Maybe a dumb question

[Thefa11en]

Hey!

I'm new to the forums, and i've recently bought a 07 Mazda 3 sadan. I love the car, amazing. I've recently fell in love with Mazda in general. And the Mazda 3's. I wanted to ask a question about the Mazda 3 sadan, I havn't been driving that long...maybe over a year now. My car before was a 1990 Mazda protage and of course I never zipped around in it as much as I do the M3 I have. One thing I noticed though, is when I make slight turns going fast it seems as if its sliding. I dunno if its the suspension or if its actually sliding. Personally I dont think it was. It feels like the car is hovering, yet its still turning and I have perfect control.

Once again, i'm sorry for the green horn question. But a question never asked is an answer never taken =P

 

[Mocoso]

Welcome to the forum.... hope you find it enjoyable...
are you feeling this with throttle through turn or without throttle?

If with throttle your probably feeling the front tires fighting to turn AND propel you (rule of thumb is Total Tire Traction = Tire Traction required to Turn + Tire Traction required to move you forward)

Without throttle probably means the rears are sliding on you... blame it on the weight distribution of most fwd cars... On my MS3 I can easily get the rear end to swing out (a little) by letting go of the gas late through a fast turn (power removed from front wheels, the front wheels stop fighting for traction and grab, weight rebalanced off the rear end all causing the rear end to whip around)

Of course this is just the seat of my pants explanation and its prob. technically wrong and soon to be corrected so take it from someone who isnt a pro.....

 

[Thefa11en]

Welcome to the forum.... hope you find it enjoyable...
are you feeling this with throttle through turn or without throttle?

If with throttle your probably feeling the front tires fighting to turn AND propel you (rule of thumb is Total Tire Traction = Tire Traction required to Turn + Tire Traction required to move you forward)

Without throttle probably means the rears are sliding on you... blame it on the weight distribution of most fwd cars... On my MS3 I can easily get the rear end to swing out (a little) by letting go of the gas late through a fast turn (power removed from front wheels, the front wheels stop fighting for traction and grab, weight rebalanced off the rear end all causing the rear end to whip around)

Of course this is just the seat of my pants explanation and its prob. technically wrong and soon to be corrected so take it from someone who isnt a pro.....

Actually that sounds exactly right on as what is happening to me! If I remember, it does it when I throttle it in a corner. Although sometimes doing it without the gas, just because roads are very uneven at times and one tire will lose traction. Thank very much for your information on the subject! Its very appreciated! I dont think your wrong, what you say makes perfect sense in theory =P

 

[Abaddon]

One thing to keep in mind; Front wheel drive cars understeer; and unfortunately the cars in the oncoming lane happen to be exactly where your car wants to go when it understeers... So, play it safe.