Quote:
Originally Posted by toxicnerve
It's not so much about making the journey safer.
By default when the system is at it's most aggressive (i.e. not allowing ANY slip/yaw) you may find it difficult to actually get moving at all in snow/icy conditions.
This will be because as you try to pull away the rear wheels will likely start to spin, as soon as this happens the car will cut power and apply some braking force. You're not going anywhere fast in this situation.
By activating DTC the car will permit a little slip and in the aforementioned conditions it may allow you to get moving that little bit more easily.
The side effect of this is that, even in the dry, it means you can get the back end out a bit before the car cuts power or applies any braking force.
Bottom line is the following:
1. Every time you get into the car it is, by default, at it's safest settings. The car will not permit any slip (only the merest whiff at most). This might make it tricky to move off in snow/ice/muddy/other conditions of reduced grip.
2. A short press of the DTC button will ACTIVATE DTC. In this mode the car will permit some slip and yaw. Good for moving off in conditions of less than ideal traction or for having a little fun, coming out of junctions a bit sideways etc. If the slip/yaw gets too much the car will intervene and try to get things settled down again.
3. A long press of the DTC button will DEACTIVATE DSC entirely. The car will now do NOTHING to get you out of trouble regardless of how badly wrong you get it. This is where the system differs from other manufacturers. I think in Mercs, even with the system disabled if you get it really badly wrong the system will eventually try to intervene and attempt to save your ass.
Finally, regardless of which mode you are in, if you get it properly wrong none of the on board safety systems is going to save you. In extreme enough situations the laws of physics will take over and you will end up going backwards through a hedge/ditch/lamppost/person/another car (delete as appropriate).
|
Thanks man for clearing this up, you explained it so much better than even BMW themselves
