Audii-Dudii

After a record 143 dry days, we finally have rain in the Phoenix, AZ area!

Driving to the office early this morning (grrr....), I ended up playing cat-and-mouse with a shiny black BMW 645 with polished 20" wheels and ultra low-profile tires. After a few minutes, we finally ended up side-by-side at the traffic light immediately before the curving entrance ramp to the southbound 101 from 90th Street.

I was in the outside lane, he was in the inside lane, and when the light turned green, we both drove off vigorously ... not racing, of course, but not exactly *****-footing, either. Halfway through the decreasing radius turn, right at the point where you're normally able to stand hard on the right pedal, the BMW's back end stepped out big time ... watching in my mirror, I saw it snap back into line (not sure if this was due to some sort of ESP or PSM setup or driver correction) but by this point, I was at least five car lengths ahead and pulling away quickly. No fuss, no muss.

Given that my car has a stock suspension with 90k on it and Falken Ziex 512 tires on OEM wheels, I have to think the BMW would have been all over me in the dry, but it was no contest in the rain. (And as if that wasn't fun enough -- Yes, I lead a dull life! -- when I got to work, I spun a few donuts on the wet concrete inside the parking garage. I'm sure I'll hear more about this from the office manager on Monday but it sure was fun!)

Black Sunshine

I drove up to Mt. Wilson last night, total white out... awesome!!

I didn't really push it too hard, a little dangeerous on mountain roads, but still so much fun.

OCA::DIY Motorsports

Last time I went I had to get out to prove to the CHP that the car was indeed all wheel drive and running snow tires.

Black Sunshine

but there was a sign and the road was closed, so technically I shouldn't have gone up there I guess.

BTW, I really like your car and the color combo in general... very nice. Did you special order it or find it like that?

EE:OutofBounds

"snow tires" or just M&S rated all-seasons.....thought it was the latter

FixedWing

Well, maybe not. :-)

What sort of rain? Just wet roads? Or gushing down?

Might also have been style. Being smoother with the throttle, brakes, etc. might have made the difference. Was it a point where he normally would be expected to shift? A hard shift on a RWD car might be enough to have the back step out momentarily.

Stephen

FixedWing

Yes, sounds just like he tried to tighten the turn. These days I see very few people on the road, even those driving nice cars, that seem to understand the importance of the line. Most seem to just try to stay in the centre of their lane and steer as necessary.

What you describe with him coming in to your lane like that is one of the reasons I am very cautious around people on the road.

Anyway, I'm glad you had fun and that things worked out well. :-)

Stephen

FixedWing

At the Nurburgring, it is generally accepted that leaving one foot on the entry and exit of a corner will add about 15 seconds to a lap as compared to being right on the line. And that's just leaving one foot margin! So you can really see how important choosing the right line is.

Stephen

OCA::DIY Motorsports

You're probably right. He just did not want to believe I was AWD. He finally let me go up.

OCA::DIY Motorsports

Most people just flat out panic when their car gets a bit out of shape.