<VV> Re: VirtualVairs digest, Vol 1 #809 - 14 msgs

[djtcz@comcast.net]

> From: Robert Wilkinson 
> Subject: Re: Car reaction to sway bars 
> 
> Ken wrote: I am wondering how the heavy sway bar on front differs from the 
> heavy sway 
> bar on the rear. I run a heavy bar on the rear...and get...oversteer...Does 
> the heavy front bar do the 
> opposite? 
> 
> Yes, exactly. A sway bar increases lateral weight transfer when 
> cornering. This reduces grip on the loaded outside wheel more than it 
> increases grip on the unloaded inside wheel. Less grip total on that end 
> of the car. On a late Corvair (which oversteers due to rear weight bias, > though less than earlies) one wants a lot more front roll stiffness than 
> rear to add net understeer and balance the car. 
> 
........................
That is certainly the usual, general case.  That old ADDCO book described a special situation (on early Camaros ? maybe).  They kind of warned that when a front bar is added to a car with a weak front bar or no front bar AND dreadful camber geometry, the reduction in roll keeps the camber from going crazy, and improves the front grip so much that less understeer is the result. 
Putting just the HD COrsa rear springs in my 65 increased the sensation of oversteer, but the car cornered so darned hard with either 13 inch Pirelli Cinturatos or later with Dunlop qualifiers on 14 X 7 inch rear wheels that the oil pressure would drop before real oversteer or understeer would develop.