• DagwoodIII@piefed.social
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    3 days ago

    Saw a ‘Top Gear’ interview with a race driver.

    They had a clip of him airborne.

    “Yeah, I was slamming on the brake there.”

    And yes, if I lose my keys I’ll check the same coat pocket five times…

    • affenlehrer@feddit.org
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      3 days ago

      Not sure about real racecars but with RC trucks it makes a huge difference if you brake or speed up in the air. It makes the “nose” go up or down.

      • [deleted]@piefed.world
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        3 days ago

        Motorcycles doing the big jumps in motocross use the gas and brake to pitch up and down too.

        The ratio of mass and rotation speed to total mass is high enough for it to make a difference.

      • Mac@mander.xyz
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        3 days ago

        Heavily depends on the racecar. High downforce will overpower the effect, but low downforce vehicles with AWD or 4WD will absolutely have an effect—especially vehicles with heavier wheels and tire combos.

        It’s evident in rally racing and Baja/Dakar and you can often see the effect in action, in the clips of jumps, when comparing different vehicles flying dynamics.