Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

SUVs are not as stable as cars with a lower height. Think about the typical race car which is designed for turning fast, something that requires stability: light, low and wide. SUVs? Heavy, high and narrow relative to their height. Electronics can do marvels, but with the same electronics physics wins.

I remember I could easily outperform a couple of BMW SUVs on a highway in a descent from a mountain pass. They had passed me on the way up, more HPs and gravity helps handling. Then I kept turning at 130 km/h on the way down, where gravity is detrimental to handling. They were suddenly much slower, especially one of them (a prudent driver, I guess).



I came down I-70 into Denver one time in a rented Ford Expedition. Wasn't going that fast, but when I hit the first curve, the body and frame started to really lean onto the outside suspension. I was scared to hit the brakes and cause it to pitch more, so I just barely touched them and had to let it drift into the next lane a bit. The turn went on forever!!

Did I mention I was surrounded by motorcycles?


A more extreme, but related condition is a "moose test":

The dangerous Toyota Hilux:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoHbn8-ROiQ

The Jeep Grand Cherokee acting similarly dangerously:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zaYFLb8WMGM


It would be appropriate to list the model years there, especially if other years have solved the problem!


The Hilux video title says 2016 -- same issue remains as in 2007.

Interesting to see the Jeep blow the front left tire... 7 times. Consistent.


Luckily you handled it right.

On the very same road I wrote about, I've been driving another car that couldn't turn at 90 km/h uphill without drifting outside. It was not a SUV. Suspensions setup is very important for safety: a car that can turn fast is a safer car. I tested an Audi TT on ice at low speed (ice tires) and it was like turning on asphalt. Other more normal cars, not really.


Hitting the brakes hard is typically the first instinct, but is rarely the correct course of action. Ice is also something that afflicts drivers in Colorado.


I'm really curious to know exactly where you can legally drive downhill at > 100 km/h


In the US, especially out west, 75-80mph (~130km/h) is commonly set as the legal speed on most of the freeways.


It's the standard speed limit on highways in Italy. It can be lower when the road or its conditions suggest prudence.

It can also be 20 km/h faster on wide straight roads but I still have to see that. I guess nobody is risking the bad press after the first accident at 150 km/h.


The Coquihalla highway (BC-5) is notorious for it's steep hill and the speed limit is 120 km/h in ordinary conditions. I could probably find a lot of highways in BC that are similiar.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: