Front wheel drive special

[boyracer]

Had an idle moment at a Motorkhana recently and started thinking about weight distribution in a front wheel drive special.
Two trains of thought;
1./ Have weight as far forward of front axle of car to acheive better acceleration....maybe. Drag racing theory

2./ Have weight as far behind the axle as possble to reduce overhung weight induced dive and polar moment of inertia of the setup, allowing for quicker turning... maybe. Circuit Racer theory

Anyone who's built a special, would appreciate your input.
Mostly I think I'm a long way away from you all, so no worries about me showing up at the next round to compete against you

[maddogf3]

[QUOTE=boyracer]Had an idle moment at a Motorkhana recently and started thinking about weight distribution in a front wheel drive special.
Two trains of thought;
1./ Have weight as far forward of front axle of car to acheive better acceleration....maybe. Drag racing theory

2./ Have weight as far behind the axle as possble to reduce overhung weight induced dive and polar moment of inertia of the setup, allowing for quicker turning... maybe. Circuit Racer theory

]
Think you have anwered that question yourself Do 1 / for drag racing and 2/ to go round a track quick with weight spread between the axles
Question.----- do cars spin best clockwise in the southern hemisphere like water down the plug hole and is every one called "Bruce "???

[boyracer]

Cheers,
not everyone down unders named "Bruce". But cars do seem to spin better clockwise... at least when it's controlled

[coln72]

Most specials use a production engine/transaxle where it comes from from the factory is where it is in the special

[boyracer]

True, but you do have the option of tilting that engine slightly, or even angling the drive shafts slighly rearwards or forwards to help influence the cars behaviour.