"OPPOsaurus WRX" (opposaurus)
01/06/2015 at 14:17 • Filed to: None
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"OPPOsaurus WRX" (opposaurus)
01/06/2015 at 14:17 • Filed to: None | 3
| 8 |
so a few questions for you....
I've had the WRX for almost a year. I didn;t get to play with it last year because I was more focused on learning how to manual and not slide off the road with the stock summer tires.
This winter is different. I have about 12,000 miles with the stick and feel much more comfortable and I got a proper set of winters. This past weekend I took it out to see what it was like. The difference was amazing. Even with traction control off it still accelerated hard. A lot of what I did was testing how it would start and stop but i did play around a little too.
So I watched the WRX news report
http://jalopnik.com/most-stereotyp…
and had already started wondering what you could do to actually cause harm to the car. I did this ride along thing a while back and got to spend a day with a bunch of rally drivers. One of the things that caught my attention was the second hand brake. The second brake was hydraulic and would also disconnect the center differential so that there would not be the difference in rotating speed between the front wheels and rear wheels which is bad for the dif. (at least thats what I think i heard over the boxer engine screaming through the stripped out interior)
So what else should i be careful of? what are your tips and tricks for driving manual in the snow both properly and hoon-erly? obviously hitting shit is bad but I figured there is probably a lot more you can do with the third pedal and a lot more to hurt
BeaterGT
> OPPOsaurus WRX
01/06/2015 at 14:21 |
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1. Find big open space without obstacles (until you learn how to slide around them)
2. See how much loud pedal is required to break loose
3. Have fun, be safe, keep the mph low.
TheOnelectronic
> OPPOsaurus WRX
01/06/2015 at 14:25 |
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I mentioned weight transfer before; that's a really important concept. Left-foot braking can work wonders in the snow.
The important part of it is that by keeping your right foot on the gas, the wheels won't lock up on you. This lets you slow yourself and shift weight forward without losing steering. The correct order is turn the wheel, dab the brakes, and wait. On snow especially, the wait is important. A lot of people forget that, and turn the wheel more, or apply more brake, and then understeer.
As for mechanical safety, make sure to clear your wheel wells occasionally. Don't think it can do actual damage, but my WRX developed a really bad wobble, like an out-of-balance tire, if there was significant snow buildup. Likewise, make sure snow doesn't pack into the wheel, melt from brake heat, and then re-freeze all at the bottom while you're stopped. That will make anything over 30mph REALLY fun.
Basics here, but don't ride the clutch with any amount of power on.
And obviously don't hit anything.
It's a costly option but; that ride-along you did? Go for a you're-the-driver version. I did O'neill's rally school up in NH, and my ability to drive in snow went up by a lot. It is fun as shit and you will come away from it a better driver in almost every regard. If you go during the winter, you're likely to get actual snow experience as well. I went in early spring, and got a mix.
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OPPOsaurus WRX
> TheOnelectronic
01/06/2015 at 14:34 |
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the ride along....well I dunno how much I can talk about the details but it was not the school. it was for this website... i think you probably go to it alot.... there was going to be a story about it... I think i'm priced out and timed out at this point of going to the school. Kids, house, wife, mortgage, house repairs, car repairs... you see where i'm going.
one of the things I was concerned about was hitting the brakes and the tires locking up and how that affects the motor. this was just in everyday type of scenario where your slowing quick for a light or some dumb texter. I found myself just fully pressing the clutch until i was ready to get back on the gas. I figure this is the 'safe' way but there could be a better way of handling this. Like in an auto you can basically turn around backwards and be ok in drive but if you do that in a manual not so much.
thereisnospork
> OPPOsaurus WRX
01/06/2015 at 14:34 |
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On an awd car with locking/locked center diff (STI's, modified rally cars) using the handbrake will cause all 4 wheels to lock up simultaneously, whereas w/o a locking center diff, or with the center diff disabled, only the rear 2 wheels lock up. As you might imagine this can be the difference between pulling a sick 180 and stalling/understeering into a tree.
As for your WRX, I believe it has only a viscous center diff (don't quote me there, I'm no Subie expert) that doesn't lock 100%, so you don't need to worry about handbrake usage for oversteer assistance. However prolonged usage might result in overheating the diff, not that you should need to with AWD.
However the most important thing in the snow is to manage your weight distribution, lift off/brake to induce turn-in, throttle to straighten out (and accelerate).
Favorite manual, uh trick, in a 4wd is to just (low rpm) drop the clutch and peel out in first. Not particularly fast but makes me feel like Ken Block.
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OPPOsaurus WRX
> thereisnospork
01/06/2015 at 14:42 |
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I didn;t drop the clutch but once i felt it engaged i floored it and could feel the 4 wheel burn out. The WRX does have the viscous center dif. A couple times i was turning around in the parking lot and could feel the front end pushing out and when i got on the gas the front wheels would pull in the direction I wanted. for some reason it felt different than in my 4wd Explorer but it was great.
JWLane83
> thereisnospork
01/06/2015 at 15:55 |
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I had an AWD Talon and LOOOVED doing that in low traction situations!
Dusty Ventures
> OPPOsaurus WRX
01/06/2015 at 21:11 |
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There's still going to be a story about it. Having a full time job, regular life obligations, plus 60+ hours of video footage to go through is hard.
Oontzoontzoontz
> OPPOsaurus WRX
01/08/2015 at 11:04 |
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I was also wondering this, as this is also my first year with snow in my WRX with proper winter tires. I'll be checking out the responses from the more experienced. From my time on nasioc / legacygt.com forums, people have talked about staying on the throttle to prevent engine braking on all four wheels. I've also heard parroted that in any kind of slide, to "look to hope" and stay lightly on the throttle and the car will (hopefully) pull you out of it.
We finally got a few inches of snow this past week, and I drive into work around 5 a.m. before any plows have hit my route, and I had a blast. The car is stable when you want it, and will rotate very progressively if turning from a stop and feeding it extra gas. I had the biggest grin on my face the entire drive to work.