VSC (aka ESP) - is it on?

The only time I got the VSC to act up was in AAA's Advanced Driver Training in a large empty parking lot. At 25mph (41kph) go into a hard right turn (180 degree turn of steering wheel) then come back hard left (180 degrees again) and tight turn to return to the original lane now going in the opposite direction. It beeped & the light may have flashed or stayed on (I was too occupied elsewhere to notice) but I didn't feel the car did anything on its own.

 

My VSC was verified during the first icing snowfall last winter. The instant I rolled out of the company parking garage, the VSC screamed that the winter portion of my 'all-season' tire rating had expired over the summer.

Most commuters had abandoned work several hours early, so traffic was sparse enough to play a bit on the way home. TC or VSC spoke up each time.

 

Yes, as mentioned above, you can test it in a large empty parking lot. I just went in a circle and pushed the throttle all the way down, depending on the size of the circle the front wheels will start to slip at some speed (understeer) and the VSC will come on. You will feel it reduce the power and it should use the brakes on each wheel independently if needed to help keep the car controllable. After trying it in one direction I tried it in the other.

You can tell VSC is on if the traction control light flashes and it beeps at you, with only traction control activated the light flashes with no beep.

I first tried it on dry pavement, later I did the same thing in the snow.

Just make sure the parking lot is big enough to give you room to stop if things don't work out right.

 

Any chance the European model is different? Some North America Toyota SUV models have a VSC Off button. Also, at low speeds, the speed may be too low for the yaw rate sensor to register a value over threshold to trigger corrective action.

 

I am pretty sure all of the N.A. Prius models had no switch to turn the VSC or traction control off. At least my Gen2 and Gen3 are both that way.

Yes there may be some speed under which it won't work? not sure about that. My dry pavement test was at about 35 or 40 mph, in the snow I tested at around 25 mph I think. We may have snow here in a few weeks, if so I'll try again and watch the speedometer.

 

That's definitely true. I had noticed that the original poster is in Munich. European drivers are much more fastidious about having a high level of control in their own hands, so it is not out of the question that VSC is tuned differently for that market, if not having an on/off switch like many Toyota SUVs.

I'll try it here too in my '05. We had our first taste of winter here yesterday.

 

Nope, you cant turn off the VSC. The VSC is a nice system, it doesn't kick in until you are sideways. On the other hand, the traction control is absolutely annoying as it will either cut power or apply brakes at the slightiest hint of wheelspin. You know the VSC kicks on when you hear beeping noise. The traction control will make the light flash only, stabilty control adds the audible noise.

 

In the GII it doesn't work at low speeds, perhaps below 30 km/hr. In the winter I often trip it on side roads turning a corner (because I'm trying to slide it though the corner - just for a bit of fun). When there are no other cars or pedestrians around, of course.

 

I may be mistaken on this, but it was my understanding that VSC only beeps and flashes when it can't keep up, in other words when conditions exceed VSC's ability to keep the car under control.

On numerous occasions I have felt VSC assert itself with my 2006 Prius without seeing any indication on the dash. Only if I really throw it around do I ever get the beeping and light.

Tom

 

I get VSC with some regularity, but then we have some really crappy winter weather in this part of the world.

The place where I notice it the most is making a turn off of a slippery road. Around here in the winter you assume all steering input is just a suggestion and plan accordingly. When I make a turn from a slippery road, I assume that there is a fair chance that the car will continue in a straight line, and plan a safe escape route in case that happens. In this situation VSC often steps in and helps. Here is what it feels like: Slow down for the turn, turn the wheel, car goes straight, car continues straight, VSC brakes on one side, car pivots quickly and turns in the requested direction. You can feel the selective braking on one side, as that is not a normal operation.

At no point does the VSC light flash or do you get the VSC chime. On the other hand, if I push it too far, VSC will not be able to make the car come around, and then I get the warning light and chime while sliding in a direction somewhere between where I was going and where I want to be going.

Tom

 

Agreed. You really have to push it for VSC to fail, or the conditions need to be that of a skating rink.

Tom