If you have been in the motorsport business for any length of time, you will have heard the term the magic number. This refers to the percentage of front lateral load transfer distribution at which the car produces the most grip. Like with many things in this business, it’s a term that tends to get thrown around like a football, with some people swearing by it and others thinking it is totally irrelevant.
However, if you ever have to construct a simulation model, you are in a very strong position to put some numbers to the discussion. This is the focus of this article.
Here, using a fantastic case study of one of the by products of racecar simulation, we will show how we can use a tyre model derived from actual data to delve into what the magic number actually means.
You have the power
One of my perpetual frustrations with this business is how many engineers seem to have no comprehension of the power of what they have in their hands when they use a racecar simulation package. I have said time and time again that lap time, and the data you get from
