I know this is more of a general question but I want opinions primarily from XK onwers. Are all electronic stability control systems fairly equal and has it saved anybodys butt in their XK?

Also I'm unclear if it was standard from 1997 or if it changed through the years. Thanks.

 

I had the 97XK8 and the traction control was the best I've ever had the pleasure of driving.

Was a daily driver for me so all seasons and winter was insanely fun. So not all traction controls are equal and it's one thing Jaguar did very well in my opinion.

 

Thanks. I'm assuming you are referring to more than just the traction control. But its good to know winter weather was not an issue. I'm more interested in how well the ASC helped the car recover from slides.

 

With ASC (Automatic Stability Control or Traction Control) on It doesn't slide, just goes straight. Winter was insanely fun because you could accelerate like a bat out of hell and the car would just go straight. You could hear tires spinning and the trac light flashing and it would just keep going.

Don't forget these are heavy cars I believe 3800lbs curb weight.

Not saying you can't get them to slide, but have to disable ASC control to do. My ASC control module was having an issue so no traction control and I had to accelerate quickly making a left on dry pavement. Rear slide out maybe a foot then corrected itself when the tires grabbed and I had a big smile on my face.

Some models had ASC and other had DSC (dynamic stability control). Not completely sure what the difference was as to how they function, same unit I think they just called models with the winter package ASC.

 

I am not too sure how it works. I flashes almost ever time I take off fast, which is every time. It did do well one snowy morning. I had an ice packed hill to climb. I was doing well about climbing, until a mini van was blocking the hill. I had to stop. A 4x4 pickup passed me by about 20 feet, then it lost all traction. I was afraid he would slide in to me. Then a jeep tried and it did slide back down. I decided to get out of there! I let my XK8 roll back down down the hill backwards. I pulled a reverse boot legger turn and drove down and around to a less steep way home. Better than the 4X4 pick up and a jeep but not enough home.

 

ASC or ESC or what ever proprietary name given is one of those fantastic safety features that eventually will become mandatory on newer vehicles. It works with ABS and traction control to correct understeer or oversteer. So basically when you turn the front wheels to one direction but the wheels dont grip the ASC will apply brake to the inside wheel bringing the nose back to the direction the steering wheels says it should be going. If the tail spins out with oversteer ASC will apply brake to the outside wheel to bring the tail back around.
Traction control limits the slip a wheel will have when on a slippery surface. It tries to balance the static friction of the tire on the surface with the dynamic friction of the wheel spin on the surface. This doesn't always help us get unstuck. In fact it is a hindrance in off road conditions. This is why off road vehicles like Jeep have a way to turn it off. If traction control senses wheel spin it brakes or reduces torque to that wheel And then you are stuck on a snowy hill. Turn off that traction control and you can spin those tires and watch the snow, dirt, sand and gravel fly. You may only move inches at a time but at least you can move and maybe get to a spot with better grip. Hope that helps. Also to keep in mind that generally if a traction control light is flashing or on it means the vehicle is struggling to maintain traction the same way when ABS pulses your brakes its trying to keep you from sliding. Both systems have limits that can be exceeded.

 

The asc works, but is not able to fully compensate for having appropriate tires. So it helps quite a bit, but still have dedicated summers and winters, depending on the seasons you drive. L

 

I agree. its all about the friction.

 

sorry for digging this old article out.
I was always under the impression (from various website information) that all our cars have ASC (automatic stability control, a system that slows down single wheels to maintain stability in corners driven too fast) and some cars came with TRAC as an option (traction control, a system that slows down single wheels to stop them from spinning when accelerating too hard).
Well, my car does have TRAC (it has the button to disable it) but apparently no ASC. How I know that? I was in a drive training yesterday and was able to do wild drifts Clarkson style even while TRAC was ON. Also moose tests with 80km/h didn't feel different regardless if TRAC was ON or OFF.

Did they may be fit ASC only in certain markets lie the US, or did people mistake TRAC as full ASC? Or is mine just broken?

Chris

 

If your car hasa TRAC it also has ASC. The TRAC button will turn them both off.

 

ok. Does that mean my ASC is broken then? I had no warnings or ASC lights coming up, no ASC flickering while drifting, nada.
That does not make sense.

Chris

 

It certainly sounds like yours is broken. Mine will barely break traction before kicking in. I am happy that these cars have an easy way to turn the system completely off, even if mine is on 99.9% of the time

 

In the meantime I found out that apparently the XK100 has no true ESP / ESC stability control to correct understeer or oversteer.

The X100 platform comes with two variants of the traction control, the standard one called ASC that just reduces the engine output, while vehicles equipped with TRAC actively apply breaks on one wheel to transfer the power to the non spinning wheel.

That explains why one can drift (both wheels spinning at the same rate). This would not be possible with a true ESP, because steering angle sensors and accelerometers would register the sideways movement and correct it.

Just to avoid misunderstandings - I'm very happy on how the car acts when driving at the limits. The rear end is easy to control even without electronics.

Chris