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Smart Shopper Stories from the Sales Frontlines
48029 messages, Last post on Dec 02, 2009 at 4:40 PM
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Replying to: houdini1 (Jan 04, 2009 4:16 pm) I am not technologically knowledgeable but I don't think you would have done better if you didn't have traction control. The road might have been so icy that both rear wheels couldn't get traction......and probably no vehicle could have gone up the hill. Also, keep in mind I am technologically challenged, but I don't think stability control would help too much in this situation either. The wheels have to be able to grip onto something for it to work - they can't defy physics and magically go up a sheet of ice. You did state it was better to have TC and SC so I know this doesn't apply to you or most, but saying you would be better off without these features is like saying you are better off without seatbelts because one person in 500,000 is saved because he wasn't wearing his seatbelt...he got thrown clear. |
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Replying to: houdini1 (Jan 04, 2009 5:53 pm) OK, now my tale. Just this past summer I was driving Mrs. jmonroe’s 06’ Sonata LX (V6 with full fledged Stability Control not just Traction Control like my 05’ XG 350). I noticed that the car needed gas, so as the nice guy that I am; I pulled in and filled it up. It was raining and the exit I used was about 30 yards from the corner light which I noticed had changed just as I was pulling out. So, I floored it and it almost died (me too) because it sensed slipping on the wet road. Then as I was bracing myself it must have caught onto what I wanted it to do and the hesitation stopped and the car gained speed, just in time to avoid someone climbing up I’ve been driving for a couple years now and I don’t like the idea of something taking control of the car I’m driving. I’ve done just fine when left to my own ability. I’ve actually thought of turning that system off under those situations but so far I’ve successfully resisted that urge. I guess it’s hard to teach an old driver new tricks.  jmonroe
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Replying to: jmonroe (Jan 04, 2009 7:02 pm) Here's mine, which took place while co-driving a BMW X5 in the 2000 Alcan Winter Rally. Think: Duel meets Ice Station Zebra... It happened on a transit stage between Coldfoot and Fairbanks when my co-driver Russ decided to pass a trucker who was apparently well and truly ticked off by the hoards of rally cars buzzing south sporting 100w driving lights. As Russ pulled out to pass, the trucker crowded us onto the snow covered shoulder. Russ completed the pass and cranked the wheel hard right to get the left wheels out of the snow. The X5 got quite a bit sideways and the DSC, apparently flustered by the speed, steering angle, and yaw rate, ramped the throttle way back. As in OFF. Fortunately, the X5 decided to relinquish control to Russ before we became a hood ornament on the front grill of the annoyed trucker.
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Replying to: jmonroe (Jan 04, 2009 6:22 pm) Well I would call the long list all the cars that would fit my budget. I am not expecting to go replace my car anytime soon so I am not really working on eliminating cars to quickly. However since we have one car thats 11 years old with 140K miles on it and another thats 9 years old with 160K miles on it I am keeping my eyes open just in case. Trust me when I go into negotiations I will have a short list of one, with an alternate or two just in case. |
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| I believe that stability control/traction control are more helpful than AWD in the inclement weather. If I turn the stability control off on my wife's '07 X3 and try to start going uphill, all 4 tires spin (I should really put a set of 4 snow tires on it). If I leave the stability control on, the car goes with ZERO DRAMA. | |
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Replying to: jmonroe (Jan 04, 2009 7:02 pm) You meant old dog... right?  I think stability control is over-rated, and the studies showing 58% reduction in injuries bogus. New "er" technologies like s/c cannot cover for all the variables and contingencies where activation actually becomes counter productive. Yeah, I'll take it, but I will still rely on my good driving abilities/instincts and cat like reflexes over this so called modern miracle.
