I have some rather "unenlightened" questions about drifting. Please enlighten me.

1) Can the Cobalt drift? I had read somewhere that someone said the Cobalt couldn't drift well (or at all) Is this true?

2) If the Cobalt CAN drift, is it only possible with the LSD?

3) If the Cobalt CANNOT drift, is it because of the FWD?

4) If it's because of the FWD would someone please be so kind as to explain the mechanics to me? I was under the impression that as long as you created inertia that you would inevitably drift, even if only because of inertia. (Which would create the powerslide effect, even if you weren't drifting)

Basically I'm wondering about the entire process of drifting, as I only understand it at the most basic level. Momentum + change of direction = inertia, which creates a "drift" or a "powerslide"

I ask because I drift my 1990 automatic Cavalier, by simply creating inertia... I suppose one could argue that it's only a powerslide especially since my old cavvy definitely does not have an LSD.

Feel free to flame or whatever, I'm not trying to hide the fact that I don't know. I am trying to find out the answers too though, so please include those while you laugh at me.
-Aleckor

 

It will suck for drifting. Get a RWD car.

 

FWD cars cannot truly drift.... you could make a new sport and drift in reverse !

 

Wow, this thread is awesome.

No No and No. You don't drift a FWD car. PERIOD. Buy a 1990 240sx for $3,000 if you want to drift.

 

^^ Agreed. Thats what i did but shhh it's still not done. I bought the car new motor and suspension for roughly 7 g's now

 

Well I'm not the most knowledgable person on the subject, but let me throw out my 2 cents.

RWD cars are better for "drifting" simply because you can break traction easily on the rear wheels. A powerslide isn't the same as drifting. Powersliding can be done in most cars just to slide through the bend (momentum + change of direction = inertia... you're right there). However, you can't continually slide in a FWD car. With a RWD car, after you go through that initial slide, you can change direction and give it some gas to spin the rear end back the other direction. It's that ability (the ability to gun it and keep the back wheels free from traction) that makes the RWD cars great for drifting. In a FWD car, you can't spin those back wheels. So once they get that traction back after that initial slide, the only way to make them break traction again is by changing direction again. That's not to mention the control you have in the drift with those rear drive wheels.

Did that make any sense or did I just babble?

Summary: FWD cars can only break traction in the rear (and therefore throw the rear into a slide) by changing direction. RWD cars can break traction in the rear with power from the engine.

 

The Fast and The Furious 3... Has started this. The end is near. Run for shelter.

 

Actually it was Initial D that first spawned the interest of drifting into my easily-influenced-by-media-mind, long ago.

This is what Wikipedia had to say about FWD cars "drifting"

"There is some debate over whether or not front wheel drive (FWD) vehicles can drift. By one definition, the rear wheels slipping at a greater angle than the front wheels, they are indeed able to drift. However, most consider FWD vehicles a poor choice for drifting, as the frequent use of the emergency brake slows them down and makes them harder to control. Also, since they use their front tires for both steering and power, the car loses control after a single slide, while RWD cars can drift through consecutive corners. In this way, the definition of drifting is frequently challenged to say that FWD cars cannot "drift," only oversteer."

I must admit that I'm kind of torn now. I would have to give up my ill-begotten fantasy of drifting tight corners if I want to get a Cobalt.

:/
-Aleckor

 

Thats what i did. Just got a 1989 240sx for $1500 and about to drop a new engine in it, s15 conversion, new interior, etc. and should crank about 500whp when we are done with it.

 

SWEET..that S15 kit looks killer

 

initial d never said that a fwd could drift. the red civic that raced the panda trueno was part of the duct tape race episode in which both drivers taped their hand to the wheel. Since the civic could turn easier with speed with little effort and still pull through the corner it was ideal for the civic to race that way. Tak the driver of the panda trueno couldn't force the car into a drift easily cus of the duct tape keeping him from forcing the car into a drift. He had to push his own taped hand out of socket just to drift the car to stay alive cus he was heading into cliff barrier

 

u dont drift the f'n cobalt, just cause that new fast and furious movie came out, dont post 8,000 threads on drifting!

 

Wish I could say I didnt see this coming....

 

 

"u dont drift the f'n cobalt, just cause that new fast and furious movie came out, dont post 8,000 threads on drifting!"

Wow. That could quite possibly be the dumbest reply I've ever seen. Did you even read the post? This is a legitimate post asking about the mechanics of drifting as they apply to the Cobalt. It has absolutely nothing to do with the fast and the furious movie.

The Cobalt is a small, sleek, sporty, compact coupe. The question of whether or not it can drift is a very valid and very informative one.

If you don't have anything positive to say, don't say anything at all.
-Aleckor

 

I thought thumper from bambi said that ... yeah I saw Bambi what you wanna fight about it

 

Only real men have watched bambi....

 

after this movie comes out, its gona be crazy in the streets of USA every lil kid and his honda are gona try to drift in their FWD cars. creating more accidents up to 20 percent more per year. CRAZY>

 

"it Has Begun!"

 

nothing legitimate about this thread at all, absolutely ridiculous as is your car(1990 cavalier) Ive been around here a lot longer than you and actually own a cobalt, unlike your 1990 500 dollar bomb driving ass. Sorry to be mean but u wanna start something im here, if you know anything about this forum you would have realized that this post is dumb and is like the fifth post about drifting since talk of the movie started.

 

Get ready for an insurance hike.

 

i never even thought about that damn movie lol

 

I'm interested in drifting.
I want to purchase a Cobalt.
The Cobalt is a poor choice for drifting.
The post has nothing to do with "the movie" whatsoever.
You didn't bother to read the post.

Game. Set. Match.
-Aleckor

 

Drifting is soooooo boring. It gets old real fast. Just like this movie will! Just my opinion. No flaming allowed.

 

Must we all complain about the movie? If we don't make it more than what it is (which is afterall just a movie) then it won't seem that bad.