Re: diffs and opinion II

[OorQue@aol.com]

>  Hitting a corner under power in a Torsen Type 85 or Type 44 causes the
>  first slip to be understeer.  Always happens.  If the Torsen shifts
>  torque rearwards, it causes that axle to start to slip as well.  You
>  can work the torque distribution into a slip distribution as long as
>  the slip produced by each axle is proportional to the input torque.
>  
>  And this is the point - if the axles are set up such that the same input
>  torque produces different slip, you _WILL_ get what we call spider bite.

Could you please clarify which "axles" you're referring to in the above 
passages?  I don't fully understand exactly what it is that you're saying...  
   

>  Doing an alignment at a track?  This suggestion convinces me more than
>  anything else so far.  I've never seen a portable BEM Muller or
>  Pro-Align rig.  I know that Audi (in the BTCC) always took cars
>  off-circuit for two things - bodywork repairs and alignment.  Now if
>  Audi Sport, with their multi-million dollar service investment, can't do
>  alignments in the pits, then no amateur stands a chance.

While I don't doubt that having a proper alignment rack makes the job easier, 
I disagree that amateurs have no chance in properly aligning a car.  
Unfortunately, in the fifteen years since I started playing around with cars, 
I've never had the so-called "professionals" at an alignment shop properly 
align my car, no matter how much I tip them in advance and/or watch over them 
while they work.  They've gotten close on occasion but not close enough to 
satisfy me...

Because of this, I finally started aligning my cars at home and have 
developed my technique such that I'm able to do a pretty damned good job 
using only basic hand tools.  Don't forget that a static alignment is just 
that, static.  When the car is in motion, the suspension operates dynamically 
and therefore spends little time at ride height position where the car was 
sitting at the time it was aligned ... also, if you're running non-standard 
tires and wheels, the factory alignment settings may not be the best choice, 
either.

As for Audi Sport, if you've got the money to spend, then why not spend it?  
I'd love to have a surface plate to align my cars on but a few minutes spent 
shimming the floor of my garage will get me within 1/8" ... on a car with 8" 
or more of suspension travel, a suspension full of floppy rubber bushings and 
a 105.8" wheelbase, that's more than close enough to produce accurate, 
repeatable results.

JG