Driving unprotected......
Discussion
Chaps and Chapesses,
Having recently joined the marque from the middle of the Lotus range where electronic aids are confined to the ignition key ie if you want to be 100% certain of not losing control of the car, don't start it, I'm curious:
How many of you would, or do, routinely drive with the assists selected off on a public road? If so, dependant on ambient conditions and driver skill, would you consider this to be a risky pastime?
I am of the opinion that I've not spent sufficient time in the car yet to be comfortable driving without stability control, and will pick and choose my time and place to dabble. I suppose the issue/question is that will I ever get to feel the car on the limit unless I select them off? I'd welcome the thoughts of the more experienced drivers on here, as you will all no doubt have had to start somewhere. The Vantage is a totally different driving proposition to my Elise and I'd certainly never throw the AM around like I used to the Lotus, but I'd be interested to know how much the electronics will let happen before they intervene. I don't really want to be posting a new topic on my liaison with a ditch any time soon. Thanks in advance....sorry for banging on
Forgot to mention, 4.3 V8V so a lack of torque may even prevent me from having to worry.....thought I'd get that in before the V12 boys wade in
Having recently joined the marque from the middle of the Lotus range where electronic aids are confined to the ignition key ie if you want to be 100% certain of not losing control of the car, don't start it, I'm curious:
How many of you would, or do, routinely drive with the assists selected off on a public road? If so, dependant on ambient conditions and driver skill, would you consider this to be a risky pastime?
I am of the opinion that I've not spent sufficient time in the car yet to be comfortable driving without stability control, and will pick and choose my time and place to dabble. I suppose the issue/question is that will I ever get to feel the car on the limit unless I select them off? I'd welcome the thoughts of the more experienced drivers on here, as you will all no doubt have had to start somewhere. The Vantage is a totally different driving proposition to my Elise and I'd certainly never throw the AM around like I used to the Lotus, but I'd be interested to know how much the electronics will let happen before they intervene. I don't really want to be posting a new topic on my liaison with a ditch any time soon. Thanks in advance....sorry for banging on
Forgot to mention, 4.3 V8V so a lack of torque may even prevent me from having to worry.....thought I'd get that in before the V12 boys wade in
Edited by Bincenzo on Sunday 13th January 22:25
A couple of people on here switch off stability contro as soon as they start the engine... Not me, it is very well judged and I have found it only ever comes on in extremis; under very hard accelerating on a wet road type thing.
My background is TVR/Marcos/Lotus as well so I tend to drive within the limits of the car as my experience was gained without traction control. It gives you a very sensitive right foot... If I turned it off I don't think I'd notice the difference as I don't ever rely on it... however, I would rather it was there for something unforseen...It might by the thing that saves me
My background is TVR/Marcos/Lotus as well so I tend to drive within the limits of the car as my experience was gained without traction control. It gives you a very sensitive right foot... If I turned it off I don't think I'd notice the difference as I don't ever rely on it... however, I would rather it was there for something unforseen...It might by the thing that saves me
Bincenzo said:
How many of you would, or do, routinely drive with the assists selected off on a public road?
I've been driving a V12 for a while now and I've experienced pretty much every spin, slide etc etc. I would never drive with the Traction off, if I do its for a particular reason, such as on grass and want to turn the car around or on snow etc. I don't know what the Elise has for BHP, but when you are playing with between 400 - 500+, then at 1000rpm we must be pumping out 80 - 100 bhp which is what a normal saloon car produces, you only have to rev it to 3000rpm and you are probably pumping out 250+ bhp. So in normal driving situations you are going to be fighting for traction. With even the slightest of issues such as rain, it makes a huge difference.Never before have I really understood what people were talking about when they were putting heat into their tyres. I understand this now. Fire up the engine on a cold day and you spin everywhere, warm the tyres and you regain grip again.
I drive the V12 every day all the time, so I use the auto feature about 99% of the time. Because I drive it all the time I also leave the traction control on all the time. Maybe if I used the car for a Sunday jaunt and only drove it for 1 hour on a Sunday, then I would probaly turn the Traction off and focus on the drive, but for day to day driving, defo leave it on.
- Never drive with TC on and normally drive in sport mode (unless very poor grip). On a V12V you have track mode that is brilliant in allowing a lot of slip, but can reign in a er..... over exuberence. I genuinly find the TC over intrusive for me and on the V8V I had I don't think I ever drove with TC on as it is a very well balanced car. What annoys me is that if pressing on the TC can almost halt the car for very little wheelspin, whereas with it off the car continues to accelerate nicely. On a V12V wheelspin is a given......
