Launch with TractionControl on or off?

T

thinkalert

New Member

Nov 8, 2003

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May 26, 2004

#1

• May 26, 2004

• #1

Better for a 2000 GT auto to launch with traction control on or off?

 

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Rocketman

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Apr 20, 2004

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SoCal

May 26, 2004

#2

• May 26, 2004

• #2

No question - Off

 

bergs

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Jan 19, 2004

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new jersey

May 26, 2004

#3

• May 26, 2004

• #3

Rocketman said:

No question - Off

Click to expand...

what he said, i ALWAYS turn mine off as soon as i start my car

 

mogs01gt

Founding Member

Jul 22, 2002

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Ohio

May 26, 2004

#4

• May 26, 2004

• #4

When racing, always have it off.

 

0

03GTnewbie

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Jul 18, 2003

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East Tenn

May 26, 2004

#5

• May 26, 2004

• #5

 

propellerhead

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Apr 13, 2004

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"but what's with the but shots?"

May 26, 2004

#6

• May 26, 2004

• #6

Why? So you can apply too much power to the wheels and have them spin uselessly? I don't understand.

 

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Ajax_02GT

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Aug 23, 2003

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Austin, TX

May 26, 2004

#7

• May 26, 2004

• #7

propellerhead said:

Why? So you can apply too much power to the wheels and have them spin uselessly? I don't understand.

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If you spin your wheels the traction control is going to cut fuel and/or spark, and I even think it may apply the brakes to the spinning wheel. You'd be much better off learning to control wheel spin on your own without the "help" of the traction control. Go out and try to spin the wheels with TC on and see what happens. It feels like half the power is instantly cut off, I seriously doubt that's the key to a quick launch.

 

mogs01gt

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Jul 22, 2002

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#8

• May 26, 2004

• #8

The traction control is for the snow and rain. Do you race in the rain or snow???

 

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281Ponies

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Nov 14, 2003

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May 26, 2004

#9

• May 26, 2004

• #9

With the Traction Control ON you have basically setup the car to apply just enough of the brakes to stop the tires from spinning. It’s handy on wet roads but not for launching.

Oops, my post came a little late.

-Cale

 

propellerhead

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Apr 13, 2004

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"but what's with the but shots?"

May 26, 2004

#10

• May 26, 2004

• #10

TC will tap the brakes on the spinning wheel to get it to grip the road again. The spinning wheel is also known as a useless waste of engine power. Above speeds of 35 mph, TC cuts back on the throttle just enough to get the wheels to grip again.

I drove on ice a lot when I was living in Norther Michigan. We learned to modulate the throttle to keep the wheels from spinning. If you give it too much gas, you'll spin your wheel and barely move forward. If you apply the gas gradually, your tires won't break traction and you'll go forward. This concept is nothing new. The same thing applies with the brakes. You learned to sense when the wheels have locked up and instinctively release and reapply the brakes to get the wheels to grab the road again. The human response and reaction time is so much slower than the computer controlled system called Traction Control. I wish I had TC back then.

Whether it's snow, rain, ice or pavement at a race track, why would you not want TC to do its job? If it cuts back on my throttle, obviously I've given it too much gas that would cause useless (but cool) wheel spin. TC senses, corrects and rechecks wheel spin so much faster than a human can react.

So many people don't like TC. I even see kits online to have TC off when the car is started. Maybe I'm missing something else...

 

Ryan02Stang

Active Member

Jun 17, 2003

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Arlington Heights, Illinois

May 26, 2004

#11

• May 26, 2004

• #11

If you don't want to listen to us go to the track...launch with it on, then launch with it off...you tell us which run is better.

 

propellerhead

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Apr 13, 2004

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"but what's with the but shots?"

May 26, 2004

#12

• May 26, 2004

• #12

Ryan02Stang said:

If you don't want to listen to us go to the track...launch with it on, then launch with it off...you tell us which run is better.

Click to expand...

Care to explain why? I'm not trying to be a smartass or anything. I don't plan on taking my daily driver Mustang to a track but I'm here to learn. Why is it better to launch with TC off in a race track?

 

mogs01gt

Founding Member

Jul 22, 2002

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May 26, 2004

#13

• May 26, 2004

• #13

Because if you loose traction and you have TC on, you will loose a lot of RPM. Meaning you will be dropping out of your power band a hell of a lot more if you have traction loss.

Is that clear enough?

 

Ryan02Stang

Active Member

Jun 17, 2003

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Arlington Heights, Illinois

May 26, 2004

#14

• May 26, 2004

• #14

propellerhead said:

Care to explain why? I'm not trying to be a smartass or anything. I don't plan on taking my daily driver Mustang to a track but I'm here to learn. Why is it better to launch with TC off in a race track?

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First off...you do a burnout to warm up your tires. Can't do a burnout with TC.

Second...a good hard launch is going to chirp the tires no matter what, unless you are on slicks. I run 315 BFGoodrich drag radials so i have minimal tire spin, but my car still shuts down if i forget to turn the TC off. If you have a manual you use the clutch to control tire spin, not TC. If you are launching with TC and not setting it off...then you are not launching hard enough.

Also...why not take your car to the track??? i would say that 90% of the cars at the track are daily driven cars. I have over 100 passes on mine!

 

WaltA

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Aug 30, 2001

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May 26, 2004

#15

• May 26, 2004

• #15

Ajax_02GT said:

You'd be much better off learning to control wheel spin on your own without the "help" of the traction control.

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Actually, if one masters the art of never spinning the rear wheels, then one could just leave the TC "on" since it would never kick in.

 

john_324

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Jan 14, 2003

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Washington, D.C.

May 26, 2004

#16

• May 26, 2004

• #16

But isn't the TC designed to automatically shut off if the car detects massive throttle application from a standing start? I remember reading that, but haven't tried it myself recently...

 

WaltA

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Aug 30, 2001

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May 26, 2004

#17

• May 26, 2004

• #17

Ryan02Stang said:

Second...a good hard launch is going to chirp the tires no matter what, unless you are on slicks.

Click to expand...

I will have to admit, what I am envisioning is quite different when I think of this topic. I am thinking of the guy who stumps the gas to the floor as the light turns green. He just stays there, not moving an inch, as his rear wheels spin and smoke. Mean while, the little old lady to the right, in her Yugo, slowly rolls out, and gets 2 or three blocks ahead before he starts to move.

 

new22003

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Jun 22, 2003

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Missouri

May 26, 2004

#18

• May 26, 2004

• #18

Off

 

V

VatStang

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Apr 4, 2004

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Santa Clarita, CA

May 26, 2004

#19

• May 26, 2004

• #19

When traction control is activated, usually one bank of cylinders is shut off to decrease torque to the rear wheels. As someone noted above, you loose your powerband. I thought the traction control would be beneficial as well. But I launched one time while making a turn (empty parking lot), and the car started a mini drift, then stopped and rpm went to about 1000. Not good for racing.

 

decoy562

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Oct 9, 2003

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Acworth, GA

May 26, 2004

#20

• May 26, 2004

• #20

If you want to make it down the track in under a minute, leave it off