The Z Traction
 

Well I have had my car for 4 months now and had 2 scary moments with it. I was wondering if I am the only person that experiences these issues. Or maybe they arent issues; i dont know.

Both times it had rained and its not like I was driving like a maniac or real aggressive. First time was on 45mph road going around 50-55mph and all the sudden my tires lose traction and i hydroplane two lanes to the right and then I catch traction and all is well. I chalk that up to maybe something in the road.

Next time I am on crosstown (basically toll road) and going 80-85mph tops when it had barely rained. The road was only two lanes wide with walls on both sides and my car decides to freak out. Driving in left lane and my back wheels hydroplane hard to the right, then hard to the left, right, left....till i skid to a stop inches from the wall. I don't even know if I counter steered it while it was happening because it all happened so quickly. All I remember is the steering wheel jerking each time it switched sides... I definitely counted my blessings because 99 times out of 100, I should have totaled it into that wall.

I did not have traction control off nor was I trying to change lanes or anything stupid. My previous car was 10' camaro so it weighed a lot more....so maybe the weight makes a huge difference??

Get better tires for the first one, for the second one, you need better tires and to SLOW DOWN. The teas on the car doesn't have that much weight, you have to be safer

I understand what you are saying but it wasnt like I was even going real fast and there was zero water on the pavement. Cars were driving past me and i was basically on cruise control. It just doesnt make sense that it would jerk like that out of no where.

... You said it was raining, or had rained both times. And you said your car hydroplaned, meaning water was involved...

Yeah when it rains/had rained, I don't go over 55. If it's hard rain, I'll be that guy doing 45 in the far right lane with hazards on.

Same for gavel roads. The paint on my car is still fresh, and I had to drive through newly paved road with lots of gravel to get to the credit union and fitness center. Speed limit is around 35 MPH, and I tried to coast around 40 MPH when this F150 sped past me kicking up gravel at my car and leaving dust trail at well over 50-60 MPH.

Anyhow... new tires. I like my Conti tires.

Like mentioned already, most likely tires.

Let us know what kind of tires you have, how many miles on them, and last time you got an alignment done or checked the tire wear on your car.

(Please don't say OEM tires with 50k miles :ugh2:)

I read a lot about prior about driving these things in the rain and last week got the chance to experience it. Rear wheel drive with no weight and big *** tires=slow down.

OP, what kind of tires do you have? Check tire rack for which category they fall in to:

"Extreme Performance Summer Tires
You want extreme dry street performance and are willing to trade some comfort and hydroplaning resistance to get it.

Not to be driven in near-freezing temperatures, in snow or on ice, or at high speeds in deep standing water, these specially tuned tires combine big-block tread designs with aggressive tread compounds and reinforced internal constructions to emphasize dry road response, traction, handling and high speed capabilities for serious driving enthusiasts."

I have Bridgestone Pole Position and those aren't too bad. My next tires are going to be 'no rain allowed' though. Haha.

stock re050s are terrible in the rain

This. I've got Continental DWs and I can hammer it in the rain with no issues.


OP, you mentioned driving 80-85 when it barely rained. That is when the pavement is the slickest. After it starts raining the oil and crap in the pavement surfaces and makes it slicker than after a hard rain.

I know exactly what you are talking about OP, I had that happen to me to, now everytime it rains I do not go over 55. The stock tires are not good in Rain.

Not sure what this stuff you call rain is or why you'd want to drive in it, but those are pretty wide tires up front & can trap a lot of water. As Andrew said, got to slow it down. They are summer tires you know ;)

Funny how people blame the tires / the weight of the car, ect.... If your tires break loose in the rain/on the gravel, ect You're driving too fast for the conditions, simple as that..
80 -85 mph after a rain on a wet road is too fast, I don't care what you're driving, or how much you paid for your tires. My $ .02

nope, in my area never happened to me. i even tested the Z in a serious down pour to see its limits. no issues.

you do have to have some level of caution to drive a rwd car. :)
check tires. psi, tread wear, etc.

Love my Nitto Invo's in the rain!

^^ This needs repeating.

Cold weather (cold tires) will also affect tire traction dramatically if they are summer performance tires.

^this.

One time I hydroplaned on a semi-highway going around 100 km/h and almost killed a cyclist.

Just change your tires.

stop using cruise control on inundated roads

^^^ Yeah, never use cruise during a downpour. You need to be able to ease the throttle when needed.

