05 Rx8 MT, No DSC.

Whenever the roads get even slightly wet, myrx8 becomes a "**** your pants, did that just happen without anybody getting hit, and how is this car still in one piece, are you telling me we somehow just spun into an empty parking lot from a full spinout on the street, without as much as hitting a curb, or even scratching the paint?" vehicle.

So far I have lost control twice on public roads, simply due to acceleration, I'm talking 360 degree spinouts from moderate forward acceleration. Not launching, not even close to launching, simply a little mash on the accelerator to get the car to 30 from 20 in second.

I am going to hope and pray that the tires carmax put on my car are the culprit, but is there a way to get DSC on a non DSC car?

 

Where are you located? What was the temperature?

If drive on the stock summer tires in the wet below 10C or 50F then the car will behave as you describe...

 

Fort Lauderdale, FL. Couldn't have been less than 80F.

 

Get new tires my 8 is perfect wet or dry...

 

How many miles?

Maybe carmax sprayed that tire shine crap on your treads?

 

The car just turned 20k, I've had it for 2k.

 

The stock tires only last about 20K

 

Def change tires - what brand and model are you using?

Some folks may have the same tire or exp with it and can help.

 

FL... get some wider summer tires

 

I also have an 05 RX-8 MT w/o DSC and today I lost control on the highway when someone cut me off and I had to get over in the other lane. I'd say I was doing 70ish (speed limit is 65) and I didn't even jerk the wheel hard and I almost lost it. Thankfully I stayed between the center line and the median. Still adapting to the car I guess...

 

Sounds like you goes need to go to HPDE courses, like Skip Barber school.

 

Need winter tires, the tires that come on the car aren't made for driving in weather below 50 degrees

 

try letting off the accelerator when you start to spin dont slam the brakes.....unless its icy i dont see why you would spin out like that....unless you slam the brakes

 

I don't really think I hit the brakes, but it happened kind of fast. I know better than to hit the brakes like that, but maybe I did. I'm hoping its just the tires and not my poor driving... then again tires will cost me money

 

You might want to have your suspension and alignment checked.

It sounds like you have an oversteer problem....that shouldn't be that evident with a stock RX-8....

Worn tires will definitely do it..but so will poor alignment...or problems with the sways etc......

 

I cant say any car I have driven I had tha tproblem in, including the 8 and much more powerfull cars. If you start to spin, counter steer and let off the gas, the car should correct itself. I guess it could be REALLY terrible tires though. Im down here in FL as well. It could also be the huge lack of rain we have had, when it does rain the roads become extra slick it seems.

 

One thing you can get in Florida is what we call black ice(not the same as up North). When it hasn't rained for awhile and then does, all the oil will come to the top of the road surface and can make it rather slick in spots. I'd still say that you probably need new tires and at 20k on stock, you can't have much tread left.

 

This is RWD. You have to be real smooth with the throttle, especially when the tires are wet. I see it all the time with novice autocrossers. Too much gas and they don't even feel the tires spinning from lack of traction (even in the dry).

 

Puma - how much tread is left on your tires? And have you checked the tire pressures? 32 psi all around.

Since you've only had the car 2K miles, check that before doing anything drastic. Maybe you do need new tires, but nobody who said "new tires" has asked what you currently have and what their condition is.

And, answering a question in your original post, you can't add DSC to a non-DSC car. Maybe you could, if you got the parts, but for something like that you'd be better off trading up.

Ken

 

yup, dont buy the tires so you can save the money for your deductable when you get in an accident.

 

Tires: Falken FK452's - How shitty are these/how much better can I go?

They seem brand new, the dealership where I got the rx8 replaced them before I got my hands on the car.

Is there anywhere I can read up on RWD behavior under oversteer? My natural reaction these past few times was to let go of the accelerator, countersteer and feather the brakes. Absolutely no control was exerted from these actions though, the car just kept on pirouetting.

 

I have Falken FK 452's and I don't spin like a top, unless I want to. And it does rain here. I have had no problems in the rain with these tires.
Does your car have DSC and TCS? I don't get how you could spin that easily without putting some effort into it.
Never mind your car does'nt have these options. Your going to have to learn how to drive.

 

Thanks Easy_E1.

From Wiki:

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The natural reaction of most drivers to the perception of loss of control during oversteer is to immediately lift their foot off the gas pedal. Unfortunately, this is exactly the wrong thing to do - it can lead to the treacherous phenomenon of lift-off oversteer. Releasing the throttle pitches the car forward, causing a weight transfer towards the front of the car, thus reducing rear traction even further. The nose of the car rotates sharply toward the inside of the turn as it pitches into a spin.

Braking may or may not improve the situation. Most modern cars have a brake bias which tends to straighten out the car. However, there are two factors working against this. Most drivers must lift their foot from the gas pedal in order to press the brake, inducing the spin as described above. The second is that braking transfers more of the vehicle's weight forward which tends to worsen oversteer. Even so, the brake bias may be enough to help or at least not make it worse.

The correct reaction to oversteer is to gently steer into the slide and take the power away as needed without pitching the car forward. Indeed, cutting the power mid-corner can induce oversteer even in a front wheel drive vehicle. This is known as lift-off oversteer. "Trail braking", or continuing to apply brake pressure after turning into a curve, can induce oversteer by transferring weight off the rear tires, regardless of whether the car is front, rear or all-wheel drive. Note that in a front wheel drive car it is often better to simply accelerate hard to correct an oversteer slide.

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So next time, steer into the slide, don't touch the brakes, and feather the accel?

Sounds like a recipe for an insurance claim.

 

You'd be a pro if you had snow to play in each winter.


Steer into it, don't brake, and ease off the gas. If you let up on the gas gently you can control the weight transfer much better.

 

Thanks for the feedback guys.

I'm going to have to work in a trip to the track next month to let my girl show me her true character.

I seriously love the rx8, there's so much depth to it. Every time I take it out I can't help but grin.

And to think I was considering an rsx!