What doe ESP actually do?

[Dyscontinued]

Ok, I know it's an electronic safety aid to provide greater traction if things go a bit wrong, right?

How does it achieve that? Through braking the odd wheel?

I've been searching around for ages adn can't find any info. On here it's all 'the ESP light is on' and on old reviews it esplains the EBA and TCS (which are common and obvious so not worthy of explanation) but not the ESP.

Any help appreciated, ta.

 

[Jonezyfr]

its brakes certain wheels and cuts power i seem to find, at least thats what it feels like its doing

 

[adrianmorris]

Try this link

http://www.bosch-esperience.co.uk/uk/language1/index.html

Adrian.

 

[Dyscontinued]

Cool, interesting link that explains it thanks.

Guessing it's made and supplied by Bosch then.

 

[TubbyTwo]

spoils my fun mid corner

much more responsive with it turned off

 

[s4oopie]

spoils my fun mid corner

much more responsive with it turned off

i also find it cuts the power far too much when giving some but its a god send in the wet as far as im aware it cuts the boost out and stops wheels spinning ???

 

[DannyC87]

i also find it cuts the power far too much when giving some but its a god send in the wet as far as im aware it cuts the boost out and stops wheels spinning ???

That is traction control. ESP is Electronic Stability Control, not fitted to all Leons.

 

[6th.replicant]

spoils my fun mid corner

much more responsive with it turned off

You can turn off your LCR's ESP?

I thought that only the traction control could be de-activated?

 

[andycupra]

traction control:
detects loss of traction on driven wheels and cuts power delivered to cut wheel spin.

ESP : (electronic stability programme)
this system has a number of sensors measuring among other things rate of acceleration or deceleration, sideways forces and steering angle.
It then compares what the driver is requesting via steering angle and what you are doing with the peddles against what the sensors are saying.. is the car doing what its being requested to do?
is it understeering? oversteering etc? spinning? is the car decellerating on one side faster than the other and initiating a spin?

It will then calculate which wheel(s) need to have braking force applied or if power needs to be adjusted to correct the cars attitude or behaviour. It can complete a number of actions before you realise whats going on. (monitored 25 times a second)

It is a very very good system and IMO not something you want to turn off out of a routine as its a potential life saver. Yes many people moan about it on here, its slowed you down etc etc and while i can understand people trying to turn it off when having a 'drive'wouldnt you want all the help you can get when that tractor pulls out, that mud is on the road when that car cuts you up...?

 

[8bit]

It is a very very good system and IMO not something you want to turn off out of a routine as its a potential life saver. Yes many people moan about it on here, its slowed you down etc etc and while i can understand people trying to turn it off when having a 'drive'wouldnt you want all the help you can get when that tractor pulls out, that mud is on the road when that car cuts you up...?

+1. Keep it on for the road, turn it off when (and only when) on a proper track I reckon.

If you're going round corners on public roads fast enough that the ESP is "spoiling your fun" you're just pushing your luck, or someone else's.

 

[DannyC87]

+1. Keep it on for the road, turn it off when (and only when) on a proper track I reckon.

If you're going round corners on public roads fast enough that the ESP is "spoiling your fun" you're just pushing your luck, or someone else's.

Debatable. Small undulations on a fast dual carriageway section near me cause my ESP to go spaz; completely unnecessary and dangerous IMO in this situation.
The ESP system can "over-react" where it is not needed; but then again, it is based on a 10-year old design.
The system can be very useful, but can also create issues in certain circumstances. Even when turned "off" the system is not completely off; it is still active but takes alot more to trigger it.

 

[Muttley]

Andy: in the situations you describe, ESP won't help, what you need is ABS.

ESP is enhanced traction control, to protect the more insensitive leadfooted enthusiasts (i.e. most of us) from the consequences of too much power applied in a turn. It attempts to work out where you want the car to go (from the amount you've turned the steering wheel) agianst where it's actually going (by measuring foreward and sideways acceleration, velocity and wheelspin), and applying the brakes to one or more wheels via the ABS system to get it pointing in the right direction.

