Push the car forward and two things push back. Friction from the road is roughly steady, but air drag grows with the square of the speed, so it bites harder the faster you go. The car keeps accelerating until the driving force exactly equals friction plus drag, and then it holds a steady cruising speed. Set the driving force to settle on the target speed.
MissionChoose a driving force that cruises at 8 m/s.Round 1Streak 0Best 0
To double the cruising speed, the drag must grow by about:
driving force60 N
friction, steady20 N
air drag, grows with v²0 N
current speed0.0 m/s
cruising when driving force = friction + drag, so drag = drive − friction.