How to disable the stability/traction control?

It's one of them, but not only one.

 

I live in the mountains of WV, we get snow here, I get where I need to go. I traded in my Deville for the Prius, and it goes just as good in the snow as the Caddy did.

Having said that, how would you expect the front-drive Prius to tackle snow like an all-wheel-drive Suby?

Seems like kind of a no-brainer to me.

 

Hi Tom,

If you're not trying to get stuck and are driving a 4x4, an old rule of thumb is to use 2H when you are driving into the "muck". If/when you get stuck, then use 4H or 4L to return to civilization...

You are right, engine RPM is limited to 2,500 and you are not supposed to use the inspection or certification mode when driving, anyway. That info is provided for you to use at your own risk.

 

If you can, take photos next time.

We only got barely an inch in Dixie this past week and try as I might, I could not get any bad behavior. It started from a dead stop on a hill and went right on up. Stopping on ice and snow on a down grade and it steered and came to stop.

Document the problems and we'll all have a clue. In particular, I'd be interested in getting 'high center' with accumulated snow under the car lifting the wheels.

Thanks,
Bob Wilson

 

Patrick, you are absolutely correct. I was stuck in that Jeep more than any other car I've owned, but it wasn't because Jeeps get stuck easily. We would really work at it. Many of the places we drove were passable only in 4 low, and even then it took a lot of driving technique to keep moving.

Just for jollies we would use your suggested technique. We would take a couple of Jeeps down summer roads in the middle of winter, trying to drive as far as possible in 2wd. Once we were hopelessly stuck, we would kick in 4wd.

I remember one of those trips we were "drift busting", bashing through tall drifts of snow. The lead Jeep stalled and wouldn't restart. When we lifted its hood, instead of an engine, we found a perfectly shaped hood impression made of packed snow. The entire engine compartment had packed solid with snow. After a little scraping, digging, and drying we were on our way.

More to the point of this thread, even with very aggressive tires, 4 wheel low, and no traction control, I've had that Jeep stuck in two inches of snow. All it took was a slight uphill with heavy wet snow over ice. Do that with a Prius and people will post: "TRACTION CONTROL GOT ME STUCK!!!" Sometimes conditions are just undrivable.

Tom

 

comment deleted

 

I learned the maxim in my misspent 4x4 days: the bigger your
mudder tires, the farther in you get stuck.
.
_H*

 

I had a rental Chevy HHR a couple of years ago .... and almost got stuck with it. I was in Northern Washington state heading up hill in a state park and there was some light snow on the ground. I pulled off into a turnout (still with an uphill grade) and almost couldn't get started again.

I would get a split second of slip, then the computer would apply brakes and reduce throttle. It would try throttle every couple of seconds but it would slip and shut it down. I was actually laughing because my friend with me didn't know what I was doing. I showed him I could floor the gas and nothing would happen.... just these momentary surges.

Luckily the car had a TCS disable button, so I pushed it -- and gave it enough gas to slowly spin the tires.. with this I was able to get back onto the hard packed snow of the road where there was more traction.

Without a button, I would have been in the same situation as a Gen II .. where backing up would be the only way to get going again.

 

Many Toyota owners are complaining that the Prius traction control system is leaving them stuck in the snow. Consumer Affairs has even gone so far as to call it dangerous. The problem is that once the drive wheels of the car begin to slip, the Prius traction control system shuts down power to those wheels. This problem seems to be unique to the Toyota Prius, as most other vehicles equipped with traction control appear to handle snowy driving conditions without blunder. The Prius traction control system is managed by computer software, and currently allows for no wheel spin at all. Toyota states that this is the way that the system is designed to operate, and that if the software allowed excessive wheel spin there could be a potential danger of broken front axles.

Fortunately, there is a solution to this problem: turn off the traction control. This is not as easy as pressing a button inside the car, but is surprisingly easier than most people think. In fact, by completing the following sequence, you can do it yourself without the help of a certified mechanic.

These steps must be completed within 60 seconds.

Step 1: Set the ignition switch to ON, not READY. To do this press the power button two times, without pressing the brake pedal.

Step 2: While the transmission is still in park (P), fully press the gas pedal two times.

Step 3: Apply the parking brake to ensure that the vehicle will not move during this step. Put the transmission in neutral (N) and fully press the gas pedal two times.

Step 4: Put the transmission back in park (P) and fully press the gas pedal two times. The car will display “!Car!†in the upper left corner of the LCD screen.

Step 5: Press the brake pedal and turn the ignition switch to the start position, without going back to the ready position, to start the engine.

If these steps are followed correctly, the vehicle will start with the traction control system defeated.

This is probably more than most Toyota Prius owners are willing to do each time they crank their vehicle, but it does provide a useful alternative in the event of abnormal driving conditions. It would probably be a good auto standard to include a defeat switch on all vehicles equipped with traction control. Any Prius owner with a do it yourself attitude can follow these steps and accomplish something that your local certified mechanic probably doesn’t even know is possible.
P.S. - This is only for traction Control, not VSC.

 

Did you mean to post this to a GenIII thread? Both complaints and the procedure appear to be aimed at GenII owners.

 

Re: How to disable stabilty/traction control

How?

 

Any rumors that Toyota might have a Prius in the future in which both front wheels work together to provide traction? I live at the end of a very steep one mile long driveway. Front wheel drive MIGHT work for me in normal conditions, no snow or ice, if torque was applied judiciously to both front wheels simultaneously. Applying all power to the wheel that slips the most will not work for me! Thanks for any help.

 

The 2010 Gen III Prius already has this sort of traction control.

Tom

 

I don't recall hearing of any Prius that suffered this particular traction problem.

While some older vintages were infamous for suffering traction problems, they were not applying excess power to slipping wheels. More like the opposite, not enough power.

GenIII is reputed to be much better. But thanks to an unusually mild winter, I haven't yet put mine through enough foul road conditions to discover its traction control limits.

 

No, but some models apply selective braking to the slipping wheel. It's not an LSD, but it accomplishes much of the same.

Tom

 

Selective braking can completely compensate for an open differential, assuming the control system is sufficiently clever. The physics of this situation is not a problem.

For other people reading this thread, the selective braking traction control only exists on the Gen III (2010 and later) Prius. Gen II Prius do not do this, and as a consequence, it is much easier to get stuck.

Tom