Bob Adkins

On Mon, 09 Apr 2007 22:09:48 GMT, Matt Whiting <whiting@epix.net>
wrote:

>Darby OGill wrote:
>> If you had a childish moment, and you wanted to dust off someone at the
>> lights, you might turn esc off . wheel spin isn't good I suppose, but I bet
>> funny cars don't have esc.
>
>Actually, wheel spin is a bad deal for fast acceleration. Funny cars
>don't have ESC last I knew, but they have something that performs a
>similar function - a slipper clutch.

Back in the old days, they used wheel spin as a substitute for the
clutch and transmission. Since no clutch could transfer 1500+ hp
without grenading, they let the tires spin to prevent wheelies and
driveline breakage. As the tires spun and grew, they also got the
benefit of a slightly higher final drive ratio.

It appears that ESC is preventing a lot of rollovers. I think ESC is a
good thing, because none of us are immune to the actions of idiots.
-

Bob

Matt Whiting

Bob Adkins wrote:
> On Mon, 09 Apr 2007 22:09:48 GMT, Matt Whiting <whiting@epix.net>
> wrote:
>
>> Darby OGill wrote:
>>> If you had a childish moment, and you wanted to dust off someone at the
>>> lights, you might turn esc off . wheel spin isn't good I suppose, but I bet
>>> funny cars don't have esc.
>> Actually, wheel spin is a bad deal for fast acceleration. Funny cars
>> don't have ESC last I knew, but they have something that performs a
>> similar function - a slipper clutch.
>
> Back in the old days, they used wheel spin as a substitute for the
> clutch and transmission. Since no clutch could transfer 1500+ hp
> without grenading, they let the tires spin to prevent wheelies and
> driveline breakage. As the tires spun and grew, they also got the
> benefit of a slightly higher final drive ratio.

Yes, but it hurt their ETs pretty severely. The point remains that
wheel spin is not the way to maximize traction.

Matt

James

On Apr 8, 8:15 pm, "stevek" <steve.kra...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Question: I noticed that Elecronic Stability Control (ESC) and All
> Wheel Drive can be manually turned off or on. Why would one want to
> turn ESC off?

Some people think that leaving ESC on all the time causes lower gas
mileage by causing slight activation of the brakes when making turns.
Probably an urban legend.

Edwin Pawlowski

"James" <wimpyVO2max@gmail.com> wrote in message
> Some people think that leaving ESC on all the time causes lower gas
> mileage by causing slight activation of the brakes when making turns.
> Probably an urban legend.

When the ESC activates, a light comes on in the instrument cluster. It does
not activate unless needed so if it comes on every time you make a turn,
you'd better change driving habits. How do these things get started?

Matt Whiting

James wrote:
> On Apr 8, 8:15 pm, "stevek" <steve.kra...@gmail.com> wrote:
>> Question: I noticed that Elecronic Stability Control (ESC) and All
>> Wheel Drive can be manually turned off or on. Why would one want to
>> turn ESC off?
>
> Some people think that leaving ESC on all the time causes lower gas
> mileage by causing slight activation of the brakes when making turns.
> Probably an urban legend.
>
>

Remove "probably" and you are completely correct! :-)

Matt

Matt Whiting

Edwin Pawlowski wrote:
> "James" <wimpyVO2max@gmail.com> wrote in message
>> Some people think that leaving ESC on all the time causes lower gas
>> mileage by causing slight activation of the brakes when making turns.
>> Probably an urban legend.
>
> When the ESC activates, a light comes on in the instrument cluster. It does
> not activate unless needed so if it comes on every time you make a turn,
> you'd better change driving habits. How do these things get started?
>
>

General ignorance of things technical.

Matt