**The Art of Communication: A Driver's Car**
Steering isn't the only way you communicate with your car. It's a two-way street. The driver tells the car what to do, and the car responds instantaneously to driver inputs because of that solid mechanical connection.
Unpowered steering is really good for this kind of communication. It provides a ton of information, as it's a solid mechanical connection between the wheels and the driver's hands. However, it takes a lot of effort to use, especially on a track. Resistance from the tires can even be strong enough that the driver can't hang onto the steering wheel.
Almost all cars now have power steering. The power usually comes from a hydraulic system that uses fluid pressure to assist the driver, making it easier to turn the wheel. Manufacturers are increasingly using electric power steering (EPS) because it's easier to integrate advanced features like lane keep assist and automatic parking.
The big downside to unpowered steering is that it takes a lot of effort to use, especially on a track.
However, there's a problem with electric power steering. Because it uses sensors and electric motors to control the steering system, there's little direct connection between the driver and the front wheels. The resistance you feel from EPS is programmed into the system. It's not the direct mechanical resistance found in an unpowered or hydraulic steering system.
When BMW and Porsche started using power steering a few years ago, enthusiasts were all up in arms. They would describe these systems as numb or even unpredictable. But the programming and equipment used with EPS have come a long way. Modern computer-controlled suspensions can respond to changing conditions in microseconds, and modern EPS can get fast feedback to the driver and respond very quickly.
**The Power of Communication: A Driver's Car**
Steering isn't the only way you communicate with your car. You scream at it. "Hey, what are you doing?" You just punch it. You just listen to me, car! Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Communicating with your car is a lot like relationships. When you're hearing something you don't wanna freaking listen to, you just turn up the radio and drown out that sound.
Nothing ruins a driver's car like having no power available when you ask for it. Throttle response is especially important as you roll on the throttle exiting a corner. It can be frustrating to drive a car with an engine that isn't producing consistent power across a wide range of RPMs.
The car simply isn't doing what you say when you tell it to. There also shouldn't be any delay in that response, and power should come on smoothly and predictably. That creates a bit of a problem for some cars that are turbo-charged, which can have a power delay while the turbos spin up.
For a lot of enthusiasts, a naturally aspirated engine is the only choice in a driver's car because they have the most rapid throttle response. Simplier, produce less heat under the hood, and they weigh less.
A driver's car needs to have power that's immediate, steering that's direct, and a stiff chassis that leads to sharper turn-in and instantaneous feedback. These are what make a car a great communicator.
Sadly, the driver's car is a dying breed. The average consumer isn't interested in driving and views it as a chore. The systems that allow cars and drivers to communicate with each other have become increasingly automated, and most modern cars are designed to insulate us from the experience of driving.
Every year, more cars are implementing self-driving technology, and it seems the goal is to remove the driver's input altogether.
**Conclusion**
Thank you guys so much for watching this episode of B2B. Hit that like and subscribe button. That really helps us out and appreciate it. In your opinion, what's the best driver's car out there? Leave a comment down below. I personally think it's a Porsche GT3 RS, just because that's really the only quote driver's car I've driven.
Follow us here at Donut on Instagram @DonutMedia. Follow me @JeremiahBurton and until next week, bye for now.
WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: en- You'll sometimes see your enthusiastsdescribed their car as a driver's car,and it's tempting to thinkthat's just an excusefor not having enough power.But what they mean is that the carlets you experience driving.A driver's car doesn'tisolate you from the road,it amplifies your connection to it.It makes driving engaging.So that got me thinking,maybe there are someparticular characteristicsthat make something a driver's car.Greatness doesn't happen by accident.And today, we're gonna figureout how to engineer carto give you a great driving experience.It driver's car mightfeel like a work of art,but it turns out it's built by science.Art, science.Jerr Vinci.(dramatic music)(chill music)A big thanks to Omaze forsponsoring today's video.Oh, what's this behind me?It's just the 1988 BMW E30 M3.One of the most iconic BMWs ever made.And right now you have a chance to win itwith taxes and shipping included.That sounds like a pretty sweet deal.It's got classic M3 badging,the wide body flares,and a raised trunk with a fixed spoiler.And all that's riding on 15inch BVS style five wheels.Oh, did I mention it's onlygot 27,000 miles on it?I got more miles on these boots.That's a mile right there.I'd go longer.So for your chance toown this coveted pieceof BMW motor sport history,go to omaze.com/donutmedia and donate.Best of all, every donationsupports the Skate Park Projectand that's founded by five timeKid's Choice award winner, Tony Hawk.Yep, that's how you know him.That's how I know him too.Their mission is to fund highquality public skate parksin underserved communitiesto promote healthyand active lifestyles.So go donate for your chance to winat omaze.com/donutmedia andI'll catch you later, skater.(soft music)Let's set aside all theemotions and flowery languageused to sell enthusiast carsand start thinking rationallyabout what makes a driver's car.If you say your car is visceralor that it's not about speed,it's about the way it feels.That's all fine and good.I'm happy for you that youuse that kind of language,but I'm a math boy, okay?And if you want to convinceme that driving purityis more than just talk,you're gonna need to throwin some numbers behind that.What makes a car rewarding, visceral,just plain feel good to drivecomes down to one key factor.Communication.That's the number one thingin relationships too, fellows.When you communicate,just loves gonna blossom.A driver's car has to be able to quicklyand precisely transmitinformation to the driver.And that all startswith the driver's butt.A performance seat hasthick, stiff bolsterson the bottom and the back of the seatto hold the driver inposition, locks you in.Because the driver doesn'thave to work as hardto keep themselves in place,that frees up their arms andlegs to better control the carto pick up more informationthrough the steering wheel and the pedals.With car seats, we want comfortand a good driving position,but we also want them to holdour body securely in placeso we don't fall outgoing around a corner.The last feature is also whatseparates a communicative seatfrom one that insulates the driverfrom important information.That information isn't actuallypicked up by your butt.It's from your ears, but it's not sound.The vestibular system and our own bodiesdetect lateral accelerationwhen a car is turning.Direction changes, theyslosh a fluid aroundon the inner ear and that'sdetected by hair-like sensorsswaying in the current.Those sensors transmitinformation to the brainabout acceleration, balance,and spatial orientation.Like any of our senses,the vestibular system can getoverloaded causing dizziness,loss of balance, and motion sickness.So our bodies, they dampensome of those forcesthat would otherwise causesloshing in the inner ear.So imagine you're on a boat, right?You're holding a glass of adult liquid.Your body, it's gonnacompensate for the movementof the rocking ship to prevent said liquidfrom sloshing out of the glass.It does the same thing for your inner ear,insulating it against informationthat could overload the system.In a car, that's valuableinformation being muted.The inner ear can detectmicro accelerations producedwhen a vehicle startsto slide, for example.The sooner and clearerthat message is received,the faster the driver canrespond to control that slide.Changing the seat to onewhich provides greater supporthas been shown to improve lap times.And one theory is that byholding the body steady,preventing it from compensating,more of the cars movement ispicked up by the inner earand turned into informationthat the driver can use.A lot of drivers describe those sensationsas something they feel through their butt,but it's actually their inner ear.Funny, I can also hearthings through my butthole.That's my superpower.It's not usually thedrivers body insulating themfrom a car's movement,it's often the car's body doing thisin something called body flex.No, put the guns down, people.Body flex in the car,that's when the forces acting on a carcause the chassis itself to bend or twist.Preventing that requirestorsional rigidity.A modern car's chassisis the unibody structurethat multiple parts attach to.You can think about thatstructure as a bit like the frameof a simple box or eventhe base of a chair.Lots of chairs have crossedmembers that connect the legsto each other.If you've ever sat in achair where those were brokenor disconnected, youprobably felt the chairtwisting underneath you.Those cross members increasethe torsional rigidityof the chair preventing that twisting.Torsional rigidity can be improvedby reinforcing that