Camber-- looking at the front of a car, imagine the top of the wheel tipped inward so the top is closer to the vehicle center than the bottom. This angle is called camber. If the top of the wheel is tipped inward, it is called negative camber. If the top of the wheel is tipped outward it is called positive camber. If the wheel is straight it is called zero camber. Maintaining zero camber provides the largest contact patch, however during cornering, the tires roll decreasing contact patch, and the suspension geometry changes which further reduces the contact patch. To counteract this, a car set up for maximum cornering grip usually has a small amount of negative camber from 3/4 of a degree for street/track setups to as much as 3 degrees for dedicated race cars. Too much camber reduces traction during braking (and accelerating for a FWD car).
Below is a list of automotive and road racing terms. Click on any of the letters to go to the start of that section, click on the term to open a window with the definition.
aerodynamic
anti-roll bar
apex
aspect ratio
backmarker
balaclava
balance, handling
bedding pads
blip, throttle
blocking
blow-off valve
brake bias
braking point
brake-turning
breathing the throttle
bump steer
camber
camber, negative
camber, positive
castor
chicane
chief steward
contact patch, tire
corner apex
corner entry
corner exit
corner station
corner turn-in
corner worker
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tactile feedback
tight (handling)
trail braking
toe
turn-in point
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