Toe

Toe is the angle at which a race car's wheels point inward or outward when viewed from above, relative to the car's centerline, and it's one of the most important suspension settings that affects how the car handles, steers, and wears its tires.

Think of toe like your feet when you're standing. If your toes point toward each other, that's similar to "toe-in." If your toes point away from each other, that's "toe-out." Race cars use these same concepts to fine-tune how they behave on track.

When a car has toe-in, also called positive toe, the front edges of the wheels point toward the center of the car. This setup helps the car track straight and feel stable, especially at high speeds. It's like having your feet slightly pigeon-toed, which creates a more planted feeling.

Toe-out, or negative toe, means the front edges of the wheels point away from the car's center. This makes the car turn into corners more quickly and feel more responsive to steering inputs. However, it can make the car feel nervous or twitchy when driving in a straight line.

The toe angle dramatically affects tire wear. When toe settings are incorrect, tires scrub sideways as they roll forward, creating friction and heat. Too much toe-in wears down the inside edges of the tires, while excessive toe-out wears the outside edges. In racing, where tire life is critical, proper toe settings can mean the difference between finishing strong or pitting early.

Different types of race cars use different toe settings based on their design. Front-wheel drive cars often run toe-out to help them turn better and reduce understeer, which is when the car wants to go straight instead of turning. Rear-wheel drive cars typically use toe-in for better stability when accelerating hard out of corners.

Formula 1 teams spend countless hours perfecting toe settings for each track. They usually run a small amount of toe-out at the front for sharp turn-in response and a bit of toe-in at the rear for stability under the massive acceleration these cars produce. Even tiny changes, measured in fractions of a degree, can significantly impact lap times.

Mechanics adjust toe by changing the length of the tie rods, which are the metal bars connecting the steering system to the wheels. Modern race teams use laser alignment systems and digital measuring tools to get precise settings, often adjusting toe multiple times during a race weekend as track conditions change or drivers provide feedback about handling.

Understanding toe helps explain why race cars behave differently than street cars. While your road car might have minimal toe settings for comfort and tire longevity, race cars use more aggressive angles to extract maximum performance, even if it means sacrificing some tire life for better lap times.