I finally figured out how to control ESS at will, WITHOUT having to turn it off...

[ShadowsPapa]

I've always had a very light touch with my brakes and my factory brakes usually last me for many years. With every vehicle I've owned when I bring them in for factory services I'm always asking the shop when I will need new brakes and they keep saying "not yet". I've run many new cars to 6 digit readings on the odometer and finally sold them with the original brakes still on them.

When I bought my '22 Gladiator in May of last year for months the ESS almost never kicked in so I never considered the "problem" many seem to have with it... But then a month ago I started wondering "why" isn't it kicking in? So as the child my wife says I am I started playing with it...

It almost never kicks in because I almost never depress the brake pedal all the way! My dad, when I started learning how to drive at 9 years old (yes I had one of THOSE cool dads!) always told me that the second the brake lights go on the vehicle in front of me my foot comes OFF the accelerator. Also when I see a red light pop off in the distance I normally just coast until it turns green again or I end up coming to a very soft stop and the break never gets depressed more than it needs to be to keep the vehicle form not rolling forward anymore.

Well it seems that the mechanism that triggers ESS on the brake pedal is only triggered by a completely bottomed out pedal (I guess that's why the car starts before your foot is completely off the brake) and mine does not trip unless I do THAT on purpose. So I started playing with it until I found I can make it do what I want just by the way I stop the vehicle. My wife was not buying this until this weekend, so I showed her that I could drive all around town without the ESS kicking in, and then I made it stop on purpose 3 times in a row, once after I fully stopped the car then released the brake and let it roll forward a few feet and then I bottomed the pedal out..

Anyway, I don't believe this is unique to my Jeep and I really don't have the time to search the site to see if anyone else has experienced this. So if this is useful information, use it as you will and if not, then ignore it. I also wonder if this is an adjustable thing that someone can play with...

Yup - first learned that with my wife's 2018 Grand Cherokee. I can make it stop - or not stop - depending on brake pedal use.
The wiring diagrams and other diagnostics info show a "brake pedal pressure sensor". It's there for multiple reasons, one of which is ESS control.
So when I got my 2020 back in November 2019, I knew how to manage ESS because I'd driven my wife's 2018 WK2 quite a few times. It was easier with the 2020 than my current 2022, but still works. It's just more "sensitive" it seems.

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[Lunentucker]

Or just engage the override button...

 

[Tommyd]

Your are, a professional hypermiler.

 

[WambliSka]

Yup - first learned that with my wife's 2018 Grand Cherokee. I can make it stop - or not stop - depending on brake pedal use.
The wiring diagrams and other diagnostics info show a "brake pedal pressure sensor". It's there for multiple reasons, one of which is ESS control.
So when I got my 2020 back in November 2019, I knew how to manage ESS because I'd driven my wife's 2018 WK2 quite a few times. It was easier with the 2020 than my current 2022, but still works. It's just more "sensitive" it seems.

Interesting. Thanks for the info.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

Yeah I knew this from owning BMW's for yrs with ESS, be easy on the brake and it will not trigger. That's how it knows to start and stop I assume there is a pressure switch down there somewhere but I'm no engineer.

 

[WambliSka]

Yeah I knew this from owning BMW's for yrs with ESS, be easy on the brake and it will not trigger. That's how it knows to start and stop I assume there is a pressure switch down there somewhere but I'm no engineer.

I've rented a lot of cars with ESS over the years, but the Gladiator is the first one I've owned with this feature so I had no clue. It was fun finding out how to manipulate at will.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

I've rented a lot of cars with ESS over the years, but the Gladiator is the first one I've owned with this feature so I had no clue. It was fun finding out how to manipulate at will.

I figured they all were like that. I know our BMW X5 50i is that way and our 440i and 435i were both that way as well. I just assumed that's how the vehicles know when your stopped and when your going because they all crank back up when you release the brake.

We could also manipulate it by being easy on the brake or coasting to a stop in all the BMWs though it is a lot easier to do in the JT. We can also turn it off and it stayed off in all the BMWS by pressing the button unlike in the JT where you have to push the button again each time you start it up to get it to stay off

 

[WambliSka]

I figured they all were like that. I know our BMW X5 50i is that way and our 440i and 435i were both that way as well. I just assumed that's how the vehicles know when your stopped and when your going because they all crank back up when you release the brake.

We could also manipulate it by being easy on the brake or coasting to a stop in all the BMWs though it is a lot easier to do in the JT. We can also turn it off and it stayed off in all the BMWS by pressing the button unlike in the JT where you have to push the button again each time you start it up to get it to stay off

I work for a European company and have spent a lot of time across the pond. It's pretty much a standard feature on all my friends cars. Most drive German cars and I don't know one person that turns it off ever. It was a little disconcerting the first time I experienced it years ago. Now it's just normal.

 

[Jeeperjamie]

I work for a European company and have spent a lot of time across the pond. It's pretty much a standard feature on all my friends cars. Most drive German cars and I don't know one person that turns it off ever. It was a little disconcerting the first time I experienced it years ago. Now it's just normal.

Yeah it doesn't bother me, my wife on the other hand turns it off everytime she's in either vehicle mine or her X5, she hates it. I figure it's gotta help with Fuel economy keeping it active.

 

[Artsifrtsi]

Yeah it doesn't bother me, my wife on the other hand turns it off everytime she's in either vehicle mine or her X5, she hates it. I figure it's gotta help with Fuel economy keeping it active.

I think it got me an extra .5 to 1 mpg...

 

[Jeeperjamie]

I think it got me an extra .5 to 1 mpg...

That seems pretty accurate but still something especially with these gas prices.

 

[Orange01z28]

So, is it possible to remove that sensor from the brake pedal?

 

[WambliSka]

Yeah it doesn't bother me, my wife on the other hand turns it off everytime she's in either vehicle mine or her X5, she hates it. I figure it's gotta help with Fuel economy keeping it active.

I think it got me an extra .5 to 1 mpg...

Every bit helps. In London where the price of fuel (gas or diesel) is about 2X the USA prices, no one I know turns it off.

 

[Chad1376]

With a manual, I haven't found the ESS irritating at all, since the engine always runs if the clutch is depressed. If I know it'll be a long light, I go ahead and shift to neutral and let out the clutch. The engine will stop. When I know the light is about to turn green, push in the clutch and the engine starts before I need to start moving again. I drive it exactly the same as other MT cars I've owned.

Except, I don't attempt heal-toe rev-match downshifts while braking. Pedals and shifter are way too clunky for that - LOL.

 

[Rufus]

So, is it possible to remove that sensor from the brake pedal?

I was wondering the same thing. On F150's you can disconnect the trailer brake controller behind the brake pedal in about 5 seconds and if you aren't trailering the only thing it does is defeat ASS.

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