Really bad understeer problem

soon2bfastr232 · **Really bad understeer problem**

I was going through the canyon today and i was going a little too fast like i always do and i started to understeer. This time was different because my front wheels started to bounce and i just continued to go straight. I ended up hitting a curb and sitting right on top of it. I ended up getting off the curb but i want to know how to fix the problem. I would slow down but i dont see where the fun is in that. This is not my first time crashing because of understeer. I hit the side of hill a couple weeks earlier and messed up my bumper. Does anyone know how to fix this problem before i go off the side of a hill and mess my car up even worse?

lowflyn · 02-17-2005, 10:12 PM

First off...slow the crap down. If you're going fast enough to slide your front tires through curves you're going too fast. I don't believe your problem is understeer, I believe you are overdriving your suspension and tires. Just slow down some and enjoy it at slower speeds...

**Brent** · 02-17-2005, 10:30 PM

I take it your car is stock but what is your car? Year? Model?

STEVE · 02-17-2005, 10:30 PM

do u have any sway brs?

soon2bfastr232 · 02-18-2005, 01:33 AM

I have a stock 2004 v6 auto. I dont have any sway bars. My front wheels start to bounce when i turn slightely at 30 and like i said earlier i have relatively good tires. I shouldnt have to slow down below 30 when those signs on the side of the road say the safe speed to go through a turn is 30 and thats the speed i am going at.

WhiteStang99 · 02-18-2005, 01:34 AM

Do you have stock wheels and tires?

**Brent** · 02-18-2005, 01:39 AM

Wider rims will get you better grip and a strut tower brace and rear sway bar will do wonders

red herring · 02-18-2005, 01:41 AM

To me this doesn't seem to be as much about tires as it does about pressure. Check your tire pressure. It could possibly be the tires too, but check the pressure. If you want less understeer make sure to have more traction in the front than in the back. Turn in more slowly and learn the conventional line. Also brake before the turn as opposed to in the turn. That one could quite possibly be your problem. Don't accelerate until the apex or shortly thereafter. You should notice a bit of difference as far as understeer is concerned.

lowflyn · 02-18-2005, 11:04 AM

Yeh, it could just be as simple as your front tires are overinflated. I know when I hit the mountains..I cruise pretty good, esp when trying to keep up with Nick in Chattanooga...lol. I was also on the stock goodyears then too..not a good idea.

WhiteStang99 · 02-18-2005, 01:58 PM

^ haha I remember that. Everybody was squealing around turns but me, haha.

soon2bfastr232 · 02-18-2005, 02:16 PM

I have stock wheels and tires. I want to put a strut tower brace in but i think that will void my warrenty becasue the dealership wont be able to get to certain things. I was thinking that a adjustable rear sway bar might help but i dont want to oversteer all the time either. Is there any way to get the car to be neutral? My tire pressure is right at 30 and my car just got serviced a couple hundred miles ago.

**Brent** · 02-18-2005, 03:37 PM


Quote: Originally Posted by WhiteStang99 ^ haha I remember that. Everybody was squealing around turns but me, haha.

Hey I wasnt

**SpectorV** · 02-18-2005, 03:59 PM

if you hve understeer a rear sway wont help i dont belive.

fastmustangs1 · 02-18-2005, 06:21 PM

Slow down through the corners. What suspension upgrades do your have done. Understeer is caused by a number of things tires, sway bars etc.
Understeer is generally with correction of sway bars. To large a front bar will cause the car to understeer, to large a sway bar in the rear caused oversteer= or that effect you feel the car is going to spin out. This can become dangerous. If you install front and rear sway bars the problem is generally corrected. Like my situation with stock V6 only come with front bar. So I opted for the GT bars front and rear.
Good Luck, check out miracerros.com for more suspension Q's

Matt

cjd10 · 02-18-2005, 07:44 PM

if you keep smackin chit slow down lol... honestly you just might have warped tires or aka flat spots wider wheels / better tires

Horse · 02-18-2005, 07:53 PM

Acctually, A rear sway bar DOES decrease Understeer. The v6 Model doesn't come with them because Understeer is considered "safer" than oversteer by Ford. The Base model doesn't have a rear sway bar to induce an understeer condition. To correct for understeer when driving, you just slow down and the car turns, this is why they think it's safer. Oversteer means the back end kicks out and you start to spin or drift, depending on speed and driver ability.

If you're takeing corners at 30 MPH and that's the suggested speed, and the car won't turn I'm thinking you have a serious suspension problem. a stock mustang will take a 30 MPH corner at 30MPH+. If your's won't I'd say either a major alignment problem or broken spring, broken front swaybar mounts or endlinks... Something's wrong. You probably want to go get your alignment checked anyway if you went curb hopping with it.

Horse: Moderator, Autocrosser, Automotive Tech.

soon2bfastr232 · 02-18-2005, 11:20 PM

I dont know if this has to do anything with me understeering but when i push down on the front left fender of the car to test the springs it is kinda hard to push down but when i push down on the front right spring it is easy to push down and does not come back as easily. I noticed both these things before i got in any accident. My car had below 5,000 miles when i realized that.

red herring · 02-19-2005, 03:49 AM

Not the same...but my general rule for turns is that I can usually take it at twice the recommended speed by the caution sign. I have some extra braces but no major upgrades (and a different car but it's 11 years old now, yours should be comparable)

I think every company agrees that understeer is more safe for the general population which I would consider as more or less "unexperienced" drivers. By unexperienced I am talking specifically about car control at it's limit of adhesion.

Although I can't give you too much information about you pushing down on the left side of your car, what I can say is that for my car the left side is offset by 150lbs to make up for the driver being in the car (I believe) and if that is the same for your car you MAY be able to feel a difference. Not too sure about that though. Just the first thing that popped into my head after I read your post.

Horse · 02-19-2005, 10:45 PM


Quote: Originally Posted by soon2bfastr232 I dont know if this has to do anything with me understeering but when i push down on the front left fender of the car to test the springs it is kinda hard to push down but when i push down on the front right spring it is easy to push down and does not come back as easily. I noticed both these things before i got in any accident. My car had below 5,000 miles when i realized that.

Sounds like you have either a junk Strut or a broken or bent spring. Take that crap back to the dealer and have them look at it. At 5000 miles that better be under warrenty.

Edit: Oh, also if you notice the car pushes worse when taking turns one way than the other, that's also a big red flag that something's wrong.