Dont Say I never gave you guys anything good!!! Top Gear E34 Road Test video **link**

[bimmerd00d]

I stumbled across this and almost spit out my Big Red creme soda. In the replies, post how much you love me


http://www.bimmerd00d.com/images/bim...opGear1990.wmv



I'll post a slightly higher quality version later.

PS: This will be stickied until i feel everyone has seen it.

[632 Regal]

I think it's great, but! wheres the ending???

[bimmerd00d]

I think it's great, but! wheres the ending???

Chopped it off, it's a full episode of top gear from 1990. I have the entire 1989 and 1990 seasons

[Robin-535im]

The next part (chopped off) is a great piece of info for people to know:

Don't lift in a high speed turn!

If you're under even moderate power in a turn and you lift off the gas, the rear unweights, the front has all the traction, and the rear can spin out real easy.

It's rather counter-intuituve to keep your foot on the gas as you start to slide, but if you give a wee bit more throttle you can pull the rear end back in line. Natural tendency is often to lift off the gas and even brake when the wheels start to slide, but that makes it spin out of control faster than you can pee your pants.

- obin

[Bimmer Nut Ed]

Very nice find d00d. I like!

Provides good visual evidence of the fun to drive factor of our bimmers.

[BigKriss]

i love the e34 in the video. I think it's an m5, is it? my car exhibits power understeer. where can i download other driver training videos?

[bimmerd00d]

i love the e34 in the video. I think it's an m5, is it? my car exhibits power understeer. where can i download other driver training videos?

I believe it's a UK 535iSE, not an M5.

[Alexlind123]

i love the e34 in the video. I think it's an m5, is it? my car exhibits power understeer. where can i download other driver training videos?

Thats extremely odd that your car would exhibit power understeer, very rare for a rear wheel drive car. My car, which is the same as yours exhibits power oversteer at will. I think you said something to me about having adjustable anti-roll bars, this could probably cause understeer or oversteer if they wer adjusted differently than normal. Still, your car should oversteer under power.

[bimmerd00d]

Thats extremely odd that your car would exhibit power understeer, very rare for a rear wheel drive car. My car, which is the same as yours exhibits power oversteer at will. I think you said something to me about having adjustable anti-roll bars, this could probably cause understeer or oversteer if they wer adjusted differently than normal. Still, your car should oversteer under power.

This could be a function of low-grip tires on the front. The e34 is designed (along with almost every other non ///M BMW) to understeer as a safety design. I suppose it's better to hit the tree dead on than hit it sideways or backwards

[Alexlind123]

Youre saying that the tires on front are different somehow from those on the rear? My tires are the same on the front as the rear, my brothers e28 535im also has power oversteer. I believe that that was a 535im in the video. I can understand how it would be possible for just plain understeer to be present in a rear-drive car but, as the video explains, there is really no way for application of power to the rear wheels can cause the front to break traction more readily than the rear. Perhaps the e34 is designed to understeer with power oversteer...however i personally dont think this to be the case, the e34 in the video oversteer even when not under what might appear to be full throttle. Also, any "true drivers car" such as a BMW, i would think, would be made to oversteer more readily than understeer. Like tiff said, something like "oversteer is much more fun."

I am very interested to find out some of the more subtle handling characteristics of a typical BMW. I dont push my car to the limit very often, the only time my car breaks traction is at low speeds and around corners at low speeds. I remember riding in my brothers BMW for the first time after he got it and it was really the first rear-drive car with a sufficient amount of power that i had ridden in, thus it was able to power-oversteer on dry pavement at moderate speeds. Quite a new experience for me. Personally, i would think oversteer would be more controllable for the experienced driver. Although i dont profess to hold great skill in high speed driving, i think i would feel rather helpless in a car whose front tires were plowing off an embankment or into a tree.

This could be a function of low-grip tires on the front. The e34 is designed (along with almost every other non ///M BMW) to understeer as a safety design. I suppose it's better to hit the tree dead on than hit it sideways or backwards