Vehicle dynamics: The physics of the car explained in a simple way

What does “understeer” mean and why do front engined cars tend to be? What exactly does the consumption of a car depend on and which driving style should be adopted to reduce it? What factors depend on the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere?
We are used to evaluating the performance of a car based on parameters measured with instrumental tests carried out on the road and on the track: consumption in different driving conditions, maximum speed and braking distances, for example. But these numbers don't tell us what geometric and physical factors contributed to that performance.
The correlations between the characteristics of a car and the results obtained on the road can be solved with a good approximation by applying high school physics and allow you to give a physically founded answer to the initial questions.
In the first part of this book the mechanical phenomena concerning the propulsion of land vehicles are presented and discussed: the grip of the tires, the center of gravity and weight distribution, the different resisting forces that hinder the motion such as aerodynamics, rolling and level. Subsequently, the flow of power and torque from the engine to the wheels is analyzed and what factors affect the final performance of the vehicle, such as maximum acceleration and cornering speed, braking distances and consumption based on route and style, are analyzed. driving. Finally, it illustrates the regulatory path set by the European Union to measure and limit the carbon dioxide emissions of vehicles to try to limit the generation of the greenhouse effect.