HPP

How much difference is that really? Can it be felt? What would it do for lap times? (I know there's a plethora of other factors involved in lap times, but assuming all else equal but that....)

What about 4.6mph in the slalom?

Sam Strano

iTrader: (41)

a .14g gain in grip is about a 15% gain in grip in a car that pulls .9g on a skidpad. Not insignificant at all. 4.6 mph in a slalom can be big too, but that depends a lot on the slalom spacing. 4.6 mph faster in a slalom with 60 foot gates is a lot more impressive than 4.6 with 100 foot gates.

All that said... Grip is nothing without driveability. Stock the car will pull around .9g on a skidpad. A smooth pad where the driving dynamics are not in play. You get the car to take a set and run around in circles. A car can pull great numbers and be a mess to drive. Gaining speed in a slalom is better measure of increased performance as the driving dynamics are at work.

HPP

Thanks for the answer.

Unfortunately I typo'd. I meant to say .04, not .14.

I didn't realize there were different sizes of slaloms. I thought it was an estabilished industry standard because every time you see that info listed, it never gives any indiction about the configuration of the test.

And since I'm looking at tests of 2 different cars from 2 different sources, it's next to impossible to tell if they are similar test conditions.

Cal

iTrader: (1)

The best thing would be to look at what your goals are; why are you comparing these two cars? What is important to you, and specifically what are you trying to find out? For small amounts like this, one car could easily perform better than the other with a slightly different setup, or on a slightly different track design. Driver style and ability will make the biggest difference, so the most important thing is for the car setup to make the driver feel confident.

HPP

My goals really are just to get a handle on the differences. To "grok" it, if you will. Numbers are great to read, but without understanding them, it doesn't mean much.

Unfortunately, I don't have access to the other car, so it's hard to drive them for comparison, and there are no local road courses either.