What is the point in having the option to turn "trac" off in a car?

Question

I could be mistaken, but I have a trac off button...I believe my trac is on all the time. I heard that the tires in my car could burn out if I have trac off...why would there be this option in a car? Why wouldn't I want trac on all the time?

Answer 1

Traction control can really interfere on fresh snow and ice because it detects wheel spin and cuts engine power to the spinning wheel or applies braking to the spinning wheel. The whole point of traction control is to limit spinning. So, if you can't seem to accelerate from a dead stop due to spinning wheels and power cut, you turn off the traction control. Also, turn it off if you're stuck and trying to rock yourself out. Turning it off while you're driving only shuts it down for about a minute. If you want to turn it off completely, most car makes require you to be at a full stop and then hold the button in until the traction OFF icon appears. It will automatically turn back on the next time your start the engine.

Answer 2

It can be useful to intentionally spin the drive wheels in cases where the vehicle is stuck, like in the snow for example. If there was no way to disable the traction control in those situations, you might stay stuck instead of getting out because the system wouldn't allow the tires to spin even if you wanted them to.



Some people also want the traction control off to extract maximum performance out of a car during competitive driving (usually skilled drivers driving at a racetrack). When you're intentionally trying to push a car to its limits, traction control can be a hinderance rather than a help so often times in that sort of driving the system is either shut off or "turned down" when possible to get the car to do what the driver wants in conditions the traction control system was never designed to handle/manage.

Answer 3

Turning the traction control off doesn't eliminate it completely, in most cars. It could allow to you swing out the rear end more in power turns or explore the limits of the tires or brakes before it intercedes.

For everyday driving, you want the traction control on. Only when you are at a track event or rallycross would you want to turn it off.

Answer 4

Traction control severely limits the power output of the engine in certain situations. Some times you want full power.

Answer 5

For normal driving it is safer, but if you want to spin your wheels or smoke your tires, turn it off