Postby Hasbeen » 27 Jun 2013 23:05
All the weight in the hugely heavy steel of the existing bumpers, designed by the US design rules, rather than Triumph, adds enormously to the inertias of the car. This is the case, whether continuing in a straight line, resisting turn in, or rotationally adding to the likelihood of loss of adhesion & spinning when turning.
Those design rules designed by a politician were never introduced, stopped by the US car makers lobby, but for Triumph, Honda, Fiat & a couple of others it was all too late. Cars were designed & in production. Triumph of course was too short of cash to change the design of both ends of the car.
Every designer tries to reduce the weight where possible, & the further it is from the center of gravity the worse it becomes, for the handling of the car.
Fortunately for most of us the package is quite good enough for us with our use of the car. Few want to achieve the ultimate handling the car could be capable of. 30 years ago however, I would have eliminated all that weight at the ends of any car I owned, & at the same time, improved the air supply to the cooling system.
Every design is a compromise, & most intelligent & experienced sporting car owners, with a bit of reading, can make changes to their cars, to make them better suit their requirements. That is why so many 7s are now sporting V8s & bigger brakes. Why some should think the body work is an act of god, I really can't imagine.
Hasbeen
