Why is it hard difficult for a car to round a curve at high speed?

Question

Why is it hard difficult for a car to round a curve at high speed?

Answer 1

Centrifugal force - The faster you go, the larger the radius of the turn has to be without the loss of energy. Roughly speaking.  

Answer 2

Simple physics, really, all thanks to inertia.

Inertia is the law that states "An object at rest tends to stay at rest. An object in motion tends to stay in motion."

What that means is basically, an object staying still wants to stay still. An object moving, wants to keep moving.

This can be applied to a car, as well.

When you're going very fast in a car on a straightaway, then a turn comes. Inertia makes the car want to keep going straight, so it makes it more difficult for it to turn.

Hope that helps.

Answer 3

Newtons First Law - an object in motion tends to stay in motion unless acted upon by an external force.

by turning your car you are essentially stopping the car in one direction and starting it going in a different direction which requires a force.

the sharper the turn, the quicker you need to accelerate in that direction, the more force required.  The faster you are going, the quicker you will need to accelerate in the turning direction, the more force required.

this is also known as centripital acceleration, and the cause of it is inertia.

Answer 4

A curved motion needs a centripetal force normal to the trajectory.

F = mω²r = mv²/r

This force is not caused by the engine, but by the reaction of the curved road on the tires of the car. If the road is not inclined, that force is entirely friction force.

F is proportional to the square of the velocity. When v is doubled the force needed to keep the car on track will be quadrupled. If the condition of the road and/or tires fails to provide a great enough friction force, the car, having the tendency to keep moving straight by inertia, will slide off the curved road.

The radius of the curve also plays a role in making it difficult to round a curve. The smaller the value of r (that is, the more curved the road), the greater the magnitude of the centripetal friction force must be.

So drive carefully. Slow down when you make an abrupted turn!  :)