only thing ive changed is rear shocks for new ones and put rims off an exa which are 13"X5.5 with the exact tyres i had on the old rims and my car is understeering really bad

it understeered what i thought was too much before but now its terrible!, i have a semi lsd rear end which could be pushing me into corners but thats always been there

the offset of the new rims seems similar to old but handeling is VERY diffrent

whats happening? any ideas appreciated

With any handling problem the first thing to ask is under what condition does it understeer , turn in or exit. are you turning in under power or do you trial brake into the apex. Does the understeer build progerssively with the application of power?
I do not Know your driving experiance level but I will assume you know the basics so here are a couple of things to check
If the new shocks are softer than the car is likely to understeer more than it did before.if the shocks are adjustable you could try stiffening them up. Be advised if you crank in to much rebound damping the car will oversteer on entry , the rear end will jack down in long bumpy sweepers and cuase some really goofy handling. Also check the tire pressure - air is a spring and what ever end of the car is sprung more stiffly will break lose first , not to mention if you've over inflated the front tires they will be crowned and have less rubber on the road. I would check the alignment , to much toe-in will definetly cuase terminal understeer. I run the H145 LSD in my racer and have never had a problem with it bieng to tight , over course a binding LSD would make your car undesteer same as a locked diff.
I would do the basics - check the tire pressure and alignment and make sure no parts are worn - LSD suspension etc.
On a Final note if you don't trail the brakes into corners try the technique in an parking lot before you put it to use on the road as it will make the car oversteer. ( I'd hate to hear you backed your car into a tree!!!)

Tom Grossmann

what dimentions were your old wheels? and what size are your tires? i have a escort van as a every day driver and its always had ####ty handling which i just assumed was a ford thing. it was running 175x13 tires on 4 1/2 x 13 inch rims. the tires needed replacing a the tire guy said they were over tired and i should try 165s so i did and it is soooo much better it doesnt do any of the sluggy muddy #### it did before. so make sure you havent over tired your car.

If the front rims are a different width but tires are the same, the tire slip angles will be different front to rear ... that and the offset might make the difference?

Hello there!

well about the understeer... perhaps you exagerated on the tyres dimensions.. but with 13"x5.5 it doesn't seems TOO exagerated!check the offset

another thing... is it possible to change the camber to negative!?my datto is a B110
how expensive can it be!?

thanks

i wasnt talking about offset i was talking about over tiring which is tolally different. and yes u can buy a spherical top mount and a adjustable top plate if you insert them yourself it can cost only a few 100 $$

have you thought about the stiffness (damping) of the new rear shocks compared to the fronts??

If they were different this would drastically alter the handling

i put 14's on now to see if it still understeers but havent really had a hoon, it seems to have gone, must have been offset, but ill have to go for a serious drive to see if it is understeering now

I wouldn't have thought that would make much difference, but you never know.

You young guys may not remember bias ply tires, but those were standard equipment on 1200s. In the mid-80s, I finally got two radials for the back of my 1200. I found out why they say never mix radials and bias tires. Talk about oversteer! So I got two more for the front, which restored the handling, in fact it even made the 1200 track straighter on the highway. An incredible improvement.

went for a hoon to test diff centre wasnt leaking from mounting as i had it off, anyway definately no understeer with the 14s on there