Categories: Cars

GM Has A Clever Idea To Make Drifting Easier. But Would It Work?

GM filed a patent for ‘active aero downforce control for drifting maneuvers.’
Drifting, however, is less about downforce and more about power, grip, and steering angle.
Both the ZR1 and ZR1 certainly have more than enough power to get sideways.

Drifting takes serious car control skills. Sure, anyone can mash the throttle in a rear-wheel-drive vehicle and induce momentary oversteer, but to actually maintain that drift means you’ve graduated to a new level of car control entirely.

However, recent technical advancements to a handful of vehicles have taken some skill out of the equation. Smarter traction control systems let drivers dial in their desired slip angle and have at it, with certain cars offering a “drift” function from the factory.

General Motors aims to add a new wrinkle to the drift assistance discussion: active aero.

GM Active Aero Drifting Patent

Photo by: USPTO

As first uncovered by CarBuzz, a new patent filed by GM covers “active aero downforce control for drifting maneuvers.” The basic premise is that the vehicle will examine your steering and throttle inputs and determine “oh, hey, this guy wants to try to drift.”

The car would then alter wing angles to adjust the downforce bias. A Corvette that’s otherwise designed to stick to the racing circuit now becomes a bit looser, with the goal of helping initiate a proper drift. It sounds like an interesting system, if it ever makes it to production.

Right now, the idea is still very much in the early stages, with no signs of it making it onto your next Corvette in the immediate future.

Drifting Made Easier?

There’s a problem with this idea, though. Drifting isn’t really just a traction-loss event. It’s controlled oversteer, and in this situation, you want the various forces acting on the car to remain as stable as possible. Smooth throttle inputs coupled with a combination of quick hands and minimal adjustments are what truly allow you to link lurid slides.

Power remains a helpful tool for that initial breakaway of grip, of course. But you still need grip to maintain your slip angle and link your transition to the next slide. While onlookers assume drifting is an absence of grip, it’s actually the opposite.

At the highest level, professional drifters use tires with tons of grip. That’s why their vehicles produce wild horsepower figures—it’s necessary to initiate that initial drift. From there, however, it’s all about precise control.

Photo by: Chevrolet

For a high-speed drift, suddenly altering the downforce could have adverse results in the hands of an amateur driver. At slower speeds, the downforce is likely not affecting grip enough to matter.

The amateur slide enthusiast would likely get more of a benefit from an adjustable traction control system. Chevrolet’s Porsche Traction Management system allows drivers to customize their Corvette to their liking. Perhaps in the future, this will include aero settings.

For now, though, it’s best to focus on what your feet and hands are doing to control the drift.

Motor1’s Take: Initiating a drift in a car with four figures worth of power output shouldn’t be an issue. Holding that drift, however, is a different skill set. We’re not sure that active aero will make a difference at the amateur level. Perhaps pro drifters could put it to proper use.

Source:

US Patent & Trademark Office via CarBuzz