Just wondering how fast people have tried taking corners in the RX-8 before something starts giving out. I'm normally a pretty docile driver so I tend to chicken out at about 50 mph through tight turns before I start getting on the brake. I'm always afraid one day I'll end up in the other lane as a car comes the other way!

And on another note, what is the best way to enter/exit a curve for maximum G's? Just mainly want to get the "Oh my GAWD we're gonna flip!!!" comment outta the passenger the right way. :D

 

take a 2 lane tight right hand sloping down clover leaf on ramp from one hichway to another at 10-20 mph over the speed limit (not the suggested speed for the curve the actual limit) on the inside lane keep your revs at about 5k or so and right at the apex pass to the outside lane then floor it as you come around to the straight. i did that with yellow 8 on my tail and my mother in law and wife in the car- the yellow 8 thought it was fun as hell- the mother in law was a little squeamish and didnt like it so much.....

 

I live in the country by a national park, take curves everday at 70-80 mph,most cars go about 55 max around these curves, sure gets the adrenalin going when your surrounded by trees, but the car always feels confident, i keep the dsc on, as extra safety and it does work very well for oversteer, but not understeer, most the time i just throttle out of the curve to compensate.

 

Sounds like you want to take the largest constant radius curve possible to produce the longest duration g-force. Not the fastest way around the corner but the best way to elicit the response you're looking for.
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MERCEDES-BENZ W116 HISTORY

 

General rule of thumb, however fast the speed limit is for a turn, double it, and you should be fine.

 

i have to say about 52-53mph

 

oh yeah and generally on "normal roads" when you see people applying brakes around a curve you dotn have to bother. just maintain what ever your speed is and you can fly right thru the corner no problem. you only need to brake when the people ahead of you are too close.

 

Go to Dragon Tail (SE Forum) next year and test out some real curves!!
tailofthedragon.com

 

MS Suspension upgrade solves this - no understeer anymore for me :p I did on occassion find myself moving in the OEM seat. Maybe a new aftermarket seat would hold my butt better

 

While it really does depend on the corner radius, the amount of traffic and whether the road is dry, oily or wet, I take corners as fast as I can....which is very fast indeed in an RX8.

The tail started flying out a couple of times but trac control took hold and slapped me back in line (litterally).

 

When I can get the room to do it, I tend to take freeway ramps/interchanges at double whatever the yellow signs say.

Cornering in town, I can make a normal right hand turn at around 30, but usually widen it a bit to turn into the 2nd (from the right) lane at 35. Not sure if I really need to do that, but I'd prefer not to learn the hard way...

All this is only when the area is more or less clear of traffic. There's really no good reason to push the envelope with people/cars in the path of any skid you might find yourself in. Also, this is all with the Racing Beat suspension kit (springs & sways, stock shocks) on the car, which according to the manufacturer increases max cornering g's by about 4% (0.87g to 0.90g)

 

normal right angle turns around 40-45 (when no other cars are on the road) with some nice heel-toe action. driving normally about 20-25, thats when theres people around.

 

sup3rbad, please describe in more detail what you are doing. 40-45 is your slowest speed during the turn? Or is that your corner exit speed? Right or left hand turn? One lane or two for the exit?

What you're describing does not seem possible for a right hand turn with one lane on exit. Which, incidentally, should be the standard everyone uses to describe turn speeds since left hand turns are way too variable. A left hand turn from a single lane into a single lane is much slower than a left from a 4-lane road onto a 4-lane road.
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Fisting Amateur

 

Indeed, 40-45 seems insanely fast for entering a right angle turn. I don't doubt that it's possible but damn. I usually get scared doing 30 into right angle turns as it is.

Definitely agree with this sentiment. Main reason I asked the question was to find out how fast others have taken turns before, before something started sliding, so that I could know how fast of a speed I can safely experiment with. It's fun loading up the g's, but not at the expense of sliding into another car at 50+ mph!

 

I've done 60 mph around this sharp curve near my house. Didn't break traction. The RX-8 is teh greetest! :D

 

I'll have to get back to you on that... but i do know that i try to go into the lane next to the curb, so i end up about almost halfway into the next lane. i'll have to pay closer attention next time because i dont usually look in the speedometer as i turn. i look just before and after i turn. these are usually four lane roads, and i think i take left hand turns faster than right hand turns. sorry if i can't describe in further detail. i was describing left hand turns btw.

 

78mph on a long medium turn

 

50 mph on a turn marked 10 - right angle :D

Its a wide open area in town where I can see oncoming traffic for about 1 mile coming towards me, so I can slide into the next lane...that turn gets a great response from passengers, about 5-10 seconds before hitting it....

"Um, you gonna slow down?!??!"
"Nope!"
:Grabs whatever 'Oh ****' handle is available:

 

55 for a 90 degree street to street turn with a full shoulder. Car handled great with dsc not engaging. The car behind me (either a yellow stang or a yellow porsche, J/K, it was a stang with custom black graphics) was dumbfounded! I turned the blinker on, told my 2 passengers to hold on and just cranked the steering wheel. I'm finding myself having to relearn how to drive in this car. It just handles that well! I agree with the poster above that mentioned double your normal speed. I agree, if your coming from a non-sports car, like myself, then double the speed your used to and you'll be OK.

 

Last week I took her out in a 'spirited' mood and took a 10mph 45degree at 53. It was incredible!!! Unfortunately I don't think I'll have the nuts to do that again anytime soon...

Usually corners for me are around 40-45mph, although the 8 seems to feel comfortable taking rights (and maintaining lane) at ~60mph.

 

i've taken a strong left hand sweeper at 50 mph. i felt i could have gone a little bit faster and still been safe. i love the handling on the RX-8.

 

hmm i dont have the luxury or DSC or TCS, but then again... I dont want it at all

 

You too? :D

 

haha im livin life on the edge man

 

You are number one in tha' hood...G.