Electric car powering the inside wheels in the corner?

[hrlin]

Said by Jeremy in Top Gear S20E04 while introducing the SLS electrical car.
Was that a mistake? I thought if we have an extra powering system, we should put more power on the outside wheels in a corner, right?

Here are my reasons:
1. Outside wheels have more grip when cornering, more grip means higher limit.
2. You can generate a torque relative to the center of the car to help cornering.

[Saribro]

I recall him saying the inside wheels were braked, not powered, in the general premise of fancy control-electronics.

[Holm86]

Negative torque is applied to the inside wheels in the SLS.

[Holm86]

Just watched it again and this is what he says "In a corner, the motors powering the inside wheels, and I can feel this happen, uses their sort of brakes the keep it aligned".

So what he says is correct.

[hrlin]

Oops, thanks for the answer, my mistake

[Holm86]

Don't worry. It was hard to hear what he said. And could be misunderstood.

[autogyro]

Don't worry. It was hard to hear what he said. And could be misunderstood.

Clarkson misunderstood nooooooo

[Billzilla]

Quite a fast car as well, most impressive.

[Holm86]

Its definitely exciting technology. And yes the car is very fast. But I'm still very much put off by the extremely short range and enormous weight of the batteries.

[autogyro]

Its definitely exciting technology. And yes the car is very fast. But I'm still very much put off by the extremely short range and enormous weight of the batteries.

Used continualy for high performance will give the car a short range.
I wonder how much fuel the petrol version used?

The battery weight is high but the lap times were very close considering the weight difference.

As usual Clerkson undertook an incomplete vehicle test.
He only focuses on the macho motor head aspects.
The word fair grates on his personality.

A proper road comparison would be interesting.

[autogyro]

Using energy recovery for brakeing and applying negative drive to the inside wheels on cornering is much easier to do in an electric car.
It was an idea pioneered by Gorden Murray for his F1 cars at McLaren and promptly banned by the technalogical inquisition at the FIA.
Just another super idea in car development destroyed back then by vested interest.
There are dozens more.

Electric cars also apply torque far more efficiently than liquid fueled cars.
When this technology is better developed, electric performance cars will corner far better than current types.
They will soon match in performance and then pass.

[PhillipM]

It was used long before Gordon Murray tried it, just not in F1.

[autogyro]

It was used long before Gordon Murray tried it, just not in F1.

Of course, the idea goes back to the 19th century, just like the layshaft stepped ratio gearbox.
We once had a steam carriage that used lever brakes with the same concept.

[nacho]

Was it Murray? I remebered it was '98 with the third pedal.

[autogyro]

Was it Murray? I remebered it was '98 with the third pedal.

The concept was being looked at by a number of designers at that time for ic vehicles.
The point here is that it is far easier to apply to electric reaction.
An associate of mine developed the control system for the 'Nemesis' electric car that uses exactly this idea.