Anti-Lock Braking System, Traction Control, Brake Assist and ESP 

ABS ( Anti-Lock Braking System) ABS  improves driver control by keeping wheels from locking during hard braking or braking on slippery surfaces.  

Some of you are already driving cars with Anti-Lock Breaking System (ABS). When we baby boomers learned to drive, we were taught to pump the brakes. Hard breaking was frowned upon, certain to lock the wheels and remove all control from the driver.

But with ABS, you STOMP, STAY and STEER. Stomp and Stay on the pedal and Steer in the direction you want to go. Here is a testimonial from a driver during the Life Savers Highway Safety Conference in Atlanta.

“I’m on the driving range, heading toward an obstacle at about 22mph. I’m told to slam on the brakes. I feel them vibrate, which means they are working. Even though I’m breaking fully, I have enough control of the car to steer right, missing the cones, then steer back left to keep the vehicle from leaving the road.”

“On the next pass, I flip the switch that turns off ABS. When I brake, the party’s over– I have no control and the car piles into the cones.”

Traction control improves driver control during acceleration by controlling wheel spin. 

AdvanceTrac is a stability enhancement system for improved vehicle dynamics control and stability.  It is on constant standby to assist drivers in maintaining control as critical situations arise in the twists and turns of driving.  This computer- controlled safety system significantly improves vehicle stability in all three areas of vehicle performance: accelerating, cornering and braking. 

Through electrical sensors strategically placed throughout the vehicle, AdvanceTrac  analyzes steering wheel activity, wheel speeds, acceleration and the vehicle's rotation about its vertical axis and continually analyzes this data to determine whether the actual course of the vehicle corresponds to the desired direction. By braking individual wheels, AdvanceTrac corrects understeer and oversteer, and helps keep vehicles on the road. 

Brake Assist feature helps reduce stopping distance by as much as 20 percent by monitoring the speed and distance of brake pedal travel to determine if the driver intends to make a rapid stop even if the brake pedal isn't fully depressed. 

Do you have ESP? Electronic Stability Program. You’re rolling down the freeway when, without warning, a tractor-trailer rig changes lanes right into your path. You throw the steering wheel sharply to the left to avoid the truck, but the abrupt oversteer puts your car into a spin. You crash into the median wall and end up facing oncoming traffic. If you were driving a top-heavy SUV, you could have turned the vehicle over– often fatal.

Repeat the scenario in a vehicle equipped with the new ESP safety feature and you have only a near miss. A network of sensors detects that the car has been over-steered. ESP kicks in, applying brakes to the rear wheels to correct the error and prevent disaster.

“You’ve heard of Hamburger Helper– this is ‘Driver Helper,’” says Frank Julian, a safety engineer with the Federal Highway Administration. This technology already is available on some high-end models like the Mercedes-Benz SUV, and others.

“The highest percentage of all crashes are caused by driver error,” continues Julian. “With this driver helper, you’re attacking the big numbers.”