On the highway or the race track, the critical factor in vehicle behavior is load transfer. Here’s a clear and entertaining video lesson on the basic physics of the matter.

As we repeatedly say here at Mac’s Motor City Garage, we love clear and simple tech stories. Automotive technology doesn’t have to be rocket surgery; the principles can be understood and enjoyed by anyone. (And as we also often say, if you can’t explain it in words even your boss can understand, maybe you don’t understand it yourself.) So we’re pleased to share this excellent little video by the National Science Foundation on the principles of load transfer.

Load transfer is the key dynamic element in your car’s behavior on the road or the race track. When you accelerate and the nose of the car rises up and the rear squats, that’s load transfer. When the nose dives under braking, load transfer. When the car leans over to the outside in a corner, ditto. When the front wheels of the car begin to slide in a corner before the rear (aka understeer) or the rear wheels before the front (oversteer) that’s due to load transfer as well.

Managing load transfer effectively is critical to vehicle handling, it nearly goes without saying. Optimizing the grip among all four or more tires—where the rubber truly meets the road—is essential. This video, which packs a tremendous amount of insight into five entertaining minutes, happens to use NASCAR as the teaching vehicle, but the principles are exactly the same for any form of racing, or most any sort of wheeled road vehicle. And we have some of the sharpest minds in the sport, including Bob Osborne, Steve Letarte, Nick Hughes, and Kenny Francis, to explain the essentials. This is not just informative, it’s fun. Watch this.