Finding The Limit

Contrary to popular belief, as drivers approach the limit and the tires come under ever increasing stress, the fact that the tires are reaching the limit of grip can actually be felt and therefore responded to accordingly. During high speed cornering, so much stress builds up in the tire that the area in contact with the road becomes stretched like a piece of elastic. This has the effect of pulling the remainder of the tire (and the car) sideways. This happens despite the fact that the tire itself is not actually sliding. The angle between the direction in which the tire is travelling and the direction it is pointing is commonly referred to as the "slip angle" in F1 career challenge '99-'02. The effects of the slip angle cannot be felt, but are relayed to you through audio. As the tires screech in the corners, they are beginning to stretch and are either at (or very near to) their limit of grip.