Oversteer and understeer are two different types of car handling. Both can be dangerous, but understanding the difference between them is important in order to know how to react when your car starts going in a direction you don't want it to go in. In this article, our team at La Quinta Chevrolet will cover what oversteer and understeer are, as well as when they're most likely to happen.
Oversteer occurs when the rear wheels of a car lose traction before the front wheels. This can happen when you're driving through a corner in La Quinta, CA, and turns out to be more difficult than expected. Your natural response will be to turn into it, but if your rear wheels have lost grip while your front tires are still turning then you're going to have a spin.
What Is Understeer?Understeer is the opposite of oversteer. It happens when you turn into a corner and your front wheels lose traction before your rear wheels. Many people don't realize it, but understeer and oversteer both happen during turns. You just can't tell that oversteer is happening because you're sitting in the car instead of standing outside of it.