Center of Gravity Calculation Documentation

Owned by Malcolm Park (Deactivated)
Mar 01, 2022
2 min read

Center of Gravity Calculation Documentation

Where is optimal placement for CG?

  • For formula 1 cars, CG is as close to ground as possible and between the wheels

  • Rear wheel drive is best for performance in racing

  • Lower center of gravity reduces weight transfer during braking and cornering

  • Optimal placement: close to the ground, between the wheels

Where can we put objects in car to optimize CG

  • Engine (https://www.leithcars.com/blogs/1421/lifestyle/front-vs-mid-vs-rear-engines/)

    • Front-engines are located on or in front of front axle

      • Most cars are Front wheel drive, so it puts more traction on the wheels controlling the car

        • Prone to understeering due to loss of traction while accelerating

          • Makes it bad for racing (lol)

      • In the case of rear wheel drive, weight is more evenly distributed

        • Less prone to oversteer compared to rear engine/RWD

        • Less prone to understeer of front engine/RWD

        • Worse than low center of gravity mid-engine

    • Rear-engines are located behind the rear axle

      • Higher learning curve (?)

      • Really good for race cars

        • Quick acceleration from back wheels

        • Prone to oversteer, but with right tuning can make really good racing cars

    • Mid-engine sits in front of rear axle and behind driver

      • Offers better handling by centralizing center of gravity

        • Front engine is front heavy, back engine is back heavy

      • Lack of cabin space

        • I don’t see this being as issue as there’s only 1 person in MSXV

      • Will be harder to overcome a loss of control due to low center of graviy

    • Size

      • Motor:

        • 262mm radius 73mm length

      • Controller:

        • 203 x 213 x 93.5mm

    • Weight

      • Motor:

        • 11kg

      • Controller:

        • 3.5kg

  • Battery box

    • Size

      • 90 x 24 x10cm

    • Weight

      • 19.4 kg

My personal thoughts

  • Keep everything generally low

  • Put the battery box along the bottom of the car

    • I assume this might be the heaviest component, so keeping it low is a plus

    • I can understand if it needs to be close to the solar array

    • Tesla does this

  • Place the motor between the driver seat and the back axle

    • This will help centralize center of gravity

    • Rear wheel drive is better for racing as well

    • Might also consider FWD for the maneuverability for the figure 8 challenge