One of my other cars, a 2007 Mercedes S550 has several programs (body roll, traction control, etc) that are great for bad weather and everyday safe driving, but really get in the way of the handling and performance of the car. For example, when the features are active, the car has a 0-60 time of almost 8 seconds and is sluggish to respond to acceleration or high speed turns, however, once the systems are shut off (through their various menus) the car can do a 0-60 in just under 6 seconds and lets you take turns any way you want. My question is how much do the ESP programs, etc, on the A4 hold back the car? Am I likely to see any real world difference in performance between the systems off and on, such that I see with the S550? I do see the ESP on my A4 dash come up every so often, but like the S550, I'm wondering if the systems are actively controlling the car even if a message is not displayed indicating as such. Any experiences or numbers from people who have experimented with this would be great.

 

I usually use mine when it rains . Why? idk i dont see the differnce. But it will come on when your tires start to lose traction and will then disable if you have it off.

 

Our ESP has several methods that it uses to keep us safe, reverse ABS to brake the wheel that starts to slip, followed by throttle reduction if that brakingdoesn't satisfy the sensors. If you're just accelerating in a straight line on ice or snow, you'll feel the throttle cut back even with your foot to the floor, when it energizes. But if you're turning at an intersection (~100 ft radius) and the car senses extreme oversteer or understeer, you'll feel the brakes grab in an effort to correct the error between steering wheel input and expected wheel speeds. The first time it happens it will startle you, it did me.

I'm not a big fan of the ESP. Quattro's have such good distribution of power to the ground that my B5 (no ESP) could be steered with the throttle in low traction conditions. It took a little parking lot practice to aclimate the first year, but it is a skill that kept me out of several ditches over the years. I'm talking sub 40 mph, not limited access highway speeds. Quattro works with power on, meaning foot into the throttle. ESP takes power away, to correct the slip that it senses. Just as the car starts to yaw, the brakes pulse. I actually turn it off when it snows on my commute. On the highway I leave it on, but around town I feel more comfortable with it off. I enjoy driving, both throttle and steering control are part of that activity. I just add it to the list of things where government and big business are trying to protect me from myself.

I don't think you would see any difference in dry road acceleration times, as quattro will get the power to the road without wheel spin to begin with. Wet roads might show a bit of time difference, but I know I can accelerate better with ESP "off" in the snow since the computer doesn't want to let the tires spin at all and a little spin keeps the sipes biting. I would agree that it is "on" for everyday driving and "off" for spirited driving or when you are already aware that conditions are not good. It does provide a safety net if you are not already aware of bad or changing road conditions though.

 

When I'm driving up Berthoud Pass in Colorado on a snow-packed switchback
ESP stands for E lectronic S ubaru P unisher

 

My lovely bride of 20 years has been instructed by the dealer (and by me) to leave ESP turned on at all times. She is not a spirited driver, nor does she want to be one.

I turn off ESP when *I* want to make the decisions on how the car behaves in certain conditions (wet roads, snow, etc...). When I want Audi's computer program to make decisions on how the car behaves, I turn it on/leave it on.

 

Electronic Subaru Punisher...nice

 

the ESP feature is on full time,i think. so if i don't push the ESP button, it is running in the background all the time.

one time i took a sharp corner on icy conditions and the esp wasn't "turned on" with the button push, and when the front right tire lost traction the ESP kicked in to correct the slippage and the ESP symbolflashed when it was being used and then turned off when i got traction.