Electronic Stability Control (ESC) helps prevent a vehicle from skidding - and the driver from losing control of their vehicle - when cornering, braking sharply or making a sudden manoeuvre. ESC technology automatically activates the brakes to help steer the vehicle in the correct direction. Electronic Stability Control (ESC) is a revolutionary technology available on newer cars. It helps keep the vehicle on the right track and ultimately reduces the risk of accidents and collisions due to oversteer or understeer.
Although all ESC systems work basically the same, there can be slight differences between them, which is why car manufacturers often give their systems their own names. You may see it advertised with terms such as Vehicle Stability Assist (Acura), AdvanceTrac (Ford), StabiliTrak (General Motors) or Vehicle Dynamic Control (Nissan), among others. In short, ESC is supposed to help keep the vehicle moving in the same direction the driver wants to go. ESC automatically applies the brakes to each of the car's wheels, thus preventing the vehicle from spinning or rolling away.
It is important to understand how your particular control system works because the esc light on the dashboard could have multiple meanings. ESC helps prevent the car from "spinning" or "spinning out" due to loss of traction on the road. Comparatively, skidding, sometimes called understeer, can occur when a driver enters a curve while accelerating or braking, and the front wheels lose control due to reduced traction from ice, oil or other road conditions. All major car manufacturers offer some form of ESC; these systems can be found in cars, trucks, SUVs and even motorhomes.
And if it is an ESC defect, you should take your car to an auto shop to correct the problem as soon as possible. Since electronic stability control is essentially an extension of ABS and TCS, it is usually safe to drive a vehicle that has an ESC malfunction. While ESC can help reduce the risk of rollovers and jackknifing, it will not necessarily prevent your car from rolling over. You can search by vehicle year and make, to see a list of models that have ESC as a standard or optional feature, as well as models that do not have ESC as an option at all.
You can find the recommended tyre pressure for your vehicle printed on a sticker on the driver's door frame of your vehicle or in the owner's manual. The reduction in fatal single-vehicle rollovers is the most dramatic, and drivers with ESC are 75% more likely to survive such accidents than drivers without ESC. In some cases, the ESC light comes on if your car is actively trying to maintain traction control. If your ESC was manually deactivated, there is a button on your car that you can use to reactivate it.
Systems like traction control and anti-lock brakes help us maintain control during acceleration and braking, but electronic stability control (ESC) is designed to prevent you from losing control in other circumstances.