structure.Engineers can add diagonalbraces between the firewalland the sub frame that hold the engine,or they can add moresupport to the structurethat joins the shock towerswith the floor of the car.Those increases in torsional rigidityoften require adding morematerial to a car's chassisand that adds weight.Convertibles often weigh more than coopsbecause chopping the top ofthe box means reinforcementhas to be added somewhere else.Adding weight makes acar slower to accelerate,slower to initiate turning,and slower to change direction.Weight can ruin thedriving experience of a carbecause a heavy car is less responsiveto the driver's inputs.A flexi chassis deprives the driverof crucial informationabout what the car is doingand makes the car slow torespond to driver inputs.And most of those essential driver inputsare transmitted throughthe steering system.On cars they typically use a rackand pinion steering system.The pinion, that's agear attached to the endof the steering column, and the rack,that's the bar that connectsthe left and the right wheels.That bar is a flattened gearcontaining a row of teeththat mesh with pinion gear.So when the driver turns the wheel,the pinion rotates, and thismoves the raft right or left.If a car has unassisted steering,there's not much more to it.Long ago, unassisted or unpowered steeringwas preferred in performance carsbecause it's solid mechanical connectionbetween the wheels and the driver's handsprovided a ton of information.But steering, it's atwo way communication.It's also how the drivertells the car what to do.Unpowered steering isreally good for that.It responds instantaneouslyto driver inputsbecause of that solidmechanical connection.The big downside to unpowered steeringis that it takes a lot of effort to use,and that can wear driver out,especially on a track.In extreme conditions like those,resistance from the tirescan even be strong enoughthat the driver can't hangon to the steering wheel,or if he's holding on too tight,it can snap your wrist off.Almost all cars, even race cars,now have power steering.That power usually comesfrom a hydraulic systemthat uses fluid pressureto assist the driver,making it easier to turn the wheel.Manufacturers are increasinglyusing electric power steeringor EPS because it's easier tointegrate advanced featureslike lane keep assist, automaticparking, or self-driving.But there's a problem withelectric power steering.Because it uses sensorsand electric motorsto control the steering system,there's little direct connectionbetween the driver and the front wheels.The resistance you feel from EPSis programmed into the system.It's not the direct mechanical resistancefound in an unpowered orhydraulic steering system.When BMW and Porschestarted using power steeringa few years ago, enthusiastic,they were all up in arms.They would describe these systems as numbor even unpredictable.But the programming andequipment used with EPS,they've come a long, long way.Just like modern computercontrolled suspensions,which can respond and changingconditions in microseconds,modern EPS can get fastfeedback to the driverand respond very quickly togive the kind of feedbackenthusiast drivers want.Steering isn't the only wayyou communicate with your car.You scream at it.Hey, what are you doing?You just punch it.You just like, listen to me car!Yeah, yeah, yeah.Communicating with your caris a lot like relationships.When you're hearing somethingyou don't wanna freaking listen to,you just turn up the radio,just drown out that sound.Oh my God.Steering isn't the only wayyou communicate with your car.The loud pedal is prettyimportant and a whole lot of fun.Nothing ruins a driver's carlike having no poweravailable when you ask for it.Throttle response is especially importantas you roll on thethrottle exiting a corner.It can be frustrating todrive a car with an enginethat isn't producing consistent poweracross a wide range of RPMs.The car simply isn't doing whatyou say when you tell it to.There also shouldn't beany delay in that responseand power should come onsmoothly and predictably.That creates a bit ofa problem for some carsthat are turbo-charged for example,which can have a power delaywhile the turbs spin up,and may not make boosts gradually.For a lot of enthusiasts,a naturally aspiratedengine is the only choicein a driver's car because they havethe most rapid throttle response.Simpler, produce less heat under the hoodand they weigh less.So a driver's car needs tohave power that's immediate,steering that's direct,and a stiff chassisthat leads to sharper turn-inand instantaneous feedback.These are what make acar a great communicator.Sadly, the driver's car is a dying breed.The average consumer isn'tinterested in drivingand views it as a chore.The systems that allow carsand drivers to communicatewith each other have becomeincreasingly automated,and most modern cars aredesigned to insulate usfrom the experience of driving.Every year, more cars are implementingself-driving technologyand it seems the goalis to remove the driver input altogether.Thank you guys so much forwatching this episode of B2B.Hit that like and subscribe button.That really helps usout and appreciate it.In your opinion,what's the best driver's car out there?Leave a comment down below.I personally think it's a Porsche GT3 RS,just because that's really the onlyquote driver's car I've driven.And I got to drive around a track,and I got to beat GordonRamsey's time around that track.So I liked that car.BUt let me know in thecomments what you think.Follow us here at Donuton Instagram @DonutMedia.Follow me @JeremiahBurtonand until next week,bye for now.
