How effective is LSD at keeping car straight?

[theflash1234]

A little bit of context.

Over the last 10 years I've owned a BRZ(MT), 340i(AT) with a tune, and recently picked up a CT4-v BW in MT. I enjoy my cars on the street within reason.

The BW obviously has more power than anything I've had before. Recently I've been getting pushed reels/tiktoks of people driving RWD sports cars, flooring it, losing traction and getting into a wreck. This is from standstill or while driving at highway speeds. I am sure most car enthusiasts have seen these videos too. Mustangs leaving car meets comes to mind.

This is making me more paranoid of losing the car while having a little fun. I usually don't turn PTM off, don't do anything aggressive in the rain, or cold or unfavorable conditions.

But my question is does the LSD help keep the car straight while aggressive acceleration it in a straight line? Are these people just completely turning off all the support systems?

Am I just being paranoid? I've never had an issue with traction in my years of owning rwd sports cars.

 

[rubberduck]

A little bit of context.

Over the last 10 years I've owned a BRZ(MT), 340i(AT) with a tune, and recently picked up a CT4-v BW in MT. I enjoy my cars on the street within reason.

The BW obviously has more power than anything I've had before. Recently I've been getting pushed reels/tiktoks of people driving RWD sports cars, flooring it, losing traction and getting into a wreck. This is from standstill or while driving at highway speeds. I am sure most car enthusiasts have seen these videos too. Mustangs leaving car meets comes to mind.

This is making me more paranoid of losing the car while having a little fun. I usually don't turn PTM off, don't do anything aggressive in the rain, or cold or unfavorable conditions.

But my question is does the LSD help keep the car straight while aggressive acceleration it in a straight line? Are these people just completely turning off all the support systems?

Am I just being paranoid? I've never had an issue with traction in my years of owning rwd sports cars.

You can’t get very crazy in Tour or Sport mode as engine power will get pulled if the car starts getting sideways. I know, I end up doing it a lot and it’s annoying. Then I switch to Track Dry for more fun.

 

[Roadhawk]

I haven't really pushed mine so much to really know...but from experience with other RWD cars the concern is putting the power down while in a turn or perhaps in the wet. As long as all your traction control nannys are left on you should be OK. These (new) cars seem to have lots of safety built in...more so then I'm used to (first new car in about 15 years)

When I first test drove our BMW 330i ZHP (back in 2003) I turned all traction fully off and really enjoyed tailing out a bit...was one of the reasons I bought the car (and over a normal 330)....while not the kind of power as the BW it still can slide...but with traction on its very stable.

 

[Speed Racer 007]

But my question is does the LSD help keep the car straight while aggressive acceleration it in a straight line? Are these people just completely turning off all the support systems?

Am I just being paranoid? I've never had an issue with traction in my years of owning rwd sports cars.

Yes, the car is designed to utilize the various traction settings. As another poster stated, if you leave the car in sport mode you will be afforded an opportunity to have a little fun while being safe.

I'm a bit old school and when having fun, I turn everything off, however this approach demands RESPECT otherwise the BW will hurt you. Just like any high HP rear wheel drive car.

The guys showing off on Y/T more than likely turn the nanny's off. Then quickly realize, oh shit, and it's too late.

 

[1Evil55]

It's always mustangs..

 

[Deneed4spd]

If you go to the BW school, they do a figure 8 in wet and with traction on wet setting u can’t get the rear end to wiggle out. If you are in sport mode, it will give u some side to side but not much. But even if the LSD is doing its job, depending on tire and condition on road, you could be toast. Just go to BW school and u will find out first hand how well LSD saves your butt.

 

[theflash1234]

If you go to the BW school, they do a figure 8 in wet and with traction on wet setting u can’t get the rear end to wiggle out. If you are in sport mode, it will give u some side to side but not much. But even if the LSD is doing its job, depending on tire and condition on road, you could be toast. Just go to BW school and u will find out first hand how well LSD saves your butt.

Thank you. I just looked this up. I got my BW with a 120 miles on it. Someone returned it within a week of ownership. I'll see if Cadillac sales will make an exception for me on the complimentary for "New" part.

Everyone else. Thank you! Appreciate all the responses. I'll give the car a go on the track but keeping the safety systems on should keep the car under control on the streets.

 

[MookdocOE]

Compared to cars of yesteryear? This baby will kill ya no doubt in any setting. It's probably one of the safest most composed cars that you can actually feel the road and grab the road for traction. Shocking how well it does it and at those power levels too. Can't sell this one folks.

 

[Jameson's Viggen]

Think of an open diff as 1wd and LSD as 2WD lol.


Until you up your confidence, leave stability control enabled. You can adjust the PTM settings and driving modes to give you more and more freedom in slip angle etc as you gain confidence in how the car reacts.

 

[Yalferd]

Mustangs load up the rear end, then you let off the gas, you get the whiplash reaction of the rear end coming around. A buddy replaced all the rear end bushings with much stiffer product and got rid of that issue. Now he just needs to learn to shift properly

 

[dinkman]

It's always mustangs..

and bmw's

 

[Matt27]

Think of an open diff as 1wd and LSD as 2WD lol.


Until you up your confidence, leave stability control enabled. You can adjust the PTM settings and driving modes to give you more and more freedom in slip angle etc as you gain confidence in how the car reacts.

Would also note I believe Race 1 and Race 2 turn stability control off. PTM sport gives you a decent amount of slip but still has stability control on.

Race 1 and 2 will of course work to limit wheel spin but yaw control is all driver (I think).

 

[MDM]

On this specific topic the 4 BW and the 5 BW act totally different. The 5 is much more of a handful. As you start experimenting with some tire spinning slides, remember that the car will react differently on different roads, so try and get a feel on the same surface so you can learn consistently. Also, at first try using just enough throttle to keep the wheels spinning, but not so much that it gets too far out for when you have to lift. In the 5 I will usually pull out and hit it to about half throttle, hold there, the car will get loose, and I'll feed in just enough to keep it sliding in a controlled way. The guys that are pulling out and crashing are shutting off the traction control and flooring it while trying to keep control. The other thing you have to watch is sliding sideways and incorporating a shift into the equation. The car will almost always jump back to the opposite side, so be ready to steer accordingly. The idea is you steer the car with both the steering wheel and the throttle while sliding. I see your 4 is a manual trans getting the hang of this can be lots of fun.

 

[MatthewAMEL]

You can’t get very crazy in Tour or Sport mode as engine power will get pulled if the car starts getting sideways. I know, I end up doing it a lot and it’s annoying. Then I switch to Track Dry for more fun.

FYI - Sport in Competitive Mode is All Off, No PTM, full engine power.

Select Sport then press ESC button 2x's. You will see message on dash.

 

[rubberduck]

FYI - Sport in Competitive Mode is All Off, No PTM, full engine power.

Select Sport then press ESC button 2x's. You will see message on dash.

Yes, I don't use that. I suspect it's more for long drifts and have no need for it on the street. Track/Dry or Track/Sport is plenty enough for me to handle.

 

[FLYARMY]

I knew a guy who used LSD and he couldn't keep the car on the road. Oh, wait.......you're talking about a different LSD.
Never mind.

 

[Ty88]

I knew a guy who used LSD and he couldn't keep the car on the road. Oh, wait.......you're talking about a different LSD.
Never mind.

Well done.