Chris,
Dan's torque arm is very similar to the "ladder bars" used on a lot of drag
cars, but with one important difference. Ladder bars are not captured in
front so, while they lift under acceleration and transfer weight to the
back, under braking they have no effect on weight transfer to the front.
Dan's torque arm, on the other hand, transfers weight to the front during
braking which increases dive. If you want to see what I mean, try dumping
the clutch in reverse! I would like to see a comparison of stopping
distance with and without the torque arm. Of course, with the Tiger's drum
brakes in back you're probably already relying on the front brakes for the
brunt of heavy-duty braking anyway, so maybe it's not going to matter all
that much; e.g., going from 66% to 75% or something like that. But with
carbon/metallic linings or a good set up disk brakes in back and if you
want to squeeze all the braking performance you can get out of the car,
then I'm betting the torque arm will be a bit of a detriment. I probably
shouldn't be beating up on poor Dan without giving him a chance to defend
himself. I wonder if he uses the torque arm in his race car? BTW, how'd he
do in the braking department this weekend in Phoenix?
Most of the Tigers that I'm aware of that do consistently well at the
autocrosses use the bolt-on style traction bars, and have been since 1964
or so. For 1/4 mile drag racing where you get no points for stopping or
turning, one would want quite a bit different setup. It all depends on what
you're after, but I think there are probably better compromises for
"spirited" street and autocross driving than the torque arm.
Bob
Robert L. Palmer
UCSD, Dept. of AMES
619-822-1037 (o)
760-599-9927 (h)
rpalmer@ucsd.edu
rpalmer@cts.com
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