CAMBER / TOE
Engineering
Camber determines the lean of the top of the tyre towards or away from the centre of the car.
Positive camber is where the top of the tyre leans away from the centre of the car reducing tyre wear. Negative camber is where the top of the tyre leans towards the centre of the car giving the driver more stability through a corner. |
Toe is the front of the tyres angle towards or away from the centre of the car.
Toe-in provides more stability at high speed and during high-load cornering. Toe-out increases the grip within the front tyres due to increasing the slip angle. Altering camber and toe changes the slip angle, which is the angle between the direction that the wheel is pointing and the direction that the tyre is actually travelling. |
Art
When driving the corkscrew at Laguna Seca shown below, a car with negative camber and toe-in is more stable in the approach and makes it easier to reach the apex of the corner.
Although for a driver who is more conservative, or less confident, positive camber and toe-out is a safer choice because it helps keep the car in the middle of the track due to an increased slip angle.