Hot on the heels of his recent video showing us just how to best accelerate in a rear-wheel-drive car, Engineering Explained pro and Motor Authority friend Jason Fenske is back with the physics behind launching a front-wheel-drive vehicle.
You may not immediately think "high performance" with a front-wheel drive car, but that's an outdated notion. Some of the best handling vehicles on the road send power to the front wheels, and the detailed explanation that Fenske gives us in this latest video are also applicable to many less performance-oriented all-wheel-drive cars with a big front-drive bias.
Fenske answers the question of just how to make a front-wheel drive car faster, something no shortage of tuners have long sought to do. As an owner of an Acura Integra—not to mention the master behind the informative Engineering Explained series—Jason is uniquely qualified to help us master the relatively complicated physics behind a car that drags its body behind its front wheels rather than pushing it from the rear. (And, if you're driving a stick, he can help you there as well.)
Front-wheel drive performance cars are here to stay, and with models like the Honda Civic Si and the Mini Cooper delivering a predictable but highly entertaining driving experience, what Jason teaches us is as relevant as ever.