What have you hit in your 300...

Post by **5lab** » 18 Aug 2004 05:35 pm

easier than trying to change gear in one, if memory of my dad's serves me correctly..

btw, clutches on 400 series normally run to 150k.. was it really worth keeping the car?

Post by **foggyjames** » 18 Aug 2004 08:31 pm

I'm not sure I agree when it comes to a FWD car being easier / quicker to get out of oversteer. As far as I'm aware (apart from in wierd things like some Citroens with their crazy suspension) once the back of a FWD car has gone, its pretty much gone, as you have no direct influence over the rear of the car. Naturally, a good FWD car will be better than a bad RWD one....but on balance...

RWD definitely owns when it comes to grip.

As for the space thing...AMEN BROTHER! Our V40 is only about 6" longer than the 360, but boy does it have more interior space!

cheers

James

Post by **5lab** » 18 Aug 2004 08:35 pm

you're right, but the quickest way to catch the rear of a rwd car would actually be to knock it out of gear, so there are no 'spin' forces on the wheel at all. if you pull your foot right up off the gas, your car will use engine braking on the wheels and keep it in the slide (a bit), as will pressing the accelerator. the advantage of fwd is you can catch the rear wheels as quick as you can on a rwd car, but you can also pull the front end to help it out - in fact you could 'catch' a fwd car that would be too far gone if it were rwd.

Post by **Carl** » 18 Aug 2004 10:09 pm

Having got in silly understeery and oversteery situations in many Peugeots and now mostly oversteery situations in my 2 300s i think i can speak with a wee bit of experience.
FWD are basically easy to drive and easy to master. Understeer is the main problem obviously. But as people have said you can often use your right foot to pull yourself out of a back end slide which is useful, and a tactic i have used many timess (see www.geocities.com/carl_gibbs21 for some examples

). Also whilst cornering you can keep the car pretty much balanced with a bit of left foot braking, thus avoiding understeer. The handbrake is also useful at slower speeds to get the car out of sticky situations.
RWD is a bit more diffuclt to master (and i definately havent yet). But as the potential to be much quicker as the steering and drive is split between 2 axles rather than just the one. So you're more prone to oversteer but that's is much more easily controllable/correctable than understeer and so allows you to carry more speed.

For low powered cars the difference between FWD and RWD is pretty minimal. But the more power you get the more advantageous RWD becomes. All IMHO of course

But RWD is definately more FUN

Over the winter i went out in my 340DL with a friend in his 106 in the snow. Although you could do crazy things with the handbrake in the Pug (and overall it was probably safer in those condtions), it was no-where near as amsuing as the 340.

Carl

Post by **V6 Man** » 18 Aug 2004 11:15 pm

I have to say that the 300 series is absolutely fantastic in the snow, whether it be for fun or for trying to get somewhere. I managed to pull away from a Mitsubishi Galant 4wd up a hill in the snow and the driver of it came and asked me if my 345 was modified as he couldn't believe I had left him for dead. (we both worked at the same place - that's how he caught up with me!). Having the gearbox over the rear axle certainly helps their grip and balance, not something to be said for the larger Volvos - the 760 isn't too bad for a large, torquey RWD auto, but nowhere as good as a 300.

Post by **foggyjames** » 19 Aug 2004 01:03 am

I think there's only one way to settle this.....PISSING ABOUT IN THE SNOW VIDEO!

My 360 can leave dad's 940 for dead off the line (admittedly not for long!!), as the traction is miles better. I've beaten many hotter cars at the lights thanks to the traction - many people just give up when they're a car length down. Good thing too, as I'd monumentally struggle to keep a BMW 328 at full bore behind me....

cheers

James