it should. maybe it'll lower insurance...

 

F1 cars have 800+ horsepower and 1000+lbs of weight... Not a measly 240hp and 2700lbs like the S2k. You can't nail the throttle in top gear in an F1 car below 200mph without breaking the tires loose. S2000's don't have that problem. They also aren't nearly as twitchy as a suspension on an F1 car.

And I have been on the track in rain and cold (I was AutoCrossing just this past Sunday when it was raining, 20+mph winds, and about 50 degrees outside). I didn't have any problems controlling my S2000.

Seriously... Get some track time and you will soon realize that traction control can do you more harm than good (the first time it "cut throttle" on me in a turn on my M3 that I had, it almost put me straight into a curb, and the tail BARELY stepped out... it was something I could have easily just countersteered for a split second and caught it, but no, the stupid car tried to think FOR me and almost ruined my day... Thankfully I knew when to put two feet down when things got out of hand).

 

I used the cruise control once. Only after 12hrs of driving and my right knee starting to lock up tho.

 

Cruise control? I won't have a car without it. In fact, I've even got one on my motorcycle! If the S2000 didn't come with it, I'd be adding it any way I could. On long trips, it's the only way to go as far as I'm concerned.

Unless the traffic is unusually heavy, if I'm on the freeway, I will have the cruise engaged. I'm not saying this is you, Koala, but I can't tell you the number of times I watched some idiot approach me from the rear while on the interstate over a period of 20 miles or so. They finally catch up with me and pass, "very" slowly, pull in front of me and SLOW DOWN! It's very aggrevating!

Speaking for myself, I find that I arrive at my destination much more refreshed using the cruise than I do if I don't use it. Besides, I've found that I can't hold speed worth a flip after a couple of hours on the road and I've found that 98% of the drivers on the freeways can't either. No offense, but if you're on a long highway drive, you probably need to use the cruise.

FWIW,
Drive Safe,
Steve R.

 

I think stability management is a great thing. I have seen my roommate do some stupid(read inexperienced/ never autocrossed in his life) driving with his IS300 and amazingly the stability management saved his behind. I mean he came into the corner way too fast and never mind dropping the throttle he also braked. To me stability management can make a great driver better, but seems to make an inexperienced driver worse.

However, when driving my car he was amazed at the handling and balance of the car. Only reason he was driving is cuz I was trashed, and I made it a point to tell him to be smooth as the rear end will come around easy and there is not traction control to save you.

I wouldn't want SM on my car, it handles amazingly the way it is, and forces me to learn how to drive the car properly.

 

Instead of reading through all these posts, I'll just get right to the point:

Don't lift-off mid-corner.

 

when you idiot proof something, it just leads to bigger idiots.

 

Before the S2K, I had a C5 coupe with the traction control and the Active Handling.

On a track, I had them turned off, no problems... On the roads, its a nice cushion against the "what if" factor.

It also depends on how/where you drive the car. My S2000 was controllable on the icy roads in Portland OR a couple of years back, but it would have been nice to not have to worry about the back end as much for that 25 mile drive. Of course, more stress was added by the idiots in their SUVs blowing past me like the roads were dry.

In the Vette, traction control and AH rarely kicked in during regular driving, even in cold and bad weather.

Heck, if you can turn it off totally (something you apparently can't do in the BMW), whats the harm?

In the Vette, you can have T/C and AH, or just AH in the competitive mode, or totally have everything off.

and when its off, its OFF

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Russ
I think these systems in many cases instill a false sense of security with owners and encourage them to push automobiles further than their appropriate skill level can handle.

 

I am amused when I hear about how you have had a car four or five years and never needed the stability control. You just haven't been around the block enough times. In 32 years of driving I have had two instances where I used the ABS or traction control, and it saved my butt both times. Driving schools and track time will make you a better driver, but in a moment of sheer panic I want traction control and ABS on my side.

Rick