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The Explorer can drift! In the right conditions.

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1995E

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2020 Ford Interceptor


I used mud mode which allowed the tires to spin and the power to go 50/50 front and rear. The Explorer is so easy to control.
 



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We were doing it for quite some time at the parking lot. A few people actually saw us doing some drifts and parked their cars and just walked away to go sledding down a nearby hill while we were doing it and gave us some thumbs up. My neighborhood is pretty relaxed about these things. We were there for quite some time and saw a PI Utility drive by.

As for drifting a Moms SUV, what irresponsible young adult wouldn't want to drift their mom's SUV?
 












Looks like fun but actually he's got a point...near empty parking lot or not. There are plenty of other things to run "mom's car" into...LOL. I chalked it up to youthful ignorance though. Sometimes I wish I had it back more often but all too many times my adult side kicks in. :banghead:
 












The shocking thing about this behaviour is…. way too many people don't do it :) ("it" meaning emergency evasive manoeuvres). I fail to see the wisdom in waiting until you're spinning around after being struck by another vehicle to learn how to regain control.

By extension, and to dispense with the euphemisms, anyone who has NOT practised such manoeuvres is probably lacking in the driving skills department. Of course, there is no one HERE like that! :roll: :D

Part of the problem is lack of availability of open places, like parking lots, to safely practise. (Blast it, people keep PARKING in parking lots).:mad:

Having said that, the electronic control systems available on modern cars go a long way to compensating for the skill shortcomings of the driver. Some are so good and seamless that it is possible to not be aware that they have taken over control. They can effectively "trick" you into thinking you're a good bit better than you really are. Especially the systems that don't allow you to turn them off to find out how good (or bad :D) you are.
 


















2000StreetRod said:
If I caught you doing that near my vehicle we'd have a heated "discussion".
Click to expand...

LOL! Yeah, that and you'll have to practise a few doughnuts of your own so you could catch up to him! ;)
 






2TimingTom said:
I've also never hit anything.
Click to expand...

Precisely!

It's the people that don't practise things such as this that are hitting things.

It appears that not hitting things is an "advanced driving technique", sad to say. :rant:
 






SCCA membership

I agree that driving practice is a good thing under the correct conditions. When I had my Alfa Romeo 2600 Spider I was an SCCA member. We closed off parking lots on Sundays, set up an autocross course with pylons, safety checked the signed up vehicles and then had a lot of fun. I admit it was usually on dry pavement. The nearby BMW plant has a track that allows new BMW owners to practice their driving skills. I don't remember them offering driving on ice but they do have skid testing segments. When I was an aircrew member in North Dakota one of my periodic additional duties was supervisor of flying (SOF). In the winter I'd get clearance to drive on the runway, accelerate up to specified speeds and then lock the brakes. The SOF vehicle was fitted with a decelerometer and I'd report the readings to the control tower. It was exciting the first few times but quickly became just another duty.
 






2000StreetRod said:
I agree that driving practice is a good thing under the correct conditions. When I had my Alfa Romeo 2600 Spider I was an SCCA member. We closed off parking lots on Sundays, set up an autocross course with pylons, safety checked the signed up vehicles and then had a lot of fun. I admit it was usually on dry pavement. The nearby BMW plant has a track that allows new BMW owners to practice their driving skills. I don't remember them offering driving on ice but they do have skid testing segments. When I was an aircrew member in North Dakota one of my periodic additional duties was supervisor of flying (SOF). In the winter I'd get clearance to drive on the runway, accelerate up to specified speeds and then lock the brakes. The SOF vehicle was fitted with a decelerometer and I'd report the readings to the control tower. It was exciting the first few times but quickly became just another duty.
Click to expand...

Interesting, 2000SR. BMW had (maybe still have, but I haven't seen or heard about it in a while now) a test that they used to demonstrate the over-all well-roundedness of some of their cars. They would full-throttle to some speed around highway speed, say 100kph, then lock-up (if possible) and stop, then full-throttle again, then full stop. 5 times in a row. A very valid measurement of a cars overall performance, I think. Many (most) brakes cannot handle this without fade. The "best" car would do it 5 times in the shortest recorded time.

Another interesting thing, at one time a Ford, (Lincoln LS V8 Sport) outperformed them at that game.

I have heard that some large, high-traffic airports routinely spend a lot of money to remove the black buildup of tire rubber that happens where the planes touch down, because it makes it too slippery in that area.

So whose car got used for the mu-readings of the runway surface? I would think that you'd end up with flat spots on the tires from that, (without ABS) so not a personal car:) .
 






SOF vehicle

As I recall the SOF vehicle was a 4 wheel drive crew cab (4 door pickup). I usually followed the snow plows on the runway. At -30 deg F there wasn't much traction on the ice so the tires didn't wear very fast. It was too cold for salt to be effective and sand couldn't be used since it would get sucked into the engines and damage them. On higher headquarters missions with a wind chill of -65 deg F planes would some times taxi by me in the blowing snow and I wouldn't even hear or see them. Then they'd call me on the radio when they got to the pre-takeoff position for their last chance inspection.
 






My 8 year old loves when I drift on the snow...

Put it on Mud mode to cut the traction control, shift it in manual and the fun begins...

I think also the mud modes tends to send more power to rear wheel which helps.

Good fun when in controlled environment.
 






Yep. I was a full blown SCCA member for about 4 years. Regional Solo chair, BoD..... I did it all. I even ran the timing equipment.

Also ran at the "local" road course. I liked that a lot more than spending an entire day in a hot parking lot for 4 minutes of seat time.
 






In Pittsburgh they have a book for folks that drive like that!

How%20to%20Drive_zpsslwnf4gz.jpg
 









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Haha! Good one Halwg.

Time for my old statistic. The study is decades old, but matches my own observations on an ongoing basis…

It found that one out of every three people in the population do not posses the necessary aptitude, skills and hand-eye coordination to safely drive a motor vehicle.

I personally know a number of people who recognize that in themselves and refrain from driving, and I admire them for that. My mother is one, she is well-educated and intelligent (fluent in 7 languages), but the intricacies of driving and parking are just not in the realm of her skill sets.

But lots of those one third just go out and drive anyway, with a total disregard for the welfare of themselves and others. Which is why emergency practice, like is the topic of this thread, is so important. Those people rely heavily on "us" (haha), the other two thirds, for their well being.

Sounds arrogant to say, but isn't. I suppose two thirds of the population agrees with me, LOL!

Government and insurance industry sponsored "advanced" driver training is one solution that would reduce the problem. Unfortunately most courses are prohibitively expensive, so remain in the domain of the most wealthy, or most enthusiastic.:mad:
 






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