A rally race car driver is drifting around a turn This means

A rally race car driver is drifting around a turn. This means that all 4 wheels are spinning like crazy and the car is not necessarily traveling in the direction it’s pointed, but instead sliding forward and to the side. Disregarding the direction that the car is pointed, and only paying attention to the path that the driver’s head follows, can this drifting car make a tighter turn or does it follow a wider turning path? Explain with good physics vocabulary.

Solution

Seems the car is moving out on the turning radius not in a circular path but forward and sideways, and since radius is increasing, the car needs to turn in more. Friction is not working. To maintain the original radius the driver needs to lock the rear drive wheels and allow the car to slide sideways without turning and allow friction to regain control. The car will move out by centripetal force until its radial velocity has decreased sufficiently to allow the wheels to grip the road again. Expereince will tell the driver when this happens. At this time of regain, the rear wheels are released and the car can continue on the curve at a larger radius, hence wider turning path. To go to a smaller turning path means danger of spinning around or toppling over.

The faer the car moves out, the danger of toppling over increases also, since a moment is created by friction force and centripetal force .