Stability Control / Traction Control -Stay Off

[Sharkie]

A chipped GTI responds differently to the traction control.

When the ECU detects wheelspin it cuts some power. HOWEVER since your GTI is actually making much more power than std the 1st cut barely has any effect and you still get lots of wheelspin even with ESP on.

The ECU then thinks about it for a second or so and then attemps further cuts. At this point you'd be wise to lift slightly to regain traction beyond which point you should be right to go hard again.

On a rolling run my GTI could break traction midway through 2nd and even though ESP light flickered no intervention was felt.

[Chrisuk-polo]

i always thought so thanks for that info

[noone]

interesting, wasn't expecting to have so many people against something that would limit your speed...

Well as I don't have the chip yet, I cant comment on the benefits of the traction control with the extra power, but that will be different by the end of the day

Didn't sleep to well, to excited.

[FL00DY]

My belief is that you should learn how it handles before turning it off. I only very rarely in the dry turn mine off on a windy country road, I turn it off every time I'm at the track or a skid pan.

If you turn it off permanently and then have it turned off on a rainy and do something stupid that ends up causing lots of $$$ damage you'll be kicking yourself. Seriously, I'd forget this idea, learn how to drive it first and then start turning it off more often to get a feel of how it really handles. If you then want to turn it off more permanently then get a vagcom and see if it can do it. The last thing any of us want is for you post up pictures you not feeling the control and sliding into a gutter somewhere.

[seangti]

My belief is that you should learn how it handles before turning it off. I only very rarely in the dry turn mine off on a windy country road, I turn it off every time I'm at the track or a skid pan.

I second that.

Curious how much wheel spin you're getting (or think you should get) and how you go about inducing it... stock Polo's aren't that powerful to drop 2 solid black lines up the street like fast and furious style.

Plus, your e-diff will lock and you'll only get scrambling anyway or one wheelers depending on speed.

[seangti]

interesting, wasn't expecting to have so many people against something that would limit your speed...

Limit speed??? you're on the street dude.

[JK8]

Ahhh someone else feels the same as me!!
I have been driving without ESP for the past 10 months now, no problems at all!
I asked VWclub in SA if they knew but had the same replies as the ones here...

The MK4 had no ESP and it was fine so why the PGTi? I like in the rain and other times, but Id rather have the option to switch it on when I like and have if off all the time!

[Y2008]

I don't see that the ESP interferes with power unless you are REALLY losing tractions (oily surface, water on smooth road, gravel) So it actually does have some give for aceptable amounts of wheel spin. What really makes the difference with safety in my opinion is when it loses traction into a corner or around a curve. To me it doesn't stop you from doing anything but once somethign goes wrong it takes control which i think is great.

[pogo_55]

Does anyone know exactly how the ESP limits power.

I suspect it applies the brakes to the spinning wheel or wheels. May do other stuff too.

[VW Convert]

Apart from cutting engine power when traction is lost, ESP can sense which wheel or wheels may or may not need to have braking applied at any given time and apply braking to those wheels (at individually different pressures) within milliseconds of an event occuring. Which of us can hold our hand up and say "I can do that and do it better than ESP"?

The reality is that none of us can do that and that situations arise in the blink of an eye that ESP can react to and counterract much better than any driver. Safety devices such as ESP are designed to save lives, switching off ESP is a similar mentality to refusing to wear a seat belt.



Cheers

George