I can't fly a bloody RC helicopter without crashing it, so you will be fine
- NB I make no recommendation as to what other people should or should not do
I don't understand why you would want to drive on the road unprotected (even if you're a driving god like Cockernee). The traction control system is hardly intrusive is it? It still lets you slide a little bit, but there's a nice safety net there to prevent me from going through a hedge backwards
And Yeti - driving it in the snow?! You must be mad
I hate driving anything in the snow... let alone a powerful RWD car. I just wish this snow would f
k off, the only people who seem to enjoy it are children and the unemployed.
And Yeti - driving it in the snow?! You must be mad
I hate driving anything in the snow... let alone a powerful RWD car. I just wish this snow would fk off, the only people who seem to enjoy it are children and the unemployed.I love driving in the snow.. (Ice is a different story!) but snow is great fun! I did my driving test in pretty bad snow many years ago.
I must admit I havent taken the Aston out in snow yet but i go out in my daily drivers and have a little play around I am a big kid and like to slide around... in safe places of course.
I must admit I havent taken the Aston out in snow yet but i go out in my daily drivers and have a little play around
I am a big kid and like to slide around... in safe places of course. George29 said:
I don't understand why you would want to drive on the road unprotected (even if you're a driving god like Cockernee). The traction control system is hardly intrusive is it? It still lets you slide a little bit, but there's a nice safety net there to prevent me from going through a hedge backwards
Because when accelerating from a side road, the TC creates a delay that I find un-acceptable and when overtaking or cornering it creates an undesirable hesitation. I am certainly no driving god George, just a person not wanting to have my driving experience lessened by traction control. I am a control freak, so the thought of someone's programming telling me what I can and cannot do in my car screws with my head. My race cars never had TC and I managed to keep them on the circuit....... mostly 
. Interesting to ask Simon T what he does as a racing man?peterr96 said:
Cockernee said:
I can't fly a bloody RC helicopter without crashing it, so you will be fine
Fortunately the collective is on the opposite side in the Aston. I'm told it can get confusing otherwiseNeedless to say, i think I'll try pushing on with the systems selected on before testing my car control without
Edited by Bincenzo on Monday 14th January 13:57
When I first had the 9, in my wisdom, I thought I would test the acceleration. Going up a motorway slip road with a 70 limit, slightly damp, not wet, I floored it. OMG, I went from left to righ and back, but I don't mean a bit of a slip, it threw me from side to side.
I understand that the YAW control saved me and defo the car. The slip road was up on a raised piece of road. I am in no doubt that the TC saved my car (and me) from either a write off or a nasty accident.
Experience tells me not to do that now, but over 400bhp in RWD where the contact with the road is about the size of Your hand print on each wheel, demands the upmost respect.
Experience counts for a lot ......
I understand that the YAW control saved me and defo the car. The slip road was up on a raised piece of road. I am in no doubt that the TC saved my car (and me) from either a write off or a nasty accident.
Experience tells me not to do that now, but over 400bhp in RWD where the contact with the road is about the size of Your hand print on each wheel, demands the upmost respect.
Experience counts for a lot ......
TC stay on at all times on the road, usually have the sport button pressed though as it makes H+T a lot easier
TC stays on for two reasons.
On the road, you never know what is round the next bend, roundabout etc, could be diesel on the road, mud, a cow, who knows. TC is like having an extra degree of safety to help deal with the unexpected. I take it as a error on my part if it kicks in as it tells me I was trying to drive beyond the grip limit of the conditions.
It also stops me from trying to play drift hero when I get a bit too enthusiastic
If the lag you get prevents you from overtaking safely I would question if the overtake is really on in the first place.
I turned it off at the track though, good fun then!
S
TC stays on for two reasons.
On the road, you never know what is round the next bend, roundabout etc, could be diesel on the road, mud, a cow, who knows. TC is like having an extra degree of safety to help deal with the unexpected. I take it as a error on my part if it kicks in as it tells me I was trying to drive beyond the grip limit of the conditions.
It also stops me from trying to play drift hero when I get a bit too enthusiastic
If the lag you get prevents you from overtaking safely I would question if the overtake is really on in the first place.
I turned it off at the track though, good fun then!
S
Well I made it; London was fine but by the time I was at Silverstone it was snowing hard and there was a bit of a wobble during lane changes... But the traction light did not come on!
Later on and, if I'm honest, absolutely hammering it down the Fosse Way in very wet conditions I was able to rev it through 5k and beyond and still no warning llight. I do have new tyres though... But the capabilities of the car never cease to amaze me and the DB9 with DBS wheels and tyres seems to be a fantastic combination.
Going to be a long couple of weeks
Later on and, if I'm honest, absolutely hammering it down the Fosse Way in very wet conditions I was able to rev it through 5k and beyond and still no warning llight. I do have new tyres though... But the capabilities of the car never cease to amaze me and the DB9 with DBS wheels and tyres seems to be a fantastic combination.
Going to be a long couple of weeks
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