[Fwd: [audi20v] Re: Quattro......]

Thu Nov 30 16:40:50 EST 2000

THis is from the 20v list, nice article I found helpful, someone else
may. Enjoy!

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: [audi20v] Re: Quattro......
Date: Thu, 30 Nov 2000 14:30:22 -0800 (PST)
From: Paul Jacobson <pjacob at nwlink.com>
Reply-To: pjacob at nwlink.com
To: "Audi 20V" <audi20v at rennlist.org>

Here is a message I saved on this very subject from Ned Ritchie. Living
in
the Seattle area, we haven't seen much snow here lately... I hope it
helps!

>From NED at IntendedAcceleration.com Thu Nov 30 14:27:02 2000
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1998 00:44:09 -0800
From: Ned Ritchie 
To: northwest audi enthusiasts 
Subject: Winter "Quattro Cornering & Stopping" Tips

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Fellow enthusiasts,

I wrote the following Tip for the North West Region Audi
Quattro Club U.S.A newsletter, but since not everyone
will get the newletter I thought it appropriate to make
a copy available on the northwest audi enthusiasts email
list.  All of the comments are slanted toward the
quattro drivetrain, and are basicly what Audi teaches at
their driving schools.

Winter "Quattro Cornering & Stopping" Tips
By Ned Ritchie
Copyright © 1998

Cornering & Handling

On slippery surfaces there is only a limited amount of
grip that is available for the tires.  The grip can be
used for turning, braking, acceleration, and possibly a
combination of them.  However, on slippery surfaces
using a combination of braking, turning or acceleration
is only asking for a skid or slide.  If you feel  your
vehicle begin to slide through a turn, you are likely
experiencing "understeer."  Understeer is usually caused
by entering a corner too fast, or by braking while
trying to turn, or from excessive acceleration while
cornering.

To most effectively control your car on a slippery road,
and prevent understeer, lower your speed, and only use
one aspect of grip control at a time.  The proper way to
negotiate any curve is as follows:

1.	Brake on the straightaway before the curve, adjusting
your speed.
2.	Coast and steer through the turn.
3.	Accelerate only when the road becomes straight again.

In other words while cornering, you should be off the
brake and off the accelerator, coasting  through the
turn and using all available grip for steering.

Please note that excessive acceleration in a Quattro
except when very slippery or with very high power will
always create understeering, but you can accelerate a
little harder than front or rear wheel drive cars
because of the extra acceleration grip available from
two more tires.  The "unfair advantage."

If you're already in a corner and your Quattro is not
responding to your turning input, (steering seems light)
you are understeering.  The only way to stop under
steering is:

1.	Get off accelerator (Transfers weight to the front
tires)
2.	Reduce the amount of steering input.  (Straighten the
wheels)
3.	Wait, and wait again, for the front wheels to grip
again before turning into the corner again.

If you're in that corner and the back end of the Quattro
seems to be coming around faster than the front is
turning you are oversteering.  To stop oversteering:

1.	Immediately and quickly input a counter steer (Steer
into the direction of the slide)
2.	Add a burst of acceleration (I worry about putting
this here as this is only for experienced drivers)
3.	As the car begins to correct itself quickly counter
steer the other way for 1/2 a second and
4.	Immediately and quickly steer straight or you will be
over steering the other direction in a heartbeat
5.	It is better to counter steer twice than to counter
steer too long.

Generally on ice and snow quick steering does not have
much effect on turning.  Therefore when steering you
must begin each turn slowly and progressively increase
the speed at which you turn the steering wheel as the
car begins to turn.  The only time to turn the wheels
quickly is when correcting for an oversteering
situation.

I've just described how to negotiate curves safely but
perhaps a bit slower than you want to go.  What then?
The trick is to never allow the car to understeer by
creating continuous oversteer and negotiate curves and
corners with the throttle and brake.

The Scandinavian Flick, or Pendulum Turn is a proactive
cornering technique used by professional drivers to set
the car up for maximum control in the corners and avoid
understeer altogether.  This will be taught to club
members at the Winter Driving School at Steamboat
Springs Colorado in February.  Sorry, but I'll only
teach one aspect of this at the Winter Driver's Clinic
at Snoqualmie Pass in January.

Stopping and Reducing Speed

In an emergency with ABS to stop or reduce speed in a
straight line get on brakes very hard.  Don't wait.  The
first few feet are very important.  Use your leg
muscles.  Your ankle is not strong enough!  You have to
press on the brake pedal with at least 88 pounds of
pressure.  If you press with less that than 88 pounds
you may feel the ABS working, but it is only working on
the rear wheels.  You have not reached the maximum
braking with the front wheels yet.  This minimum brake
pressure is absolutely required for maximum stopping
power!  Simultaneously disengage the clutch so that you
do not have to stop the rotating mass of the
transmission and drive train.  Keep pressing hard and
steer.

Audi's new version 5 ABS is better than the previous
three channel systems.  The new version 5 has a quicker
pulsing action, front to rear and lateral loading
detection, plus 50 percent of the braking is now applied
to the rear wheels instead of the 30 percent in earlier
systems.  Just nail the brakes and the clutch, hang on,
and steer.

When do you turn off ABS?  On some Quattros you can turn
the ABS off.  For those who can there are only two times
when you should turn the ABS off:

1.	There is compact snow or ice with fresh slippery snow
on top
2.	A loose gravel-covered road in contrast from simply a
gravel road

If your quattro is without ABS keep the clutch engaged
to possibly keep the wheels from locking up.  However,
with the clutch engaged you could kill the engine and
loose your power steering.  Remember you must come off
the brakes to turn.  In other words only when you are
going straight ahead brake as hard as you can.  Hold the
brakes on to the last moment, come off the brakes, turn
the steering wheel with progressive increase in speed to
change direction, immediately correct the counter slide
you created, come back to straight, and nail the brakes
again when going straight.

At the Winter Driving School in February we will teach
club members in addition to the Scandinavian Flick other
tricks like the Reverse turn or "J-turn" in the width of
the road!  A 360 degree high speed turn.  Use oversteer
to get around a slippery tightening radius (read under
steer about to happen) turn.  A tighter than normal
handbrake turn.  Drive the Quattro around a traffic cone
with the front of the car always pointing toward and
only a few feet from the cone.

Paul Jacobson
pjacob at nwlink.com

On Thu, 30 Nov 2000, John Emm wrote:

> Hey everyone. Well since my first winter is fast approaching and I have 
> never been through a winter with quattro I was wondering if anyone has any 
> tips/advice/pointers that might help me enjoy quattro and get the full 
> benefit from it. I will go to "experiment" in snowy parking lots when the 
> chance arises so that I will get to know the car better. I have only had it 
> since August so I am sure that there is a lot I don't know about it yet.
> TIA, and let everyone have a safe, FUN winter.
> ~]ohn
> 91 CQ Briallant black w/ platinum interior
> http://www.angelfire.com/ny4/emm/coupe.html
> _____________________________________________________________________________________
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