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What does Toyota say about their stupid traction control?

Discussion in 'Gen 3 Prius Main Forum' started by cossie1600, Jan 20, 2011.

  1. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    You have low expectations then. It's not that you want to spin your tires off, you want enough to at least keep the momentum or not have the engine cutout on you.
     
  2. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    If the power is severely cut off, you are asking way too much thrust than the rubber can provide. Ease off your right foot and don't worry about coming to a complete stop. It only come to that if you panic. So, take it easy and go up with the speed the traction the road allows.
     
  3. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Once you lose momentum it's all downhill backwards
     
  4. N8JC

    N8JC New Member

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    First off, the fact that your only criticism of the Toyota Prius traction control is that it is "stupid" leaves you with little credibility to begin with. But getting back to your comment. My expectations are not low, they are appropriate given what the car is engineered for (i.e. fuel economy). I would argue that if anyone has misplaced expectations it is you.
     
  5. usbseawolf2000

    usbseawolf2000 HSD PhD

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    You won't. TC can modulate like the video I posted before. You just need to apply and stay in a reasonable power range.
     
  6. Skoorbmax

    Skoorbmax Senior Member

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    That SEEMS to slow down quite a bit, per your original description, but cellphone videos at night are hard to infer much from :)

    What tires are you using, though?
     
  7. N8JC

    N8JC New Member

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    I get it now. You made a potentially costly mistake and now you are looking for someone to blame.

    Next time don't attempt something your Prius is not designed to do. As a pilot I don't attempt barrel rolls in my Cirrus SR22...
     
  8. The Electric Me

    The Electric Me Go Speed Go!

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    Hmm...I don't take EVERYTHING seriously. But I've participated and followed Prius Chat for a relatively long time. I think that makes my opinions valid. If you disagree? Ignore them.

    I have driven Prius...and I would say with my depth of research and exploration that I'm at least as well versed in Prius knowledge as your typical Toyota salesman. (Yeah I know that isn't saying much).

    Until moderators, Danny, Tony, tell me otherwise, I will participate with the belief that Prius Chat isn't a site exclusively for owners. That it allows for outside opinion...which I think actually may have added value due to coming from the perspective of someone not "invested" into ownership.

    I've explained in other posts, why I am currently not driving a Prius. Maybe I can't really explain why I enjoy Prius Chat, I find it to be a very dynamic...and usually diverse forum with vistors and regulars that "usually" embrace open conversation and opinion. I've have discussed specific Prius issues...with the admitted handicap of not being a current owner, and I have also discussed numerous Auto Industry related topics that I don't think ownership has any influence on what so ever....

    I read a post the other day asking whether I bought my Banana's Organic....hmm..wonder if I need to be a Prius Owner to answer that?

    Anyway, always nice to hear the echo's of goose stepping boots, along with a dehumanizing statement and the proclamation that I should go elsewhere because "I am different".

    Sorry, unless informed or asked by Prius Chat management, I'm not going anywhere.
     
  9. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Sorry about the quality, I didn't have my camera with me. It was also tough to drive holding a camera and steer at the same time. That was a good 12 degree climb, that's why the car slow down. I slowed down almost 10mph before I even reached the steepest part of the hill. If I go too fast, I can't make the corner. If I go too slow, the traction control engages and the car slows to a crawl (most likely stuck after).

    Hankook I-Pike snow tires, brand new. I do have to admit, they are average snow tires, they definitely weren't as good as my Blizzaks
     
  10. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    If you actually read the whole thing, I was complaining about how it can't be turned off. It has nothing to do with the traction control being there, car handling bad, hybrid or anything. I just want to turn it off so I can climb certain hills! I have snow tires, I have videos of the car nearly getting stuck on <1" of snow. I have raced the car offroad on dirt/ice/snow, I think the car's been through enough. Have you tried?
     
  11. Much More Better

    Much More Better Active Member

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    I've read you mention more than once about the depth of the snow. It's not snow that is slippery. It's ice that is. I find that when the temps are moderate, say 14F-32F, the roads are the worse. The melt during the day and freeze at night is deadly. Cars sliding to a stop, or wheel spinning as they take off, polishes the ice near intersections, making traction near impossible at times. Sometimes, driving in the same tire tracks as everyone else is counterproductive, because of ice. Perhaps you can try driving on snow to improve grip.

