[Closed] Disconnecting Traction Control From Merc Vito Van?

Why not just pull the fuse? Less likely to do any damage than doing anything to the ECU I'd have thought.

If it's like my old vito the TC off button was never really off and as such as much use as a chocolate fireguard.

Shakes head and wanders off to fridge to get another beer because this may be a long night.... 😉

I think it might put the Engine Managment light on,but Looking at one of the merc forums its also linked to the road speed sensor so you loose your MPH.

There will be a way of bypassing this circuit but not loosing the MPH reading. 🙄

"Cracks another Beer and waits with exited anticipation,but not all night!"

Why shaking your head? Have you driven a RWD vito with it fitted?

The TC is very invasive and rather crude and shuts the power down hard if it detects a spinning wheel. It can make pulling out of junctions difficult to until you get used to it. With RWD, little weight in the back and up to 200bhp (commonly 110 or 150) it's very easy to do.

Something tell me even if your successful in disabling it your going to have the same problem.

It's a lack of momentum that is limiting momentum.....

Are the vito vans rear wheel drive?? inc the 9 seaters?? crap been driving one round all day and didn't even occur to me that it would be rear wheel!

I have spun it once, and wrecked both mirrors on hedges and Gate posts in the last two weeks!

Its actually a great engine to drive smoothly,but its very fustrating when the ecu overides your driving and IMO is actually a hinderance when coming up to cars mincing up hills!

If momentum drops too low tc cuts in causing the Vehicle speed to slow,momentum is lost,rear wheels spin and then your only option is to revearse back for another go!

Sounds like pilot error. Smooooooooooooooooooooooooooth is the way forwards.

"Something tell me even if your successful in disabling it your going to have the same problem"

Your right and to be fair its only in certain circumstances where its really a problem,

I have been runing tyre pressures mega low and this has helped, but some times the farm track has a bend half way up, or a cattle grid where you dont really need the brakes being applied!

"Sounds like pilot error. Smooooooooooooooooooooooooooth is the way forwards"

Nope,Sticking yer tongue out and speeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeed (momentum)is the way forwards (in snow) 😀

Nope. Keeping grip is the way forwards. Gas pedals are analogue you know, not digital. 😀

mine has an ASR off button, is that not the traction control? or is that another doodaa

yep thats the right doodaa, but only disconects it temporeraly 👿

have a look at this link a few posts down, more info there

[url= http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/showthread.php?t=41883 ]here[/url]

[i]Your right and to be fair its only in certain circumstances where its really a problem,[/i]

Like when you put your foot flat to the floor.

Nope. Keeping grip is the way forwards. Gas pedals are analogue you know, not digital.

Mines Digital,theres five of em on my right foot!...lol 😯

Drac

I know nothing else,Its either "on" or "Off"....lol 🙄

Jeeez I should have guessed I would have got some of the best stw advice ever on this forum.....lol you guys are ace. 😉

The TC is very invasive and rather crude and shuts the power down hard if it detects a spinning wheel. It can make pulling out of junctions difficult to until you get used to it. With RWD, little weight in the back and up to 200bhp (commonly 110 or 150) it's very easy to do.

Less beans?

Thanks dtp555 I will try that 😉

LMT - Mark 1 vitos were front wheel drive, mark 2 vitos (from 2004 onwards) were rear wheel drive.

Olly - I know what you're saying but honestly commercial tyres, van suspension designed to carry 1000kg in the back with very little in and it's really not difficult to spin the wheels. One of the big reasons I got rid of mark 2 vito was that the trction control is constantly cutting in. I've had rear wheel drive cars before a few times and never had a problem.

I have ESP on my Vectra and find it a damn nuisance in this weather. I'm old skool and used to using gears and the pedals in snow 😉

Your car can read your mind - **** me that's clever. 😉

Depending on how new the van is, disabling the traction control might also take out the stability protection. Do you really want to do that?

Depending on how new the van is, disabling the traction control might also take out the stability protection. Do you really want to do that?

YES!

Heck its got four wheels! 🙄

The stability protection helps prevent and correct skids, not rollovers. American research reckons it cuts accident rates by over 50%, and in my experience in a Transit it's damned useful at keeping the van straight in slippery conditions. You couldn't actually disable it on the Ford, it would reactivate if it detected a loss of control with the brake pedal depressed.

Flaperon

I have no trouble keeping the van straight,(I use a thing called a steering wheel,and throttle), its keeping the van moving thats the problem.The Merc ASR system is actually ok in icy conditions as it is a very positive way of indicating slippery conditions to the driver at all road speeds.

In snow its a complete waste of time, and thats when, at times you need to turn it off completley.

Fifth gear Vito Transporter test 😯

Right, have been out on a very snowy drive today in my vito and even in places 4x4's were struggling it coped without a hint of trouble. Here is what you do.

Pulling away turn the ASR button off. If it detects the spinning of a wheel it works by braknk the wheel with traction so you end up stopping. So that will give you the best chance of 'getting away'

Once moving turn it back on. I would rather have it on when generally driving about.

If you come to a steep incline and feel the wheels slipping the ASR again will start cutting in. Turn it off to give yourself the chance to keep up momentum. Then back on again when at the top of the incline.

In this way i was able to keep momentum in all circumstances. The button on the dash is easily used so it doesnt detract from concentration.

Oh and to blame traction control for you losing control is laughable. You lose control because you are either going too fast or not steering correctly. I suppose at a push you can blame it for lack of momentum but i have solved that for you above

The other stability package on a Vito is the ESP and is not switchable because you dont need to.

Presumably the Vito is so prone to sliding that the computer is forced to constantly intervene to stop it going off the track.

Obviously, this is a separate issue to TC on snow because it's simply reducing power to the wheels, not correcting skids and slides. Seems to work OK on my car, point it up the hill and floor it in 2nd and the TC keeps the power at about 2000RPM and it goes up t'hill nicely.

I take your point LHB but to be turning the switch on and off is too much faf to me,after all if your a smooth driver there should be no wheel spin at all.
My point is that in certain circumstances,I dont want a computer deciding when I do, or dont need grip!

We have rwd transit in our fleet with no tc fitted, and it copes well in the snow, (with plenty of weight in the back)

"Oh and to blame traction control for you losing control is laughable" ❓

Flaperon

Absolutley spot on,Driving in a RWD Van in snow requires a bit more feel than a car,On the vito the tc is just a bit too invasive to work as well as it could in snow.

[i]I take your point LHB but to be turning the switch on and off is too much faf to me,after all if your a smooth driver there should be no wheel spin at all.[/i]

Totally agree. The only time i actually detected wheelspin (And therefore used the switch) was on a steep incline i was going up where an oncoming car was struggling on its way coming down. I predicted i was going to come to an almost stop and start struggling so i pressed the button. The wheels spun a little, got a bit of speed up and then switched it back on.

In what other circumstance when actually moving would you need to turn it off?

"I have been running tyre pressures mega low, and this has helped, but some times the farm track has a bend half way up, or a cattle grid where you dont really need the brakes being applied!"

Basiclly its anything that causes you to slow down,(knowing the wheels are going to spin)when you really want to maintain grip and a given speed.

As I have said in the above posts its not generally a problem unless theres snow where momentum is everything,and the transit confirms that.

dtp555

Thanks for the linky,made a big difference to todays run 😀 and theres a bit less snow now.

What did you end up doing that made the difference?