Sports car

A sports car is a type of automobile designed for sporting performance. While opinions differ as to the exact definition, most sports cars have two seats and two doors, and are designed to excel at a combination of acceleration, top speed, braking, and maneuverability. Great emphasis is often placed on handling—the ability of the car to remain in the control of the driver under challenging conditions such as when the car's tires begin to lose their grip on corners.

Layout

The layout of drive train and engine influences the handling characteristics of a car and is the focus of more attention in a sports car.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Most modern cars use front wheel drive (FF) where the engine is in the front and drives the front wheels. Some sports cars have this layout (e.g. Lotus Elan M100), but due to its conservative effect on handling, it is not typical in higher-performance models.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Previously FR, front engine driving rear wheels, was common. This form has survived longer in sports cars than in the mainstream and is declared by some to be the "classic" layout for sports cars. The lighter rear-end and rear drive increases the ability of a car to "drift" around corners without losing control.

Related Topics:
FR - Drift

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In search of improved handling and weight distribution other formats have been tried. mid engine, rear drive (MR) is a layout commonly found only in sports cars—the engine is mounted towards the centre of the chassis, close behind the driver, and powers the rear wheels.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Porsche are the sole users of the RR layout, a rear engine driving the rear wheels. The qualities of their cars are often said to have come about despite rather than because of this layout. The weight distribution across the wheels in a Porsche cannot be seen as ideal as the weight of the engine is outside the car's wheelbase. This would usually lead to extremely unpredictable handling and, indeed, many of their early Porsches did suffer from this. However, Porsche have continuously refined the design and combined their modifications with electronic driving aids like computerized traction and stabililty control which do much to counteract the inherent flaws of the design. Many of Porsche's techniques have been applied to other cars with success.

Related Topics:
Porsche - RR

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

One option for transferring the power from the engine to the car's wheels is all wheel drive or AWD. Athough some early passenger cars used this technique (e.g. 1966 Jensen FF) it did not gain widespread acceptance until the 1980s. Audi's great rally racing success with their Quattro in the early 1980s as well as Lancia's success with the Delta Integrale legitimized this layout for sports cars. Since then, many of the top-performing cars from marques like Audi, Porsche and Lamborghini, as well as asian manufacturers like Mitsubishi, Subaru and Nissan, use AWD in performance cars.

Related Topics:
All wheel drive - Jensen FF - Audi - Rally racing - Quattro - Lancia - Delta Integrale - Porsche - Lamborghini - Mitsubishi - Subaru - Nissan

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~