does traction control use a lot of power?

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does traction control use a lot of power?

7 posts & 5 voices | Started 2 years ago by meeeee | Latest reply from meeeee

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meeeee - Member

did a 2 n half hour drive last night in temps from -6 to -13 then got home and got the car stuck

Went in the house to get a cup of tea then returned to dig the car out. It started first time, but took a while to get the car out (about 10 mins) with lots of flashing of the traction control light.

Anyway i then had to move the car again about an hour later and it would hardly turn over. Got it started eventually, but was very sluggish. So does the traction control system eat up a lot of electric power from the alternator / battery?

Or maybe my batterys just on its way out and not liking the cold. Just odd it started ok before i tried getting it unstuck.

Posted 2 years ago #
scotabroad - Member

Dont think so, I thought its an electronic system that senses the car is losing traction my measuring relative wheel speeds then it cuts/ reduces the power to the engine. Not a lot of power for that.

During your 10 minute dig out did you have heaters, lights, heated windows runnign, if so that may have drained the (on its way out?) battery due to low engine revs??

Posted 2 years ago #
richtea - Member

cold + not enough running time to recharge the battery after the 1st start = low on juice! put it on charge (or go for a decent length drive), it'll be fine

Posted 2 years ago #
singletrackmind - Member

Nope, hardly any, but constant use of TC on some systems might lead to overheating of the braking system.
Some systems modulate / apply the brakes to control wheel spin , and this can invlove lots of frequent pulses. Eventually heating the fluid and pump head.
More likely as stated above, HRW, fan blower, lights etc, plus a very cold start will strain the battery. Possible alternator drive belt not tight enough , and frequent short journeys of less than 20 mins in the dark wont help.
S'pose you could try to insulate the battery if its not in a bag, my Omega was insulated from the factory

Posted 2 years ago #
meeeee - Member

yeah it was fine after another drive. I think it might be on its way out though.

I was just wondering about the TCS sytem as i wasnt sure if it cut engine power or applied a braking force to the spinning wheel (sort of like using the ABS system but to apply instead of releasing brakes.) My BMW motorbike that had ABS used to deactiveate the ABS system if the battery power was low, so i assume that some ABS systems need a fair bit of power.

Posted 2 years ago #
Flaperon - Member

When ABS or traction control kicks in on my Passat, the headlights dim noticeably so there might be something in your theory.

Posted 2 years ago #
meeeee - Member

Flaperon - i just noticed that as well tonight, definate slight dimming when the ABS or TCS is active.

Posted 2 years ago #

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