Dumb instructions

[quk@isham-research.demon.co.uk (Phil Payne)]

>> I care that 1,500+ people might read and some might use a method
>> that aligns a car in such a way as to make it extremely dangerous
>> at the limit.

> Well, thank you St. Payne (in the you know what) ... your
> altruistic behavior here has set an example for us all.

Glad to hear it.

>> You can go backwards into as much street furniture as you want.
>> Other   people might follow your dumb instructions and then go out
>> driving with their families - even if they drive nowhere near
>> the limit, they might one day want to take avoiding action and
>> be let down by their car.

> I'm sorry you find my method "dumb" ... if it's the fishing line
> that bothers you, then fine, do it on a rack instead.  But I find
> it hard to believe that you're arguing in favor of a method that
> has your car going around corners one direction a lot harder than
> it does the other, which is what happens when a car is setup
> symmetrically on a rack and asymmetrically when it's in motion.
> Should the opportunity ever present itself, try driving a car
> that's been properly setup by a racecar shop and see what you've
> been missing...

The method isn't dumb (for non-Torsen cars).  Posting it here was.

>> All I'm doing is following the manual and staying within the
>> tolerances it defines.   The fact that you can't do that with
>> string and sealing wax is peripheral.

> "He said it, I believe it, that settles it" ... seen on a bumper
> sticker advertising a Fundamentalist Christian church.  We should
> all be so trusting of Audi's engineers as Phil clearly is -- I for
> one, am ashamed at my lack of faith.  I guess this means I'm a
> sinner and will burn in Hell for all eternity ... on the positive
> side, though, it's unlikely I will have to listen to any more of
> his "Audi knows best" pontification and frankly, that's worth more
> to me than a little extra suffering...

Audi is doing a recall because (supposedly, according to a
German-language newsgroup) two people have been killed in TTs leaving
the road.  If someone follows your alignment instructions and leaves the
road with their family on board, how would you feel?

This isn't altruism, because I'm not personally involved or making any
contribution.  It's simply behaving responsibly towards my fellow Audi
drivers.  Your instructions, if used on a Torsen car, could kill
someone.  We're not talking plus or minus a few hp here, or fuel
economy, or the occasional snapped timing belt and wrecked engine.
The loss of control I had in my Type 44 before I got the suspension
sorted out was total, utter and very frightening.  The problem is that
it is so TOTALLY unlike every other situation an experienced driver
will face.  In well over a million kilometres, I have never known a car
go so totally and unpredictably out of control.  If I can spare anyone
else the experience, you can call me all the names you like.

--
 Phil Payne
 UK Audi quattro Owners Club
 Phone: 07785 302803   Fax: 0870 0883933