Monty350

Could someone shed some light as to how these compare, specially for the 350z?

rotchcrocket04

iTrader: (12)

Search?

Check the top 100 Questions Thread... it may help.

Oh, and searching, give it a try.

blastoff99

iTrader: (5)

ESP is what you have when you know something is going to happen before it does.

TCS is traction control. If the computer senses that a drive wheel is spinning without moving the car forward, it will retard engine timing and / or limit engine revs to reduce the power to the drive wheels, and therefore reduce or eliminate spinning.

VDC is an electronic stability control system. It uses various sensors (wheel speed, yaw, steering wheel position, etc) to determine of the car is going the direction you want it to. If it senses trouble, it will, for instance, brake the inside rear wheel to tighten up your line in a corner.

davidv

iTrader: (2)

My ESP tells me this is deja vu all over again.

bhendjol

My ESP is telling me that youre a trool.

DavesZ#3

iTrader: (26)

He probably means EBD as that is a part of the whole ABS/TCS/VDC system. Here's the explanation...


To summarize for the sake of those who won’t read the whole thing below…

The VDC looks at steering and braking by the driver, gets info from the yaw rate/side G sensor (gyroscope) and wheel sensors. It controls braking and engine power for all four wheels.

The TCS looks at the wheel sensors of all four wheels. It controls the brakes and throttle.

The ABS looks at the wheel sensors during braking. It controls the brakes to prevent lock-up.

The EBD looks at the wheel sensors during braking. It is looking for differences between the front and rear wheels. It controls the brakes to reduce rear wheel slip.



The following is the system descriptions for all systems from the factory service manual.

VDC Function
_ In addition to the TCS/ABS function, the driver steering amount and brake operation amount are detected from the steering angle sensor and pressure sensor, and the vehicle's driving status (amount of understeering / over-steering) is determined from information from the yaw rate sensor/side G sensor, wheel sensor, etc., and this information is used to improve vehicle stability by controlling the braking and engine power to all four wheels.
_ The SLIP indicator lamp flashes to inform the driver of VDC operation.
_ During VDC operation, the body and brake pedal lightly vibrate and mechanical noises may be heard. This is normal.
_ The ABS warning lamp, VDC OFF indicator lamp, and SLIP indicator lamp might turn on when the vehicle is subject to strong shaking or large vibration, such as when the vehicle is on a turn table or a ship while the engine is running. In this case, restart the engine on a normal road, and if the ABS warning lamp, VDC OFF indicator lamp, and SLIP indicator lamp turn off, there is no problem.

TCS Function
_ The wheel spin of the drive wheels is detected by the VDC/TCS/ABS control unit from the wheel speed signals from the four wheels, so if wheel spin occurs, the rear wheel right and left brake fluid pressure control and engine fuel cut are conducted while the throttle value is restricted to reduce the engine torque and decrease the amount of wheel spin. In addition, the degree the throttle is opened is controlled to achieve the optimum engine torque.
_ Depending on road circumstances, the driver may have a sluggish feel. This is normal, because the optimum traction has the highest priority under TCS operation.
_ TCS may be activated any time the vehicle suddenly accelerates, suddenly downshifts, or is driven on a road with a varying surface friction coefficient.
_ During TCS operation, it informs a driver of system operation by flashing SLIP indicator lamp.

ABS Function
_ The Anti-Lock Brake System is a function that detects wheel revolution while braking, and it improves handling stability during sudden braking by electrically preventing 4 wheel lock. Maneuverability is also improved for avoiding obstacles.
_ If the electrical system breaks down, then the Fail-Safe function starts, the ABS becomes inoperative, and the ABS warning lamp turns on.
_ Electrical System Diagnosis by CONSULT-II is available.

EBD Function
_ Electronic Brake Distributor is a function that detects subtle slippages between the front and rear wheels during braking, and it improves handling stability by electronically controlling the Brake Fluid Pressure which results in reduced rear wheel slippage.
_ In case of electrical system break down, the Fail-Safe function is activated, the EBD and ABS becomes inoperative, and the ABS warning lamp and brake warning lamp are turned on.
_ Electrical System Diagnosis by CONSULT-II is available.

