Traction Control

[l/essexlads]

I have a button for traction control on my 2.0ltr Ford Focus. I have no idea when I need to use it. Can someone please help me?

ta

[antigrav]

Ram raiding.

[Toureman]

The purpose of traction control is to stop the driving wheels spinning when you pull away using too much accelaration.

If you drive your car normaly you do not need traction control, but it is reccomended that you leave it switched on all the time.

If you are accelarating hard on a bend and the road is in any way slippery your front driving wheels will start to loose traction with the road and you could get massive understeer and go straight on instead of going round the bend, having the traction control switched on will help to control this happening by reducing engine power to the wheel or wheels that start to spin and slide.

[tom hopkins]

i have a vauxhall omega also with traction control. it seems that in most if not all cars with this facility that it is normaly on! the switch is used to switch it off. it is best unless required just to leave it on. it is needed more in wet or icy conditions.

[l/essexlads]

Thanks guys!

[Jay70]

I remember seeing an episode of channel 4s Driven where they were testing 3 new medium size hatchbacks in snowy conditions which had traction control fitted and they found that to pull away in the snow you actually had to turn it off to enable the wheels to spin and cut through the snow to gain grip. With it on, the cars traction control keept cutting power to the driving wheels when loss of traction was detected which meant the car never really pulled away. I've never had a car with traction control or ABS and have never lost control of a car thats because I always drive within the limits of my vehicle and according to weather conditions. I also learnt to drive in a rear wheel drive Seirra which soon teaches what can happen if you dont respect a car.

[tom hopkins]

1.you do not have to switch traction control of to get grip. it does what it's name implies.
2.traction control & abs are (safety features) to protect both the driver & the public against unforseable road hazards i.e.black ice / oil on the road which even the safest of drivers could not avoid.

[Jay70]

Well i'm sorry Tom but they actually demonstrated it on the show and the evidence was conclusive. All traction control does is cut power to a spinning wheel which you can do with good clutch control in a manual car. What it doesn't do magically give you grip. Mind you if you are one of these bad drivers who need all these features because you have no proper car control or do not drive to the given road conditions then I understand that you may feel more secure with them.

[chinalake]

There's a big difference between ice and snow.

And you can also get different types of snow. ie. freshly fallen snow or old compacted snow.

So it depends on what type of snow the test in the 'Driven' show was conducted on.

[Jay70]

It was the type of snow which made the wheels spin alot therfore tthe raction control kept shutting of power to the driving wheels.

You'll also notice the Stig on Top Gear switches of the traction control when he does a timed lap round the test track due to loss of trction through it. It's really a safty device for poor drivers.

[tom hopkins]

it is a safety device yes . but not for poor drivers as i said you cannot see black ice or spilt diesel on a road and no matter how good you think you are these things do cause accidents and we all make mistakes no matter how good we say we are.(but if it makes feel better blow your own trumpet)