ESP

[VWKev]

With all the snow around and bad weather, has anyone been using their ESP much ? and what do they think of it ?

I'm using it when there is compacted/compressed snow and ice, keeping it off in the slushy stuff though.

[ajmoir36]

I leave it in normal, don't turn it off otherwise, bad things happen.  Never had a problem yet. Touches Wood.

[dubber36]

I carried out an experiment the other day. I tried getting up a hill on an untreaded road once with the ESP on and once with it off using good old fashioned throttle control.

The results? Both times I got to exactly the same place on the hill and had to reverse back down. It just goes to show that once you have run out of grip and momentum, there's nothing you can do about it.

[javsta]

unfortunatley the part of england i reside has not had a single flake of snow

[mike.]

I 've often wondered what ESP does when there is no grip.

The first thing you are taught is never to hit the brakes on ice or snow if the car starts to slide, just try to steer out of it.
If the ESP detects a skid then the first thing it will try to do is start applying the brakes on different wheels to try to recover the slide.
Will this not make matters worse?

Maybe it's better switched off on ice and snow.

[Ess_Three]

I carried out an experiment the other day. I tried getting up a hill on an untreaded road once with the ESP on and once with it off using good old fashioned throttle control.

The results? Both times I got to exactly the same place on the hill and had to reverse back down. It just goes to show that once you have run out of grip and momentum, there's nothing you can do about it.

To be fair, you weren't trying out ESP, but traction control.

ESP is designed to brake diagonally opposing wheels in response to yaw and steering angle, to correct slides.

In your example, the only thing that would have helped you is more physical traction from the tyres.

[dubber36]

Yeah, I guess you're right.

ESP works really well in an emergency situation. Once I had to lift around a bend over a crest to avoid something or other and was antisipating applying an armfull of opposite lock and riding out a slide, but the car straightened itself out all on it's own. That was in the dry. I would expect that in these conditions the speeds are too low (or should be) for the ESP even to be bothered.

[mac7]

I leave it switched on and only try switching it off if I get stuck. Which hasn't happened yet on either of our cars (FWD Passat and 4WD Golf).

I 've often wondered what ESP does when there is no grip.

The ESP works in conjunction with the ABS, so only brakes the wheel up to the point it starts to lock up. So if there's no grip at all, ESP won't do much to save you but it shouldn't make things any worse. If someone is driving fast enough to trigger ESP in the snow, they were probably going to have an accident anyway.

[Ess_Three]

I leave it switched on and only try switching it off if I get stuck. Which hasn't happened yet on either of our cars (FWD Passat and 4WD Golf).

Same here...never turn it off, although I must admit there are a handful of times it's cut the power (or TCS has maybe) coming out of corners hard on full throttle, where it's annoyed me by cutting in...but again, this is likely to be TSC not ESP and you can't turn one off without the other..

The ESP works in conjunction with the ABS, so only brakes the wheel up to the point it starts to lock up. So if there's no grip at all, ESP won't do much to save you but it shouldn't make things any worse. If someone is driving fast enough to trigger ESP in the snow, they were probably going to have an accident anyway.

I've tried to see where the limits are, on empty snow covered areas...and with winter tyres on, you can get it to go sidewards, but ESP soon squares it up. I suppose on summer tyres the grip will be slightly less when sidewards, but i'm sure ESP would do a fine job of recovering.

[mac7]

you can get it to go sidewards, but ESP soon squares it up.

Boring - maybe the fuse needs to come out...