Fail-Safe Function
VDC / TCS SYSTEM
In case of Throttle Control System trouble, the VDC OFF indicator lamp and SLIP indicator lamp are turned on, and the condition of the vehicle is the same as the condition of vehicles without VDC / TCS equipment. In case of trouble to the Throttle Control System, the ABS control continues to operate normally without VDC / TCS control.
CAUTION:
If the Fail-Safe function is activated, then perform the Self Diagnosis for VDC/TCS/ABS control system.
ABS, EBD SYSTEM
In case of electrical problems with the ABS, the ABS warning lamp, VDC OFF indicator lamp and SLIP indicator lamp will turn on. In case of electrical problem with the EBD, Brake warning lamp, ABS warning lamp, VDC OFF indicator lamp and SLIP indicator lamp will turn on. Simultaneously, the VDC/ TCS/ABS become one of the following conditions of the Fail-Safe function.
1. For ABS trouble, only the EBD is activated and the condition of the vehicle is the same condition of vehicles without TCS/ABS equipment.
2. For EBD trouble, the EBD and ABS become inoperative, and the condition of the vehicle is the same as the condition of vehicles without TCS/ABS, EBD equipment.
NOTE:
In condition 1 described above, an ABS Self Diagnosis sound may be heard. That is a normal condition because a self diagnosis for “Key Switch ON” and “the First Starting” are being performed.

Monty350

Thanks DavesZ#3 (only useful reply that I got this far)

(Why is it that some people in this forum think they are smarter than others?)
Anyway...

On my new 2004.5 Z (in Europe which might change the name) there is a button to turn off ESP (Electronic Stability Program) where I would have expected the TCS button. So I wanted to understand better the difference (if any) between the two. I don't have TCS or other buttons.

jonnylaw

iTrader: (3)

Wait, the button actually says "ESP" off, not "VDC" off?

Monty350

Yes: "ESP OFF"

The question is, is ESP the equivalent of VDC for the European cars?
If you turn it off, does TCS also comes off?

DavesZ#3

iTrader: (26)

Actually, we only get one button. If you have a car with TCS, then that's the button you get (TCS Off). If you get a car with VDC, you get a VDC Off button. If you car has neither TCS or VDC, then you get no button at all.

It sounds like ESP is the equivalent of VDC.

jonnylaw

iTrader: (3)

Dave, correct me if I am wrong, but if a vehicle has VDC (ESP in Europe?), it has TCS as well, and if you push the button to turn the VDC off, doesn't the TCS stay on?

gregom

iTrader: (3)

ESP and VDC are essentially the same thing... different car manufactures use different names to describe an electronic computer program that tries to maintain some degree of vehicle control when its detected that the vehicle is out of the drivers control.

Porsche has their own, PSM, which stands for Porsche Stability Management... Its essentially the same thing as ESP (Electronic Stability Program). It's just the manufactures own variation.

Not every system is the same, they all work in slightly different ways with different amounts of interference.

Traction Control through is completely different, its not trying to keep the vehicle in control its simply trying to prevent the drive wheels from spinning beyond their available traction during acceleration, which could potentially cause loss of vehicle control.

No matter what though its all doing the same thing in the end, trying to keep you out of a ditch.

Spike100

VDC (Vehicle Dynamic Control) and ESP (Electronic Stability Program) are in fact the same thing. And, TCS (Traction Control System) is offered independently on some 350Z models, but an integral part of cars equipped with VDC or ESP (Nissan’s designated acronyms).

The simple explanation:

• TCS kills power when a rear wheel begins spinning faster than the rotation of the passive front wheels. It’s a notch below a true “vehicle-stability-system,” but provides a measure of safety.
  
• VDC (and ESP) incorporate TCS, but also apply braking differentially to keep the car pointed in the same direction as the front wheels are pointing.

As gregom points out, the acronyms are different, but the vehicle-stability-systems are similar.

--Spike

Monty350

Many thanks guys.

Now that I know that ESP and VDC are equivalent, I'll continue reading on the VDC deactivation threads :-)