Left Hand Drive vs Right Hand Drive

[Bevan-L]

Is there any advantage from one to the other in a saloon car??? ie weight???

Car is currently a RHD model but can change to LHD..

[1200Datto27]

LHD is supposed to have advantages on circuits that run counter clockwise as the drivers weight is placed for most corners on the inside of the corner, other than that, I don't believe so (unless there is something specific to the car regarding placement of components within the car.)

[Al Weyman]

No advantage whatsoever in UK racing, more like a disadvantage as you are always sitting on the outside of most corners apart from Rockingham which runs in the opposite direction. I have raced LHD for years and always wished it was RHD. Don't genuine E30 M3's only come in LHD?

[GORDON STREETER]

Originally Posted by Al Weyman

Don't genuine E30 M3's only come in LHD?

Yes they do. I believe the genuine exhaust system stops making them RHD.

[jonners]

Originally Posted by GORDON STREETER

Yes they do. I believe the genuine exhaust system stops making them RHD.

With the original M3 it's actually the manifold - BMW claimed to have absolutely nailed manifold design on their 4 cylinder engines and would not compromise the design for rhd

I owned a lhd M3 for years - I absolutely loved it but the lhd thing can be counter intuitive if you're used to rhd

when you take a right hander you're used to the car rolling so you go up a bit but with lhd you go down

takes a while to get used to - for me, took longer thananything to do with changing gear with the other hand etc

[Al Weyman]

Also with rwd and lhd it always seems to me the inside wheel opposite to where you are sitting in a LHD car lights up. I cannot help thinking if my 18.5 stone (I have lost weight :-)) was on the RH side I would go quicker.

[jonners]

Originally Posted by Al Weyman

Also with rwd and lhd it always seems to me the inside wheel opposite to where you are sitting in a LHD car lights up. I cannot help thinking if my 18.5 stone (I have lost weight :-)) was on the RH side I would go quicker.

talk about racing drivers' excuses...whatever happened to "we just couldn't find the right balance today"??

[Al Weyman]

Well i probably could if I could sit in the centre of the car but there is a ruddy great gearbox in the way!

[bdwoody]

i have kind of got used to lhd in the megane but i still select a wrong gear now and again as i pull the stick back and towards me instead of back and away to go from 5th to 4th. it does make you wince a bit when you hit 9,500 + rpm when you get it realy wrong and get 2nd gear !!!!!!!

[GORDON STREETER]

I have a mate that had a genuine M3 that I have used to drive his clients round on trackdays. Although I drive left hookers in Spain a fair bit I could never feel happy actually racing them. Its probably as the old saying goes "you can't teach an old dog new tricks"

[terence]

Its purely a psychological thing,having more of the car on the outside of a corner,you feel safer being further away from it,but how do you feel on left handers.?. It should make no difference whatsoever.

[GORDON STREETER]

I know what you mean Terry its just what you get used to. As most tracks we drive on are clockwise there will be more right handers than left
It doesn't seem to worry the foreign contingent though !

[Al Weyman]

I disagree as it happens. I find when you accelerate hard the torque on propshaft tends to make one rear wheel go light and usually the one on drivers side of a RHD car so therefore the drivers wieght helps it hook up better, however if the driver is sitting on the other side then situation is even worse. There is some footage here somewhere of me coming out the hairpin at Mallory and its always the inside whel that lights up, I am sure the situation would be better if I was sitting over the wheel. Same as when I turn into the straight at Donington the inside wheel just wont hook up and I have to get out the throttle loosing time but when you turn into the main straight on the Brands GP, a left hander she just hooks up and takes off. BTW I am well used to driving left hookers over here but am really looking forward to Rockingham later this year where I will not be at a disadvantage, maybe thats why its not the most popular circuit over here. I think all circuits should be designed like the one in Japan with a cross over so we heve equal amounts of left and right corners.

[johnlear]

What about east / west engined FWD with the heavier engine (i.e. heavier than the gearbox) on one side. An example might be typical Honda FWDs with the engine on the left side, so perhaps RHD would be prefferable?

[Al Weyman]

I am sure it is and I say this after years of running LHD's, because of the torque wind up irrespective of what side you are sitting I don't even think the Left Hand bends are as good as Right handers and if your weight is on the wrong side as well it exasperates the problem. I mean you only have to ask why sportscar designers try to get the driver as central as possible. See Tom Walker's question here: http://tentenths.com/forum/showthrea...115642&page=13

[JohnD]

If LHD suits anticlockwise tracks (and vice versa) is true, then the majority of US tracks would be anticlock, or the Yanks would change their race cars to RHD. And ditto for Europe, yet all the European tracks I know are clockwise.

Anyone know the orientation of US circuits?
John

[bdwoody]

i think they are anti clock as in leguna seca , indy !! but i may be wrong ...

[Al Weyman]

Originally Posted by JohnD

If LHD suits anticlockwise tracks (and vice versa) is true, then the majority of US tracks would be anticlock, or the Yanks would change their race cars to RHD. And ditto for Europe, yet all the European tracks I know are clockwise.

Anyone know the orientation of US circuits?
John

That interesting, I checked a couple and you are correct, I wonder if its something to do with the torque bias thing and just maybe right hand drive may be the secret weapon on the continent!

[Notso Swift]

On circle track the driver sits AWAY from the wall! Simple safety.
There was an oval in Melbourne (Calder), an the local classes raced the opposite direction to the Nascars

for FWD the weight bias is a big thing, left right split can be in the order of 60/40 if the motor and the driver are on the same side

[Al Weyman]

On circle track the driver sits AWAY from the wall! Simple safety.

I guess the same could be applied to predominantly right corner circuits like Brands Indy. In fact I find sitting low down on the left hand side entering Paddock bend rather daunting as you are going in totally blind and cannot even see the apex let alone what is beyond it, I was much more comfortable driving a right hooker. BTW on this subject I once got black flagged and for the only time ever fined a hundred quid for not stopping something I said I would walk away from this amatuer sport if it ever happened and indeed I did for 8 years, anyhow in my LHD car I simply did not see the flag held out at the chichane at Donington as I am not the sort of person that breaks sporting and track rules end of, if I had been in a RHD I am sure I would have seen it no problem.