My MCS is my first front wheel drive automobile. After well over a year of driving, and making modifications, the level of enjoyment has increased. I have come to learn that certain things are just inherent with FWD. Some are desirable, and some not. I spent some time tonight seeking confirmation of my experiences, and found some pretty interesting write-ups, and I thought I would share...

http://www.modernracer.com/tips/fron...oversteer.html

http://slate.msn.com/id/2081194

http://www.geocities.com/prohibition_us/fwd.html

Edit/addition... I just found this response to a story above:

http://www.rassoc.com/gregr/weblog/a....aspx?post=573

And here is a rather spirited conversation on this topic in a VW forum:

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothread?id=291468

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2003 IB MCS

 

Interesting articles.
I think that a lot of old timers are against FWD cars for performance driving simply because it's not what they're used to. As one of your articles points out, driving FWD is just a whole different game. And, to someone who isn't used to FWD, it's disasterous.
But, RWD does have some advantages.

 

Interesting reading.
This MCS...is my 1st front wheel drive car ...as well :smile:
It's an adjustment for sure :smile:

Peace,
D

 

I know that there is this quest for more and more power, and then corresponding talk of drivetrain limitations as well as engine internals. Those are costly build-ups to keep the quest moving along, but at times I wonder if there really is, or should be a rational limit simply due to design - ie, that it's fwd?

What are some examples of high performance fwd cars? I'd like to learn what they've done...

The mid-engine and rear drive of this new Lotus is just mouth-watering!

I digress. The canyon roads around me are the great equalizer of the high hp cars that I enounter. I'm having a blast, no doubt. There's going to be a point of diminishing returns though, and I don't know quite yet where that might be for my MCS. And I'm starting to sense that it will be due to its front wheel drive power, more so than the aforementioned strength limitations (tranny & engine internals)...

I'm going to keep mod'ing until I find that line. I've never had a car with a 10:1 weight to hp ratio, and I hope that will remain a worthy goal for the MCS...