I turn it off when dealing with sloppy mud, it lets me build up a little wheel spin to keep the tread from packing up. To actually turn it off press and release (soft off) then press and hold until the traction control light starts flashing.
As @BobLoblaw stated; ESP usually cannot actually be turned off, and it will function in a limited capacity. In the case of most Infiniti for example, the button does fully disable the system, but braking enables it for the duration of braking. The only way to actually kill it is to take the shifter console panel off and unplug the gyroscope; which of course triggers a check-engine light. People have spliced the thing with a switch to get around that issue. Code does not need to be dropped.
On the fords it disables until you press the button again, shut off and restart engine, or go faster than 35mph. At least on the trucks.
That’s what I did in the Mazda. I keep the part lying around since I don’t plan on keeping it forever.
Disabling the ABS should do it too since systems like that often use the ABS wheel speed sensors to operate. Since my car is 23 years old, I don’t really have to worry about any of that junk.
FYI: On the Focus ST, you get 3 modes:
Normal:
ESP Light / TC Light (allows for slippage but will reign you in)
Full off / Godspeed
Oddly specific but can someone in the US tell me if the '96 and '00 Ford Taurus / Mercury Sable is trash or not, there’s a '96 Mercury sable for sale and I kinda want it.
Might sound like an odd thing to want to an americans ears but Mercury was never sold here, and the Taurus was an american ford so that wasn’t sold here either, so it would be nice to have a more exclusive car as my cheap daily beater instead of say an old vectra or felicia.
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one question, is it the Vulcan V6 (pushrod 3.0) or the duratec V6? (DOHC 3.0)
Unfortunately it doesn’t say it in that form but if it helps there are the following details on the engine:
- GS
- 145hp
EDIT: There’s also a 2002 ford taurus SES which is actually cheaper but the reason I wasn’t considering that as much was it has 300k km on it and the Sable has 190k km
As someone who’s owned 2 of them, they’re decent cars for a fairly low amount of money (in the US at least).
That one is most likely a Vulcan, as most Duratecs had badging indicating the presence of it.
As for Vulcan Vs. Duratec: The Duratec is definitely the better engine, but if you just want a simple, cheap cruiser, the Vulcan will work just fine (remember that I’ve had both Vulcan and Duratec equipped versions).
Just be sure you always service the transmission on time.
I won’t lie the '02 taurus is looking a lot more attractive to me right now than the '96 Sable (especially since the Sable is a 4h drive away and the taurus is in my neighbourhood)
But I’m uncertain about buying a car with 300k kilometres on it (that’s close to 190k miles) even if it’s well kept, even though I’ve heard that you can use a ford basically forever. Even if I’ll probably have that car for only 2 years or so.
So long as you service that transmission, nothing will stop it. My 02 Sable had 237k miles (381k kilometers) when I got it, and it ran perfectly fine.
I can probably find out the service schedule from MOT or the owner then, i’m guessing, thanks! Will post a my car about it if I end up sealing the deal.
EDIT: Great News! It has the duratec rather than the vulcan engine
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Good. The 24v engine has decent power (in yhe us) and is super reliable. As others have stated, take care of the tranny and youll be doing great.
My dad has bought like 8 of those over yhe years usually super cheap with a bad trans just so he could put in another trans and resell or use as his daily.
Yeah I’m just rather curious what exactly taking care of the transmission means with this one.
Change fluid st the regular intervals and dont beat the crap out of it with neutral drops or aggressively changing gears yourself (basic care-taking)
They can last a while if you go easy on it even if they start whining or show other signs of failing
My driving style is basically the definition of chill so sounds like it should be fine
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I run the Civic ragged, but that slushbox is a tough machine. But I’m having the filter and fluid changed within the week. I should’ve done this when I bought the car, but I didn’t know just how solid it was. Now that I know it runs strong, I can justify putting more money into it.
I have a very specific one about winter tires.
I regularly see two versions of the same tire (i.e. Continental Wintercontact TS860 or Michelin Alpin 5)
- one of them speed index T (190 km/h)
- the other speed index H (210 km/h)
How comes the difference? And, more important, is there ANY disadvantage to the 210km/h rated ones if theyre about the same price?
I’d guess the only issue might be tire wear but I’m no expert