Also, for the record, I drive a base/non-sport with stock 18" wheels and tires. I've hauled *** in the rain before and I thought this car drove better in the rain than any of my previous vehicles. Ever. Handled wonderfully and took the puddles with ease. I even had someone pull out in front of me during a heavy rain and the Z swerved right on around with ease. It did exactly what I wanted it to.

Point is, if you have a rwd car, learn to handle it in the rain. But if the computer/VDC starts doing funny things then there is no amount of driving skill that will save you.

You can get more grip by driving faster, more downforce you know.....................just kidding

If you are dumb and stupid, you can always do this in an inch of rain

DWs FTW!

Strange timing on this post.

Had I read it before I left the house I'd have said never happened to me.

Today it is raining and for the first time in months. I have Michelin Pilot Super Sports and are wonderful in the rain and wet. Tomorrow I am at Sears Point for a track day and felt good about my tires.

So with the first rain I hit the straight after another car turned off, and felt my rear end getting light and wanting to move around a bit. I don't think this will be the case tommorrow. The roads will have been washed clean by then (I hope).

I was wait listed for that event, can't go :(

Screw the stock tires, those things are death traps in the rain. I was merging onto a highway with traction control on, normal acceleration in rainy conditions and I just turned the wheel a bit to merge onto the highway and I hit a small puddle at the point of merging and did a 720. Thank God no one else was on the road that night.

These tires safely got me through Wyoming, Colorado, and the mountain range of New Mexico during a snow storm that was bad enough to shut I-70 down. I never once lost traction! They're great in the rain and have MUCH better dry handling/traction than the stock tires. Bad mounting or something else from other people I suspect as I have half the road noise or less than I did with the stock tires. CLICK HERE!

off subject but why did you decide to go from 10 camaro to 370?

Vehicle
Model year 2010
Make Chevrolet
Model Camaro
Style 2SS 2dr Coupe (6.2L 8cyl 6M)
Redline (rpm) 6,600
Horsepower (hp @ rpm) 426 @ 5,900 (REMEMBER @ FLYWHEEL, approx. 374 @ the wheel)
Torque (lb-ft @ rpm) 420 @ 4,600 (REMEMBER @ FLYWHEEL, approx 369 @ the wheel)
Transmission type Six-speed manual
Tire type Summer
Tire size, front P245/45ZR20 103Y
Tire size, rear P275/40ZR20 106Y

Dimensions & Capacities
Curb weight, mfr. claim (lbs.) 3,860
Curb weight, as tested (lbs.) 3,894 (vs ours @ 3245, they're 649 lbs heavier)

Track Test Results
0-45 mph (sec.) 3.4
0-60 mph (sec.) 5.1
0-75 mph (sec.) 6.8
1/4-mile (sec. @ mph) 13.1 @ 109.4
0-60 with 1 foot of rollout (sec.) 4.7
Braking, 30-0 mph (ft.) 27
60-0 mph (ft.) 111

SEARCH, AND THOU SHALL RECEIVE!

For non personal reasons the search provided above makes it obvious. With a driver that actually has something rattling in his/her nugget you shouldn't have a problem keep pace with the 2010/11/12/13 2SS Camaro. You can drive a heavy, boat sized dime a dozen car. Or you can drive a 370Z!

ok, i hear you... i test drove 2010 camaro and decided to get a 370 in the end as well for similar reasons, i liked the extra hp but didn't like the boat feel and interrior sucks.

pavement type, tires, temp, first 30 minutes after even a light rain is bad as all the oil kicks up..ya know. driving 101 stuff...

1. Correct tire pressures.
2. I drive with vdc off. I once broke traction in with it on and got beake checked by the car itself.
3. Get rid of your summer tires and get something a little more all seasonish.

I had the v6 verision, it was a great car and had zero problems with it. but it needed new tires and i wanted import so instead of dropping $1400 i put it towards the Z.

The tires are the stock Potenza RE050A and they only have 16,000 on them. It is rainy part of the year, so I basically drive in rain every day here in florida. Havent had a scare but have drove like a 90yr old lady since the scare. Maybe I will put some new tires on it.

With 16,000 on them, you've probably got about 10k more left. These tires don't last long at all. I always recommend buying a tire depth gauge.

It's weird... Every time I drive Z all it does is donuts! I get in it to go to work and I am doing 360's all the way to work! They didn't tell me at the dealership that the car can't drive in a straight line. I mean I get bad looks all the time but that could be because of my ugly mug. But I think it's because I am driving 80 constantly doing donuts!