Rochester

iTrader: (9)

LOL

Truth is, a "Rockford Turn" is accomplished with the emergency-brake, and vastly more manageable when said brake is engaged by hand rather than foot, like that old 1974 Firebird Esprit.

And in that context, only our 6MT Sedan has a hand-brake. But even that's not true, because what we actually have is a lame-azz parking brake, not a proper emergency brake. I can't tell you how many times I've approached a parked police car and instinctively yanked on the brake handle, only to be foolishly reminded that nothing is going to happen.

G37sGraphite

iTrader: (9)

A "reverse 180", a "Rockford Turn", a "Rockford Spin", or simply a "Rockford" popularized by the 1970s TV show The Rockford Files.
.. Jump to 43 seconds!

Lego_Maniac

iTrader: (3)

Stickier tires--like the Pilot SS or Bridgestone S04--would help a lot.

Seriously? Using the brakes would be far more effective in shedding speed prior to approaching a parked police car. Unless you drive around with your hand on the parking brake.

Do you run a radar detector?

iCrap

iTrader: (8)

AWD G Launches well with TC ON. Mine will sometimes cut power on the 1-2 shift though for some stupid reason.

Ricio1991

Anyone ever encounter loss of power on a turn on certain occasions with the 7 speed auto? Not sure if it's lag in the transmission or the vdc kicking in but my transmission is fully updated from the dealer

jgronline

iTrader: (3)

Yes seriously. It is a common trick to quickly slow down a car without the brake lights going on and without a squat towards the front of the car. Hitting the brakes just lets the cop know you think are you are speeding and it is a good way to get a ticket.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

You're misunderstanding intent. In traffic, nothing says "I know I'm speeding" like taking a nose-dive with brake lights on.

Exactly. It's an old habit, and as it turns out, a pretty pointless one with this car.

About 25 years ago I had a new 240SX... absolutely loved that handbrake.

bigc

iTrader: (5)

i get this sometimes coming out of a turn. it feels like the car is in too high of a gear and takes a while to downshift. if i have it in manual mode, i drop down to second or third, but it still feels like it takes longer to put power to the ground than in my 5AT G35.

Ricio1991

I hate it because let's say I needed to accelerate quickly to avoid a crash and the car doesn't accelerate due to a one two second lag. Your right when I'm in manual mode I usually have to drop two gears to be in the perfect accelerating mode in this car

Lego_Maniac

iTrader: (3)

So what if your car nose dives. Did the officer get a radar lock on the car? That's really all that matters. As long as you aren't the only car on the road, chances are he is hitting a car ahead of you. And if you are the only car on the road, he has a clean read and you're SOL.

The parking brake isn't going to "quickly slow down a car" compared to the actual brakes, unless you are trying to slow down by 2-3 mph, then who cares, practically everyone brakes when they see a cop.

In my youth, I got a 78 in a 55. The officer told me "we both know you were going a lot faster" because I jammed on my breaks. He even let me see the radar display, because I didn't think there was any way he could have gotten a clean read on me. Grabbing the parking brake would have done even less to mitigate the impending ticket.

I understand the intent. I also recognize the pointlessness of the maneuver.

You're speeding and see a police car.

You can A)Move your foot from the accelerator to the brake and quickly slow down using all your braking capacity, or B) move your hand from the steering wheel down to the parking brake to yank up on it and use only a fraction of your cars braking capability to slow down.

If you are going fast enough to warrant a ticket, A is the best option to actually avoid it.

I guess it sounds cool though

JSolo

iTrader: (14)

Maybe there's replacement shoes available with better compound? They don't call it a parking brake for nothing

4DRZ

iTrader: (7)

Ah the infamous Rockford. Those are fun to do in the snow.

My lap times are always much faster w/ VDC off. On the street the VDC seems very intrusive on my G right now because I am on snow tires- it kicks in before I even start to slide. It was not as bad on the stock summer tires, but still annoying. Hopefully, it is a lot better on the street once I get my sticky tires on (if it ever stops snowing here...)

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

And that's why it's pointless, because we don't have an e-brake, we have a p-brake.

It neither sounds cool nor doesn't sound cool... it's just basic psych. In a field of cars suspected of speeding either by radar or by eye, the car reacting in an obvious way is the one most likely to get attention. However, if you're the only car and he nails you with radar, well then you're screwed no matter what you do or don't do.

Now it's undeniable that Jim Rockford was cool, with (stunt driver) skills, an understated Firebird, and loads of self-confidence. You can almost overlook that he lived in a trailer with his father.

Lego_Maniac

iTrader: (3)

They're the same thing, a cable actuated brake that mechanically operates the rear brakes

They are redundant to the hydraulic brakes, hence the "emergency" brake designation.

Rochester

iTrader: (9)

No, Lego, they aren't the same thing at all, and they are not redundant to the hydraulic brakes. The P-Brake is a cable actuated system that expands little brake shoes on the inside of the rear rotors. It does not operate the rear calipers. If you've never seen the brake system up close, take a look at section PB in the FSM.

And there is no emergency brake "designation", because it's called a Parking Brake system. It's not intended for emergency use, only for parking. I mean, it will stop the car's forward motion, but eventually, and very, very slowly.

Rollyeye all you want, man. But it is what it is.