lincoln zephyr traction control

99accent

My daughter has a L Zephyr with traction control , I read the-manual and its very confusing on that particular item, should the switch for the Traction cont be on or off while driving on a normal good dry road ?">

brucelinc

Traction control is active whenever you start the car. The switch disables it. Your daughter will probably never need to touch the switch. In some cases of heavy snow, it may be desirable to disable it so the wheels can spin and dig down to some surface with more traction but that would be about the only time she would ever want to disable the traction control.

99accent

THANKS BECAUSE MY DAUGHTER WAS OVER TO SEE ME AND SHE SAID SHE LEAVES IT OFF BUT SHE DOESN'T KNOW ITS ON,SO I TOLD HER THE ONLY TIME TO TAKE IT OFF IS IN SNOW. SO THANKS FOR THE ADVICE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THIS TRACTION SYSTEM ,IT ALL MAKES SENSE NOW.

99accent

">Electronic traction control I was wondering if this changes the spark management or timing to slow the engine down when in or on a slippery surface ?

rhtrans

There are a few ways Traction control can work. One is reducing engine torque by modifying the amount of fuel entering the engine when detecting a wheel slip.. Another is using the abs system to apply braking pressure to the wheel that is slipping. And in some vehicles it uses the transmission to reduce torque by commanding a higher gear...say third gear when your taking off from a stop to reduce wheel slip.

99accent

I HEAR OF THE abs SYSTEM MORE SO THAN THE ENGINE CONTROL ,where did you get your resourses. my daughter really needs to know if shes doing the right thing by driving with the traction control on or off ,if you have any documentation I would appreciate it thanks ..

brucelinc

Your owners manual provides the documentation she needs. Here is what it says:

The Traction Control switch is
located on the instrument panel.
The Traction Control system will
automatically turn on every time the
ignition is turned off and on. The
Traction Control system should
normally be left on.
If you should become stuck in snow
or ice or on a very slippery road
surface, try switching the Traction
Control system off by pressing the
switch on the instrument panel. Switching the Traction Control system
off may allow excess wheel spin to “dig” the vehicle out and enable a
successful “rocking” maneuver. When the Traction Control system is
off, an indicator light will illuminate and will remain on until the system
is turned back on or the ignition is turned off and on.

brucelinc

http://media.ford.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=23496&make_id=trust

The link above provides more information.

99accent

Im a bit confused between the manuals operation and the articles operation of the traction control on slippery surfaces here's what's confusing,perhaps you could explain.[this what the manual states]= If you should become stuck in snow
or ice or on a very slippery road
surface, try switching the Traction
Control system off by pressing the
switch on the instrument panel.
[ this is what the articles states ]=Traction control on the V-6 test car was just right -- perhaps unique in all the industry," Healey wrote. "It allowed tire spin when starting forcefully on slick roads and gradually eased the spinning without trying to stop it, allowing the car to keep moving forward as traction was gained. It should be unusually effective in winter

brucelinc

Bottom line is to leave it on all the time. If you become stuck....meaning that you are not able to move at all....you can try switching it off so the tires will dig.

With this system, it is unlikely you will become stuck unless you are driving through the deepest snow on unplowed streets. In that case the bottom of the car will drag and you are probably not going anywhere, anyway. As for taking off on ice, even on an incline, a light foot on the gas and the traction control system left on will likely get you moving.

Again, leave it on and let it do it's job.

99accent

I drove my daughters Lincoln myself today and found out why its so confusing ,
Why,? the red light comes on only when you turn the traction switch to OFF,you would think this should be the opposite to let the driver know its on,however it [the traction control] is on when the car is started again and the light stays off. .Thanks so much on your efforts to help me with this I really appreciate it.

99accent

will I have any issues when I change the battery in my Lincoln 2006 Zephyr other than resetting the clock and radio , will I have to reset the remote that came with the car ,not remote start?