Nothing wrong with turning TC off...just make sure you understand the car's limits before you do anything rash.

 

[QUOTE Yeah but in those days how many cars out there had over 300 horses? You are right though, you don't really need TC. But it's there for your safety, so if you want to put that in jeopardy, so be it. I'd only condone it if you're in a controlled environment, like a track.[/QUOTE]



In no way am I downplaying the safety advantage of TC, its just that people make it sound like you are committing suicide if you drive with it off. It comes down to how well the driver knows the car.

 

To thrillhouse's comment, the second I turn off TC the steering wheel is instantly lighter and smoother

 

+1. I turned it off in the G35 because its VERY noticable when it kicks in, but in the g37 now it is very subtle and i hardly turn it off.

 

hmm...think it has anything to do with the lsd?

 

I turn off the TC on dry days... tried goin sideways on wet roads a while back and learned my lesson and ended up facing the wrong way (luckily no harm no foul, wouldn't have tried it if there were other cars around).

But on dry days and good conditions, with a proper driver, go for it. Just use your head!

 

Funny you should say that. The first time I turned off the TC was on wet pavement on twisty country roads. the plan was to enter the turn in a controlled manner and drift as I'm exiting. That was the first time I discovered that 330 angry horses with nothing to hold em back can be a problem. Before I knew it, I was facing the other way. Thankfully I was smart enough to give it a try when no other cars were around or it would've been bad.

 

The traction control has saved me a couple times in bad weather. I always keep it on,unless the weather is sunny and dry. Any bit of dampness on the roads and the rear end just breaks lose and will slip and slide all over. I actually hydroplaned one night on the interstate going 60 mph around curve in the road and the rear end started to slide out on me. Scared the **** out of me and the SLIP light came on and the car came back in line. It can be annoying during spirited driving, but unless you are able to countersteer and know what to do when the rear end slips and you start fish tailing, then ide advise keeping it on for safety of others on the road and your car.

 

It's all in your head.

 

You need to really take your car to the track and figure out the difference. The main difference is when the car is at the edge. People that refer to it as a "nanny" will be thanking the car when they get in to a situation in rain or other potentially dangerous driving conditions that they end up needing it. VDC can brake individual wheels of the car without affecting others that have traction. VDC is very good at what it was intended to do, but you have to realize that if you want the full control of the car, you would have to turn VDC off.

On a seperate note, yes people drove without VDC for the longest time, but people also drove without automatic gear boxes and ABS. these things are common place now because they make driving EASIER for the day to day. if you are racing, you need to drive with it on and off to see which you like better.

To answer the question directly, i leave mine on unless i intentionally want to slide, and even then I don't give it enough to let it get away from me.

 

Man am I glad I don't have a Viper. 500+ hp and no traction control??? That must be like suicide.

 

Yeah, its interesting actually. It has wider tires then ours by default, so when I drove one (put about 100 city miles/back country worth of driving on it), I was surprised how well it handled. I never drove it in the rain/cold though, so its hard to compare it to the G in those conditions. I found it very predictable and easy to control under the limit in mid 80's temps and dry weather though.

But I know someone who wrecked one because they popped the clutch in third and it broke loose (it always does under full acceleration for a short period even up to 4th scratch). They wrecked it but it was just sliding around in a ditch that wasn't deep, so nothing major, just $20,000..........lol

 

There's a difference between Traction Control and Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC), both of which our vehicles have, however, correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you only have the ability to turn on/off the VDC capability, not traction control, which is always on.

If you can turn off traction control, where is the switch? It's not the VDC button.

Infiniti's definition of both from the G37 brochure:

"Vehicle Dynamic Control (VDC): Acting in tandem with the Traction Control System, VDC compares actual vehicle cornering performance to the driver's input, adjusting power levels and applying appropriate brake pressure to individual wheels to help correct oversteer or understeer, helping keep the vehicle on the steered path. Less intrusive on the driver than competitive systems, it helps you achieve a higher level of control more organically."

"Traction Control System (TCS): To help enhance rear-wheel grip when accelerating, the G Coupe's Traction Control System senses wheelspin and automatically reduces engine output and/or brakes the spinning wheel to help give you a surer foothold."

 

I got the brochure in the other room and will have to go look that up. But there is no mention of TCS in the owners manual or the shop manual.
I'll look into this a little deeper.

 

I find that I have to turn off the traction control in very heavy snow if they haven't plowed the streets yet just to get through the snow and not get stuck (I have winter tires and rims on the G). I also find that I have to turn it off if I am driving on a road that is so icy that the G won't even move forward from a stop sign, then the moment I get going I turn traction control back on. But that's only in EXTREME icy conditions. In normal icy situations keeping it on is fine.

Basically want happens in the heavy snow, and extreme ice is that the traction control retards acceleration to the point that the car is going to get stuck in snow, or stall out on the ice. These are very specific circumstances though, and I turn the traction control back on again right away the moment I'm past whatever it was I needed to get by.

I also live in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, so we get a lot of snow and ice up here.

-RP