Speaking of morons doing spin-outs with excessive power...
 

The short of it is .... bad judgment coupled with too deep a gear on a down shift while adding too much throttle.

It happened 3:00 PM today while running on a 4 lane road 45 mph in very light traffic. I did a 180 deg spin then went up across the sidewalk into the grass and dirt at an unfinished intersection. The front and rear switched ends in a flash on a down-shift to pass a slow moving vehicle, very bad judgment. The temps are a bit cooler now so the engine's making a bit more HP and the drag radials don't stick quite as well too, a near deadly combination for me. I did try to control the spin and point the car towards that particular spot, for the most part I succeeding. There were no cars or people there and the curb sloped down for handi-cap egress. The left rear wheel caught the curb while the front wheel along with the rest of the car escaped any contact. Lucky me...

As I said, the rest of the car is fine. The wheel still spins true so I'm not expecting any suspension damage when I put her in the air for a detailed look-see.

Pat, you get a free pass for an "I told you so...".

Looks like I'll have to rethink the hidden 300 hp progressive nitrous fogger system I was planning for a winter project.:eek:%/:p


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Ouch! almost did the same thing with mine figuring out the traction limits of BFG tires,in a turn with a big block car.Was able to catch mine before it got out of hand,Luck had a lot to do with it.

Yikes! Luckily, both you and your car escaped without too much injury.

A little duct tape and you'll be good to go. :eek:

While the suspension may look ok, you may have brinelled the wheel bearing. You can Google the term, but basically it means you may have dimpled the races by jamming the ball bearings into them from a large side load.

Undy, on the down shift. Did it cause the rear end to (essentially) "lock up" or was it the sudden acceleration after the shift that caused the tires to break loose? In other words, what induced the spin?

...been there in either case, been lucky more than once.

The fact that you were not hurt is the most important thing. Lady Luck must have been sitting in your car with you.

Glad to see you are OK. Things like that can get out of hand in a hurry...........

Glad to hear that you are ok........You survived without killing yourself or someone else, if that is the worst thing that happens in your Cobra, be happy that you got away with the minimum amount of damage that is shown. Chalk it up as a learning experience.......



Bill S.

Undy, you still have one last chance to blame it on a "stuck throttle.":rolleyes:

undy,

When you are at or near the fore-and-aft traction limit for the rear tires, any 'celeration (ac- or de-) will upset the car and cause a spin.

Example: a downshift while the engine speed is effectively slower than the tire speed will cause "TTO" (trailing throttle oversteer), which means you have just induced the snap-spin Cobras are so noted for. Under some conditions, just lifting the right foot suddenly can cause the same behavior! Acceleration can also create the same result.

Most driving schools will have you do this on purpose very early in their exercises so you'll know what causes it, and then later, how to correct if your reflexes are quick enough, you have enough room, and your rabbit's foot is working perfectly.

Most of the time it is better to put "both feet in when in a spin" so the engine can't cause any more problems, and the car can get stopped in as short a distance as possible.

Glad your end result is benign. Many have suffered much worse!

Get the car repaired thoroughly and then try a driving school :) You'll have fun and possibly prevent a recurrence.

Tom

Glad to hear you're ok. Good reminder what lots of hp in a little wheelbase can do.

Good point, I know exactly what you're talking about. I'll take a real close look at the bearing and surrounding area tomorrow. .

I hit the curb full sideways so most of the loads were transfered axially, along the axle's centerline. The bearings are straight rollers so the impact was transfered axially through them and then along the outer races seated in the axle housings captured by 4 bolt flanges.

It was too much gratuitous torque multiplication prior to clutch engagement.:o

I actually was planning on having a just tad of wheel spin, sort of an explanation mark at the end of a sentence kinda thing. I just wasn't planning on THAT much wheel spin. I've done it many times, although never with those results. :( I guess it's time to stop while I'm (almost) ahead...

I'd like to but the sphincter spring had everything, including the 8 butterflies pulled tightly shut.:eek::D



Thanks to all for the well wishes and the OMFGs. It was the combination of a bad choice, some good luck and somebody up there looking out for me.

I know what forces are at play and the resulting consequences when applied. I have pushed my 500 rwhp C6 Z06 daily driver for 60,000 race/non-race miles. The nannies definitely help in it's case though. The short of it; not a rookie but never too old a dog to learn from my mistakes...

Did the car that you were passing at least stop and help you?%/

It's really hard to judge available traction on any given surface at any given time. I recall the drag strip in Hawaii, which I've run many times. Well ONE time when I hit second hard all hell broke loose, along with tires. The car got near sideways at about 60 mph and I was left wondering, "What the heck was THAT all about. From out of nowhere." Stuff happens, slick spot and I nailed it I guess... :)

I made such a hasty departure that nobody had a chance to stop. Everyone was stopped and mesmerized after watching the "show". I don't really think they thought I was going to drive away. I waved a hand of "I'm OK" as I went in the opposite direction from which I came. I just simply got back in traffic and drove a couple miles down the road and pulled into a 7-11. I called AAA and waited an hour for the roll-back. I felt compelled to distance myself from the area before the local constable decided to show, 911 called or happenstance. There was no injuries or property damage and I really don't need a reckless haunting my life for the next 7 years.

She was sure thumping and a swaying going down the road though. %/

Everybody's being so nice...

Dumbass! Glad you're still with us! ;)

Your guardian angels were out in full force
 

[quote=undy;1078981]The short of it is .... bad judgment coupled with too deep a gear on a down shift while adding too much throttle.

It happened 3:00 PM today while running on a 4 lane road 45 mph in very light traffic. I did a 180 deg spin then went up across the sidewalk into the grass and dirt at an unfinished intersection. The front and rear switched ends in a flash on a down-shift to pass a slow moving vehicle, very bad judgment.

Undy, I am glad you hear that your are safe, the car can be replaced but you can't, the man upstairs musta had your guardian angels on high alert at that time.

That said, are these cars so temprimental that even at 45 MPH if you blip the throttle they can do a 180? After receiving a whole lot of advice on a previous thread and now reading this I'm having severe anal retention issues and I havent even got my car yet. kidding of course, but its alarming for me to think even at that slow speed the car can spin. Glad you are still able to talk about this. We live and learn. Cheers, tin-man

Big HP + Short wheelbase = TTO

I learned all about this at Skip Barber Racing School.

Bob

TTO? tin-man

I got it
 

Trailing Throttle Over steer, so can somebody point me in the direction where I can learn more about this subject.? tin-man