Hello, I've had a few problems getting up my icy driveway already this year. It seems that the Vehicle Stability Control engages as I hit ice , the light lights up and I often get a beep. The problem is that the brakes locked up and made it impossible for me to continue up the driveway. The oddest thing is that, at one point, this caused me to slide backwards down the driveway into the road, even though I was in drive. Aack! :blink: Any ideas/suggestions?
What kind of tires do you have? No vehicle in the world (unless it's rocket powered) will go uphill on slick ice if it's got slick summer tires on. Get some good winter tires (studs, Blizzaks, etc.)
You're describing a few different things, none of which should involve any locking of the brakes. 1)The loss of traction going up hill is a function of the TRAC or traction control system designed to prevent wheel spin which could damage the HSD. It is pretty aggressive and can be frustrating. If a hill is particularly steep or icy you may not be able to get up. Most people find that most navigable hills can be climbed by patient slow application of the accelerator. Note that the dash will briefly display the little car with squiggly lines behind it on the dash when just TRAC kicks in. If you're actually sliding backward down a hill then the hill is too steep and slick...period, and that has nothing to do with the TRAC. Many have found that using winter/ICE/Snow tires is helpful to improve traction and reduce the TRAC from kicking in. It can not/should not be disabled. 2)If/when you hear a beep associated with slick roads you are, indeed, experiencing the VSC kicking in. This is probably saving you from wiping out and crashing your car and you should say a big "Thank you" to your car for saving your butt. It should also tell you that you can't be that aggressive on that kind of surface. Although individual wheels will lock or be retarded as part of the VSC's effort to regain control it will NOT lock up all the wheels at once. The display will show the skidding car and "VSC" (very briefly and you almost never see it b/c the car driving is a bit hairy and your attention is elsewhere) as well as the audible beeps.
There have been a lot of posts on this, and similar, problems. Most have been attributed to the traction control vice VSC. Here's a good example, there are a lot of other topics as well: http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=1...raction+control The Prius has what has been described as a very agressive traction control system which, I believe, was developed to protect the HSD system. In addition to limiting front wheel spin by keeping both front wheels turning at the same speed it also involves the back wheels. It won't let the front wheels turn much faster than the back ones, thus if you are in a position where a little wheel spin might actually help you get up your driveway you may not be able to move. Good winter tires will certainly help but it is not going to be like other cars where you might be able to let the wheels spin a little to get moving. There is a way to disable traction control for emission control tests, but I think you risk damage to your car if you drive it that way. Edit: By the way, welcome to priuschat.
VSC may have more to do with this condition than we are aware of. You will notice from reading the referenced link that either you have the problem or you think the Prius is great in snow and ice. I am one of those who have not experienced the problem in two years. I have been driving on ice and snow for the last two weeks on OEM tires with 30,000 miles. I have a base model without VSC. I am beginning to believe that it may be the interaction of Trac with VSC that is causing the problem.