A good driver can do better than ESP, but most people would turn it off to let them play flashy but slow wheelspinning games.

The fastest way around a tarmac corner is on the edge of adhesion. If ESP (or TCS) is cutting in, you are trying to put down too much power, and would lose grip and start to drift if the ESP hadn't cut in.

More importantly, you'd be out of control, with no way of changing speed or direction if something unexpected should come up: a situation which on the racetrack will at worst lose you track position: on the road (traffic, pedestrians, badgers etc) it will, if you're lucky, just kill you. If you're unlucky it will kill someone else as well.

 

[traumapat]

Mines stays on generally speaking. It does get turned off but not as a matter of course.
wouldnt want to be without it on a greasy/wet road.

 

[andycupra]

A good driver can do better than ESP, but most people would turn it off to let them play flashy but slow wheelspinning games.

oh, really...

Tiff Needell wont be happy with you saying this as hes clearly clueless given some of the tests he had done with ESP.

 

[Dyscontinued]

I only really put much stock in what Tiff says with RWD. FWD I'll listen to Plato )

 

[TubbyTwo]

I never needed traction control in my previous turbo cars, the last had more power and was rear wheel drive and mid engine.

But thats the problem between "old" fast and "new" fast. Im not a fan of traction control, esp, ayc or whatever as i prefer to drive without the car telling me what to do.

Seen too many people crash as a result of going way past the limits of their talent because when the computer has reached its limit they are already going way too fast.

If it was a proper system like racelogic then fair enough but oem systems from experience just cut a big lump and leave you stranded. not what i call safe.

 

[karlw]

I have tried mine on and off flat out in a straight line and found they was no difference.
It was totally try and nice but of road. I have Yokohama Pradas all round too.
When the esp is on and corners in i find it trys to cut the power before the understeer kicks in.
If you let off obviously it will all cut out and then you would probably get lift off oversteer.
my next toy for the car would be a LSD i rekon.

 

[karlw]

I never needed traction control in my previous turbo cars, the last had more power and was rear wheel drive and mid engine.

But thats the problem between "old" fast and "new" fast. Im not a fan of traction control, esp, ayc or whatever as i prefer to drive without the car telling me what to do.

Seen too many people crash as a result of going way past the limits of their talent because when the computer has reached its limit they are already going way too fast.

If it was a proper system like racelogic then fair enough but oem systems from experience just cut a big lump and leave you stranded. not what i call safe.

Si, are you telling me that you werent a fan of my Evo or S14A (with Race logic Traction control) when i took you out in them. HUH!!

 

[Fl@pper]

i'd remove the lot given a choice and get back to the days where you 'learnt' how to drive with drum braked mk2 escorts, even bin the power steering and over servo'd brakes then manufacturers might spend more time on designing a better chassis to start with

too many aids and comforts in modern cars which in a safety way is great i agree but people will always think they can do better than an ESP or ABS system no matter what gadgets they add to them

even the most basic 30mph ABS test round a cone is nigh on impossible to control with the system off

way too easy to get 'IN' to trouble nowadays with the soft secure super duper cars we have nowadays

 

[Muttley]

To be brutally honest: I'd probably turn ESP off if I could leave the TCS function on. I have done nearly all my motoring without advanced driver aids, and prefer to feel the way the car's behaving. I'd find ESP too intrusive, I think, and it would take me a long time to get used to the car occasionally trying to correct itself in the middle of a bend. My Toledo only has TCS.

TCS is a useful system, dealing with unexpected changes in the road surface (oil patches, gravel and potholes in recent days) better than I could.

ABS is a lifesaver, and I'd never want to turn it off, and am happy that it can't be turned off in nearly all modern cars.

However, if I had a choice, I would turn off power steering, or go for a car without it fitted. In previous cars (Imps, Minis, Cortinas and the Mk.1 Golf) I got valuable feedback about the road surface and the car's behaviour through the steering wheel. Now that's gone, and I'm left with the seat-of-the-pants feel for where the car is going vs. where I'm pointing it.