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Replying to: jipster (Jan 04, 2009 7:50 pm) 
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Replying to: jipster (Jan 04, 2009 7:50 pm) This could be accurate for the people who come to this sight and already have an interest in cars and driving. However, for the 95% of the population who just drive to get from A to B every safety device helps. Also, 80% of the population thinks they are better than average drivers. So, many people think they are more capable than they are. Instinct and cat like reflexes are good, but there are times when even those can't overcome certain conditions and situations. Keep in mind too, there are many people who believe they are pro-drivers. They're the ones who pass you in a snow storm, going faster than they can see ahead, and you usually go by them when they end up in the ditch. We all like to think we are in control and can do better than technology...but there are times when technology can be superior. |
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Replying to: jmonroe (Jan 04, 2009 7:02 pm) I’ve been driving for a couple years now and I don’t like the idea of something taking control of the car I’m driving. JM, What if your wife was driving? First, she might not have tried to get through the amber light, being a more cautious female driver (I think that's what you were speeding up to do). But does she have natural driving instinct and cat like reflexes? If she was driving along and 2 wheels went off the road onto the gravel could she handle it better than stability control.....which will take over making sure the car doesn't slide out of control? It's like the not wearing seat belts thing - every once in awhile some guy not wearing his seatbelt is saved because he is thrown from the wreck, but for every one of those about 500,000 are saved because of the seatbelt. People who don't wear seatbelts often think they can manouver better, or can get out of the car faster.....but in most cases it just throws them so far they can't do anything anyway and they usually just go flying out of the car (often into a tree) or get knocked around inside it.
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Replying to: richard64 (Jan 04, 2009 9:01 am) Probably 60% of my home is new. I got the chance to correct some things I didn't like when I originally had it built, too. Got some new things that were needed (like a new roof that was due to be replaced, anyway). You never come out of these types of rebuilds with no "out of pocket". On the other hand, I was able to kick in some cash to upgrade what was destroyed. Segueing into another sad story regarding the economy (and just the slightest relevance to cars), I don't live in an exclusive neighborhood. But, it's a nice neighborhood....good schools, nice homes, peaceful. No McMansions around here. Anyway, I live in a relatively secluded area (becoming less so all the time). There's only 16 houses on my street. So, we all more or less know each other....all of us have lived here for at least a dozen years. Around the holidays, there are plenty of people in the neighborhood who bring baked goods to each others doors (I'm not one of them, mind you. I don't bake.) during the Holiday Season. So, we usually get the chance to catch up on each others lives in the process since everyone is "around" during this time of year. One neighbor was an EVP for a company who provides peripherals to General Electric. Very successful guy. He never buys new cars, but nice used ones. He's got a 4 year old Lexus LS (which he bought used off lease). His wife has a 5 year old Lexus RX (again, bought used off lease). Not much work being done last week as many people were taking time off. While one neighbor was delivering Christmas cookies to my door, I noticed two tow trucks picking up both vehicles at the Lexus owner's house down the street. Thinking he had bad luck having both cars on the fritz at the same time, I went over to offer them one of my vehicles to use, if they needed it. Come to find out, the guy was let go from his job this past June. The tow trucks were repo-ing both his cars. While I didn't want to get into the gory details with him, he kind of spilled it out. He financed both vehicles via a home equity loan. Investments went south. His employment prospects, even at his level, are very limited (he's in his late 50s). He drained his liquid savings over the past several months trying to stay afloat. He had to make a decision....lose his house, or lose his cars. He chose the latter. The couple's daughter (surprise baby) was going to Loyola in Chicago. They've had to put a halt to her education. Loyola ain't cheap. In short, their lives have turned upside down. Everything they had saved is gone. Again, he's a smart guy. Investments he made, which he thought were good, weren't. The prospect of him losing his house is still very real. I'm sure this isn't an uncommon scene throughout the country right now. Yet, Chrysler just cashed a $4B check from the gov't bailout, to use for what exactly, I'm not certain. Even Cerebus has said they don't know if the $4B will keep them from shutting their doors. Yet, this guy....a good, hard working family person, is about to lose everything he's built, everything he's saved for, over many years.
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