Re: negative camber & oil change indicator questions

[Brian M Kennedy <kennedy@xxxxxx>]

Andrew D.Mendez wrote:
> 
> I have a coupla questions:
> 
> Duane Collie wrote:
> 
> Ben - whatcha need is a LITTLE bit more oversteer
> and a whole lotta
> negative camber.
> E36 M3's CRAVE negative camber like nobody's
> bidness.
> 
> Could someone explain exactly what handling
> benefit negative camber ads? Increased steering
> feel? More lateral g? How the hell does it do
> this? (I know what negative camber is, but don't
> know what it does in practice).

Imagine your wheels with 0 degrees camber -- perfectly vertical.  Now imagine
yourself in hard corner.  Your car is leaning to the outside, held back by the
forces of the road on the bottom of your tire.  With the car leaning over the top
and the road pushing in on the bottom, your tire is surely leaning.  Right?  Now if
your tire is leaning, some of the tread on the inside of the tire is off the road --
your tire patch is smaller -- your traction is less -- your ability to corner is
reduced.

By dialing in negative camber, when you get your car and wheels leaning in a turn,
you end up with the bottom of your tire fairly straight, maximizing your tire patch
and thus your traction.

The disadvantage is that straight-line braking will be slightly worsened since your
tire patch is less than optimal.  Another disadvantage is if you mostly drive in a
straight line, then tire wear on the insides of your tires may be accelerated.

> 
> Also, does anyone know if the oil change indicator
> system on newer BMWs takes into account how old
> the oil is?

Definitely not.  The first year I had my 96 328i, I was putting miles on it very
slowly (I live close to work).  After a year, I had only one green light out.

> I was going to change it this week anyway &
> was just wondering.

That would be wise.


Brian

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