So, you’ve gotten yourself the right car to take to the track, and you want to learn how to tackle those corners with more finesse. Congratulations, you’ve arrived at the right place as we are bringing to you a guide on how corner quickly and smoothly, courtesy of Malaysia Speed Festival (MSF) Racing.
Before we start, there are a few basic concepts that must be ingrained into your mind. They are: plan your lines, look where you’re going, brake in a straight line and avoid late braking, gentle throttle control and lastly, go for a late apex before straightening out and flooring the throttle.
Ready? Let’s begin with how you approach a single corner, and we’ll move on to linking corners afterwards. As shown in the slide Point 1, after you’ve done your braking and you’re about to enter the corner, it’s important to identify where the apex is – point where the inside of the corner ends and starts straightening out.
The basic concept of looking where you’re going still applies here, so make sure you’re looking further up ahead (grey circle) to identify where the corner ends. As shown in slide Point 2, you can tell you’re in the first half of the turn because the outside edges of the road still touch each other (grey circle). At this point, you should maintain a steady steering angle and be gentle on the throttle to balance the weight of the car.
In slide Point 3, you’re about to touch the apex, and if you look at where the end of the corner is (grey circle), it’s starting to move towards the centre. This signifies that the corner is starting to open up. This is when you can start to gradually apply more throttle, and straighten up the steering wheel accordingly.
By slide Point 4, you’ve touched the apex, and the edge of road is rapidly moving back towards the centre. You’re looking at the corner exit here, and the steering wheel should be point straight, with your foot planted on the accelerator to power out of the corner.
That wasn’t too hard, was it? Now, let’s talk about linking a few corners together, which is normally the case on most race tracks. The concepts for tackling a single corner still applies here: look as far ahead as you can, aim for a late apex and when the corner opens up, floor the accelerator.
In the next series of slides, we’ll be navigating a right hander, which continues into a left corner. In slide Linking Corners: Point 1, the approach is largely similar to that of a single corner, but the end point is further down, and moving the other way.
Therefore, you’ll need to move your original apex further back to compensate for this, as shown in slide Linking Corners: Point 2. In the middle of the first turn, plan for the second curve by identifying the next series of apexes to touch (Linking Corners: Point 3).
After clearing the first corner, set yourself up for the second one by staying on the right. The road after the second corner is straight, so aim for a late apex to get better acceleration and speed as you exit the corner (Linking Corners: Point 4). At slide Linking Corners: Point 5, turn the steering wheel into the corner, and gently lift off the throttle to help rotate the car a little.
In slide Linking Corners: Point 6, the end point is identified, where the corner starts to open up. As with the single corner methodology, begin straighten up the steering wheel and applying more throttle, aiming for the exit side of the corner (far yellow arrow). From then on, you’ll be flat on the accelerator and on towards the next corner.
There you have it, a comprehensive guide on how to corner quickly and smoothly. Of course, like many things in life, it’s one thing to hear about how the theory works, and another to actually put it into practice.
The best way to do so safely is to head to a race track (never attempt these manoeuvres on public roads), which is exactly what you can do during open track days organised by MSF. For a list of when these track day sessions will be held, head on over to MSF’s official website, here. There, you’ll also be able to register yourself for the track day sessions (next one’s on October 15). Happy learning!
GALLERY: MSF Racing Series
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Vios & myvi owners are now ‘fully equipped’ to tackle every corner that they encounter.. meanwhile other car dun give a dem about it bcos public road/hghways are meant to be drive safe
Play granturismo lah. Easier to understand. Try get all Gold.
It’s more than point A, B, apex as such. One need to understand the braking point, mastering heel and toe while down shift gear. Then understanding what type of corner u r dealing with, super elevation, transition curve as such on those racing tracks. Get a book from Amazon written by late Piero Taruffi, Ex F1 driver from the golden age of F1. Even though its a old skool . But everything is engineering and math in the background of racing.
Add gut instinct to all that. Some things can be taught but others are in born. Best example of an F1 driver who have both excellent skill & instinct was the late Aryton Senna.
just play abit gran turismo u will naturally learn to corner ^^
A top/plan view/bird’s eye view would be easier to understand the explanation. Then you can try it out in a safe environment, like the go kart tracks. Understand oversteer and understeer. Not on highways or public roads.
For those who can afford it, rent out Sepang F1 circuit with your own cars. It should improve your anticipation and driving skills.