roadholding

Any number of things could have caused the back-end to kick out unexpectedly... older (as in years) tires/too much pressure in the tires/too little pressure in the tires/cold tires/cold roadway/some grass or something on the road/ accidentally giving it more throttle then you thought/suspension settings may be incorrect, ie toe, rebound, stiffness/ etc. or any combination of those factors... hard to say really.

 

As Rob says, check tire pressures/age and alignment, specifically rear toe (should be in, not zero or heaven forbid, OUT) first.

 

I'm with the tire pressure on this one. I just barely kept my M on the road one time because a rear tire was low when I entered a clover leaf. The rear end stepped out and I couldn't get it to hook up again even though I had the slide under control.

 

+1 on tire pressure/tire condition as a starting point. I've seen the rear step out from just a little oil or antifreeze on the road surface, a little morning dew, light rain, dust or dirt, wet leaves. If you were going anti-clockwise around the roundabout, the tranmission tends to transfer more power to the right rear wheel, even with limited slip, enough so that it could break the tire loose and start the rear slipping. Doesn't hurt to have someone check the suspension if the obvious things all seem to be okay (i.e., tire pressure is good, etc.)

 

1) Was it wet or even slightly damp (you know, early morning damp)?
2) Were the tarmac and the tires very cold?
3) How old are the tires, and are they partially worn out?

Temperature/moisture/tires are the three probable causes IMO

 

Hard to say, but going easy on the throttle in a powerful car is always a good policy. I know a guy who completely turned around his Ford GT just starting out from a light! The other thing to remember when applying the juice is to do so smoothly. Even if you are only giving it a quarter, squeeze the pedal rather than jab it. If the car is new to you, an alignment check is always wise.

Dave

 

Try to duplicate in a parking lot or somewhere there's nothing to hit. Good chance you found a slick patch of pavement, maybe even some anti freeze or oil. It's not all created equal. Even on the race track you can walk around and scuff your feet wearing tennis shoes and feel where there is good grip.

 

How far did you have the steering wheel turned?

 

If the tire pressure is even close to being right and the car is behaving normally, you might have hit a bit of coolant or oil dropped fromanother car and you didn't see it.

Road and track had a yelow warning sign, many years ago, that cautioned

"Motor Gently through the grease mud.. For there lurks the skid deamon".

best of luck,
chris