ESP

[grasmere59]

It seems my newly aquired 2003 110 exec estate has ESP fitted,what is this supposed to do? I've had cars with traction control and know what that does but what is the ESP for,i got the car a bit sideways yesterday and black ice and i swear the car seemed to brake for itself but i could have been imagining it as it was a bit hectic at the time as a car was coming in the opposite direction

[gwinter]

ESP = electronic stability program? I'd think ESP and traction control are the same thing.

[steve_earwig]

It's something else to go wrong, that's what it is...

[Doggy]

It means:

a) Electronic Stability Programme
b) You have an even more expensive COM2000 than the rest of us plebs.

[grasmere59]

I have just read in the handbook and the traction control (asr) is different to dynamic stability control (dsp),it did work i'm sure when i got a bit sideways yesterday as the car seem to shudder and straighten up,don't all Executives have dsp?

[Doggy]

don't all Executives have dsp?

No, some are more equal than others.
I think coupes & maybe v6's had it earlier,then it got added to the 'run-out' models, I suspect.

[grasmere59]

It's a mid Dec 2003 so perhaps your right as it must be getting close to end of the 406's

[highlander]

From the Wikipedia article on "Electronic stability control" (I've broken this quote into three paragraphs to make it easier to read):

Electronic stability control (ESC) is a computerized technology that may potentially improve the safety of a vehicle's stability by detecting and minimizing skids.

When ESC detects loss of steering control, it automatically applies the brakes to help "steer" the vehicle where the driver intends to go. Braking is automatically applied to wheels individually, such as the outer front wheel to counter oversteer or the inner rear wheel to counter understeer. Some ESC systems also reduce engine power until control is regained. ESC does not improve a vehicle's cornering performance; instead, it helps to minimize the loss of control.

According to Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, one-third of fatal accidents could have been prevented by the technology.

My Coupe has the ESP feature. Biggest giveaway is a button by the driver's right knee (where the headlamp adjuster is) that says "ESP OFF" on it. If you press it, you get a light on that button, a "Beep" from the speaker, and the MFD screen shows a message telling you that the ESP system has been deactivated.

You notice it working in slippery conditions - if there's lots of water or ice on the road, and you hit the accelerator hard in a low gear, the wheels will want to spin - but the ESP system will take over and reduce the amount of power going to that wheel - you'll hear the engine revving up, but not much will happen. The "skidding car" symbol flashes on and off on the dashboard to let you know the car is saving your bacon.

It is a tremendous pain in the ass though when there is snow EVERYWHERE, and the system prevents your car from starting off at all - sometimes you can't move at all because the car is trying to stop the wheels from spinning, and you get no forward movement at all. That's when you switch off the ESP system, and gently pull out from your parking space - once you're on the move, press the button again to re-arm the system.

[grasmere59]

Yes i have that switch and as you say you can turn it off,it would explain when the car slipped slightly sideways on ice sat morn it juddered and pulled itself straight which was a strange feeling,my Bmw 5 series has it but as i never drive it in bad conditions so up to now i've never experienced esp cutting in.

[waue1978]

Yes i have that switch and as you say you can turn it off,it would explain when the car slipped slightly sideways on ice sat morn it juddered and pulled itself straight which was a strange feeling,my Bmw 5 series has it but as i never drive it in bad conditions so up to now i've never experienced esp cutting in.

That's because the BMW system is superb. Even in my old 96 325tds you never noticed it doing the business, but I can't remember if the light flashed or not. The only reason I knew that it was working was because I put it to the test one night on the same small roundabout & the a*se did try to step out when it was turned off. When it was turned on it felt like it was on rails.

[Bailes1992]

Yes i have that switch and as you say you can turn it off,it would explain when the car slipped slightly sideways on ice sat morn it juddered and pulled itself straight which was a strange feeling,my Bmw 5 series has it but as i never drive it in bad conditions so up to now i've never experienced esp cutting in.

That's because the BMW system is superb. Even in my old 96 325tds you never noticed it doing the business, but I can't remember if the light flashed or not. The only reason I knew that it was working was because I put it to the test one night on the same small roundabout & the a*se did try to step out when it was turned off. When it was turned on it felt like it was on rails.

Was chatting to Discopol in Gaydon and he said his 7 Series was the same. But on his 7 series he said you could turn the TC off but leave stability control on.
Love those E36 325tds'... Along with many other cars my insurance outright refuses to insure me on.

[waue1978]

On my TDS & E39s it was 1 button marked ASC+T which was Anti Skid Control & Traction. Didn't really push it too much in any E38 7s that I've driven, but do know that when you pushed the ASC+T button in my ones it turned it all off & you were on your own...