favorites) did a good write-up on it in the new issue......I'm posting this just as I got done relaxing and reading the paper copy. Here it is:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article....rticle_id=9964
Most of you here at CL pretty much know what torque steer is and what causes it......so I won't do into it in detail. Pontiac engineers and Bridgestone tire designers, to their credit.....and I believe in giving credit to where it is due........have come up with some very interesting new ideas here that fly in the face of conventional front-drive wisdom and practice.....essentially doing the reverse of what Porsche does with its rear-engine 911 in using larger front tires and other modifications. Car and Driver magazine (one of my favorites) did a good write-up on it in the new issue......I'm posting this just as I got done relaxing and reading the paper copy. Here it is:
http://www.caranddriver.com/article....rticle_id=9964
Last edited by mmarshall; Sep 17, 2005 at 02:24 PM.
Pole Position
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From: Washington
I read that too and thought it was quite interesting. I wonder why this hasn't been attacked properly, as larger front tires on a FWD car seems intuitive, even if for the wrong reasons. The car looks quite good on paper but I really do want to drive this one and see if the staggered set up actually has an effect on high hp FWD cars.
I just kind of think it's a shame that the SS Impala is going to have to do with a lesser tire set up and suspension while it also has the same LS4 V8 and FWD. Doesn't seem too SS to me with all that torque steer.
James
I just kind of think it's a shame that the SS Impala is going to have to do with a lesser tire set up and suspension while it also has the same LS4 V8 and FWD. Doesn't seem too SS to me with all that torque steer.
James
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From: Virginia/D.C. suburbs
Originally Posted by jet864
I just kind of think it's a shame that the SS Impala is going to have to do with a lesser tire set up and suspension while it also has the same LS4 V8 and FWD. Doesn't seem too SS to me with all that torque steer.
James
James
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