    Do they sand/salt in CT? Just curious.
     
  12. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Snow or ice. It really doesn't help when you are on a steep incline. Once you lose momentum, you are toast
     
  13. stream

    stream Senior Member

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    It has nothing to do with not owning a Prius--lots of folks who post here don't.

    What it has to do with is:
    1) diareah of the mouth (I'll bet you have by far the longest posts on average of anybody--probably by a factor of 2 or 3 or 4 or 5--than anybody else here
    2) you make many comments that have no basis in reality, since you don't drive a Prius, like:
    Therefore my comments:

    Get a life, and post your comments where they are slightly applicable.
     
  14. donee

    donee New Member

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    Hi All,

    I guess its a shame they put those TC switches on all those other cars. Because, it became a crutch for some people to not learn how to drive a TC car. Now a car comes along where TC should not be defeated, and these guys are like 16 year old drivers again.

    Although, I do sympathise with the CT enviorment. The company where I work has a CT plant, and half the people just do not come in on snow days, due to the combination of poor street clearance, multitude of stop signs at the bottom of hills (rather than the top) and the steep hills. And that is perfectly acceptable as standard operating practice by all the companies in the area.

    But, physics is physics, and if momentum is lost on a TC car, momentum will be lost on a NON-TC car too. Just because the engine is making allot of noise, really does not mean your getting any traction. A spinning wheel has got a lot less chance of catching on a more-bare road patch, than a slow moving wheel, as the rotational moment will just snap it into sliding friction. The trick is to give the pedal a push when you estimate your front wheels are over the more-bare patch. Relying on engine noise in a Prius is uselss. Because, well the electric motors just do not make any, and at low speeds the motors are doing the work as much as the engine.


    I guess this is kinda all a matter of the phsycology of frustration. In the NON-TC car, they can hear the engine revving away, and do not feel frustrated when they get stuck, as they feel they tried everything they could have. I guess those Hybrid sound makers might help these guys out.

    I have been out in storms on the back-roads near Waterbury, and well, the snow plows are few and far between. And the hills are quite steep. The lousy winter conditions there in CT mean you gotta know how to operate your vehicle, or just stay home. I mean, in what other state is it understood, that half the people at a plant, are not going to show up 10 to 20 days a winter (no matter what they drive)? Certainly none in the midwest. And in Chicagoland, its at most 2 days in any winter, and most winters no days is it permissiable to miss work due to conditions. But, hey, we boot mayors out of office for poor snow removal here.
     
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  15. cossie1600

    cossie1600 Active Member

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    Here is the difference. Without the TC, I can either maintain my momentum or at least lose it only at the rate of gravity. With the TC, I don't even have the chance as the engine cuts out and BRAKES are being applied. I might not have the traction, but at least I know I am not slowing down the car with the brakes! It has nothing to do with being a hybrid or anything, you can't go up a hill if the engine is cutting or brakes are being applied!

     
  16. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    You can always add The Electric Me to your ignore list (User CP > Edit Ignore List).

    I had to do it on Tivocommunity after a user named bicker (appropriate handle) would barge into threads (was related to copy protection/CCI byte values on FiOS) when he didn't have FiOS and would just errr bicker, for the sake of bickering.
     
  17. evpv

    evpv Active Member

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    Give the ignore feature a try if he really bugs you that much.

    [​IMG]
     

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  18. evpv

    evpv Active Member

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    Your video shows you made it up the hill, just not as fast as you want. Take another video that shows the car not being able to move.
     
  19. tpfun

    tpfun New Member

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    Well, "stupid" or otherwise, the OP's quite informative.

    Now, if Toyota can cough up the details, that would be great. At a minimum, this caution should be in the manual.

    "There may be times when you attempt to accelerate from a stop on snow or ice where the throttle will not respond."
     
  20. adamace1

    adamace1 Senior Member

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    are you in a shoe forum, saying you stepped out your door onto a icy hill covered with snow and your shoe slipped. Talking about how the shoe was faulty because it has less traction on snow and ice?