How does traction control work?
 

Just wondering how the system monitors wheel spin. I am suspecting that it takes the wheel speed sensors from the front and compares them to the wheel speed sensors on the back. My right front speed sensor is bad and my ABS light is on. My trac off light is also on and am hoping that fixing the speed sensor will correct the traction control also.

Well if what you said is how it works and that's how I thought so basically if that's right you just answered your own question. :D

it moniters how fast the wheels in the front are spining compared to the back and cuts power to the engine some how...so ur pretty much on the dot....but ur abs has nothing to do w/ ur traction control

If in fact the speed sensors are in play when figuring wheel spin, then ABS and traction control are interlinked since ABS absolutely uses the wheel speed sensors.

The reason I am inquiring is because my dealer seems to think it's my Xcaliber that is turning off my traction control, but that just isn't the case since I returned it back to stock and the trac off light is still lit. Also because I know that the ABS light and the trac off light came on at the exact same time. I believe one is freaking out the other.

if you have a bad wheel speed sensor, your traction control and ABS will both be offline until it senses the repair has been made. I removed my two rear sensors so that I wouldn't have traction control or ABS. I like the au natural control systems without a computer futzing with it.

ABS can't work unless it has an accurate view of all 4 wheel speeds. 3 just isn't enough. Traction control works with the same sensors so incomplete data is just as bad as none for either system.

woah, hardcore... I always turn trac control off, but I wouldnt turn off ABS if I could... I think removing your ABS could land you in a bit of troubl should you get in an accident... afterall your insurance company thinks you have ABS and our insurance is prolly 5 dollars cheaper because of it...

when you learn to drive well enough not to need them, they become a serious safety hazard to still have. I can drive well enough that I don't need the ECU to keep me out of trouble. TC is never useful, ABS is only useful if you can't modulate your own braking. ABS lets you floor the brake pedal and not think about how you're trying to stop. I can actively think and plan how and where I'll stop even in the rain. I have big enough tires, big enough brakes and good enough suspension to make hard stops shorter than most any car in front of me.

Like they said it reads the wheel speed and uses the ABS to apply the rear brakes and stop wheel spin.

My local service dept. is full of performance idiots. They assured me that my Xcaliber II is making my traction control go off. I'm probably 1 of 3 guys that actually have a tune on their car up here. I knew I was right on how it worked. I should moonlight as a ford tech, I can't do any worse than they are doing.

I hate the traction control on my car.....one time I pulled out of a parking lot where the visibility wasn't very good.....anway, there was a car coming and I had to punch it....the traction control kicked on and shut down the power and I almost got freaking hit! It's dangerous if you ask me.

that's part of the reason I disabled it. To have a machine decide when I'm allowed to break traction, especially in emergency situations just seemed silly to me. JJT, you can disable it by removing any 1 of your ABS sensors, but that will disable ABS too. I've been without both for over a year and I've gotten the feel of modulating the brakes so ABS isn't really necessary. The removal takes about 5 minutes and 1 socket.

Traction control saved me losing control, running over a curb, and hitting oncoming traffic.







Dont ask.. :nono:

Your dealer sounds like all the rest of em....If the car is not BONE STOCK they assume your mods have something to do with it. Next thing you know theylle be telling you your cold air intake is turning your ABS light on. Id stay far far away and find people who arent so narrow minded and actually know what theyre talking about....

I wish I could stay far far away. I live in Fairbanks, Alaska. The nearest ford dealer is 340 miles away. I do what I have to do to get by, but it sucks.

just be an ass...

what the heck were you doing??@?@!!1?/

At least you have nice cold air to combust!
Thats the real cold air intake, move to alaska.