traction control

[chazman]

i am interessted in another marauder it does not have the traction control option which means no button. my other car does,what is the difference with these options. will it affect drivability not having traction control button. also is this something that i could install at a later time if needed? any help is appreciated thank you

[CBT]

I guess it's good to have the traction control button, but as soon as I start the car I turn off over drive and turn off traction control. I like sliding the car around and spinning the tires too much to have constant traction control applying the brakes. Defeats the purpose.

[fastblackmerc]

The traction control doesn't apply the brakes... it cuts power. Scary to say the least. I turn mine off every time I start the car.....

[MOTOWN]

i have it on mines, i never touch it, forgot its even there!

[chazman]

is trac control off or on when button is glowing orange?

[BLACKMARAUDER04]

Having a non-supercharged Marauder, I leave mine virtually on all the time. The purpose of it is to prevent wheel spin in case of lost traction.

For example in my 1986 Thunderbird, it didn't have traction control.
I was going around a turn in the road when I spun on some dirt on the roadway and did some damge to the front end.

Traction control will retard the engine to avoid that tire slippage.
The light on the dash will light up and your engine will cut back till the wheel slippage ends.

Personally, I'm glad I have it.

[chazman]

so is trac control off when orange light is on or does this enable trac control?

[MOTOWN]

so is trac control off when orange light is on or does this enable trac control?

that means its off

[BLACKMARAUDER04]

If traction control button is lit after initail enginge start, traction contol is off.

[chazman]

ok thanks alot . also it is an 03 with a early build date anything to watch out for or major known problems with early builds?

[TFB]

ok thanks alot . also it is an 03 with a early build date anything to watch out for or major known problems with early builds?

Yeah, they don't have traction control(which I could care less about)...

Seriously I haven't heard of any real problems...

[fastblackmerc]

ok thanks alot . also it is an 03 with a early build date anything to watch out for or major known problems with early builds?

PM Roylpita your VIN and he can tell you if the rear axles have been changed.

As for the traction control....

When you start the car the light on the switch will glow just like all the other indicators in the dash. This is to tell you if the bulb is burned out.

Traction control by default will be engaged when you start the car - light will be off. When you push the right side of the button the light comes on and the traction control is off.

[rayjay]

I beleve it would rather costly to retro fit a car with TC. TC is useful in the winter. Saved mine more than once.

[RF Overlord]

anything to watch out for or major known problems with early builds?1) Bad axle shafts, especially the passenger side
2) wiring harness mis-routed near the back of the driver's head can cause intermittent electrical problems.
3) tire pressure spec'd too low (32) causing premature wear...changed to 35 for '04

[4play]

The traction control doesn't apply the brakes... it cuts power. Scary to say the least. I turn mine off every time I start the car.....

it does both. thats why when the abs quits so does your traction control.

[MOTOWN]

it does both. thats why when the abs quits so does your traction control.

thats incorrect bud! fastblackmerc has it right

[CBT]

So how is it people who had it ON and got stuck in snow managed to turn thier rear rotors cherry red and warped them. Because the engine cut power?

[Bluerauder]

i am interessted in another marauder it does not have the traction control option which means no button. my other car does,what is the difference with these options. will it affect drivability not having traction control button. also is this something that i could install at a later time if needed? any help is appreciated thank you

Early 2003 MMs had no traction control (these are the 300A models)

Traction control was added in a 2003 mid-year change (these are the 300B models)

All 2004 MMs have traction control.

So, I think that more MMs (60%) have TC than those that don't (40%) .... using rough numbers.

The traction control feature is intended to detect wheel spin or slippage and automatically decreases power until traction is regained. While TC may be considered an unnecessary feature on a performance vehicle like the Marauder, it can actually help you out under certain driving conditions. Under normal driving, you won't notice a difference.

Personally, I would rather have TC and the ability to turn it off when I want to play. If you don't have it, you can't turn it on. Others here may have a different opinion.

Do I need traction control? Probably not .... but I have been driving rear wheel drive vehicles for nearly 45 years. My foot "automatically" lifts off the accelerator when I "feel" the rear end break loose. TC does this faster and maybe even before your "seat of the pants" notices what is happening. The difference may only be in fractions of a second .... but 1/2 second or less may make the difference between coming all the way around or hitting a guardrail or another vehicle.

In 8 years of ownership, I can only recall TC activating twice on wet and slippery roads. Both times were on a turn. In one case, the rear end stepped out nearly 18 inches. I came off the gas really fast; but TC was already on the job and the car snapped back into its lane. Could I have saved it on my own .... maybe ..... maybe not. Good thing that I didn't have to find out. Some here have found out the hard way.

Again, I'd rather have TC and be able to turn it off to "play" or "race" or "whatever".

If you don't have it, you CAN'T turn it on and it will be rather expensive to add it.

Your call based on your own driving experience and skills. If most of your experience thus far has been with front wheel drive vehicles ... TC could be a benefit to you IMHO.


That's my :twocents:

[B.C. Bake]

So how is it people who had it ON and got stuck in snow managed to turn thier rear rotors cherry red and warped them. Because the engine cut power?

I thought it just applied braking pressure to the wheel that's spinning faster than the other?:confused:

[4play]

Just called a ford tech like I said it does both. That would explain why my rear pads last about the same as the front. Oh ya and I just remembered. 4 years ago I had an 05 Vic with an open differential got her stuck on the side of the road (one rear tire in some deep snow) I had the traction turned off at the time didn't even budge intact the pumpkin was just touching the ground. But the left tire was still touching dry pavement. So I turned on traction and gave her. The tire on the pavement suddenly had traction (but how can that be with an open differential? Maybe the engine cut power and activated the optional electronic automatic differential lockup clutches?

[RoyLPita]

4play is right. You can disconnect a rear ABS sensor and have the ABS system and T/C lights come on.

[rayjay]

When mine was DD I turned off the TC to get moving and then turned it back on once I was going. I could not make my hill with it on and snow on the road. As I've stated before it saved my MM more than once in the winter, but was totally useless the time I completely lost it on black ice.
I did find it interesting that it often detected slippage before I could and I have many, many years of experience driving on icy snow covered roads having been in law enforcement in the snowbelt for 34 years.