TIL: Traction control works off-road, even in a Rubicon!

[Mad Mac]

The first time I tried 4 low and locking diffs
in my new to me 2021 El Nacho Libre
I chugged through churned up deep sand
at the pace of an old man with a cane.
The gas pedal was floored at 2,000 RPM.

Terrified that I would lose momentum and sink
I did not take my eyes off the rutted sand
until I reached firmer ground.
Only then did I look at the instrument panel.

The front and rear diff lights had gone off,
the transfer case indicator showed neutral
and the traction control light was on.

I must have failed the shift to four low
preventing the diffs to lock.

It seemed incredible
that Nacho made it through the long sand trap
with only two high and traction control.

And if that was not bad enough
I had three passengers on board
to witness my stupidity.

After getting it sorted out
we came back around
and ran through it again,
the right way.
Victory, at last.

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[ShadowsPapa]

The front and rear diff lights had gone off,
the transfer case indicator showed neutral
and the traction control light was on.

I must have failed the shift to four low
preventing the diffs to lock.

It seemed incredible
that Nacho made it through the long sand trap
with only two high and traction control.

Not in sand, but had similar happen with my Overland on snowy and snow packed rural 2 lane hilly and curvy highways in southern Iowa. Anyone knowing that area knows nothing goes straight, no such thing as a straight road and the hills are many.
Driving back after dark I knew I'd need 4H to make it back safely. So I shifted -or thought I did.
Made it fine, no problems at all. Then things cleared up and we hit the more traveled highways and I decided to take it out of 4H. I tried and the shifter refused to move - hmmm, I was already in 2H. I had never bothered to look at the dash to see if I had actually gotten it shifted.
These can be amazing vehicles at times, and surprising.

 

[Pescatoral Pursuit]

Tazer has a TC kill that can be mapped to a steering wheel button.

I can't find button mapping instructions on the Z Auto website. Link?

The first time I tried 4 low and locking diffs
in my new to me 2021 El Nacho Libre
I chugged through churned up deep sand
at the pace of an old man with a cane.
The gas pedal was floored at 2,000 RPM.

Terrified that I would lose momentum and sink
I did not take my eyes off the rutted sand
until I reached firmer ground.
Only then did I look at the instrument panel.

The front and rear diff lights had gone off,
the transfer case indicator showed neutral
and the traction control light was on.

I must have failed the shift to four low
preventing the diffs to lock.

It seemed incredible
that Nacho made it through the long sand trap
with only two high and traction control.

And if that was not bad enough
I had three passengers on board
to witness my stupidity.

After getting it sorted out
we came back around
and ran through it again,
the right way.
Victory, at last.

There is a learning curve to this thing.

I had fun with it the other day but the drawbacks definitely outweigh the benefits.

 

[@californiajeeping]

I had to remove the tazer for interfering with an ecu tune.
Thus I’m back to having nanny traction control.

it’s an absolute hinderance if you know how to drive: I the sand dunes I overheated all 4 brakes due to the stability and traction control kicking back in when wheel speed hits a certain mph in 2wd. brakes were smelling hot got out and all 4 were obviously overheated. I’m looking into options for a total shut down of everything. On my jk I interrupted a tilt sensor in the console. Hope it’s the same for a JT.

 

[Orange01z28]

I turn it off when 4wd is engaged. Its a hindrance when in soft stratus. It tends to lock a wheel (front end) and affect steering when sliding around in soft sand and such when you want to slide.

Exactly

Traction control creates danger off-road

 

[Alan SOBX]

I leave mine on in 2H. Why not? I am on roads. If I hit a puddle, the computer is faster than me.

My "Ooops, I left in in 2H and didn’t notice because of TC" wasn’t a success. I was on my first beach drive with my new Jeep. I took a ferry to get to the island and had left my top at home because there was no rain in the forecast. I saw ominous clouds on the ferry ride. I went inside the Ranger office to get my permit and it started pouring. I ran out and started driving so the rain would fly over the windshield keeping the cab drier. I got a quarter mile out and bogged down because I was still in 2H. Stuck And spinning. After realizing that I was an idiot, I pulled it into 4H and drove right out of the problem with no issues.

I will add that the tip I read the other day on the forum about holding TC down for five seconds when in 4H so that I can lock the rear differential was a fantastic tip. I can’t wait to try that on the beach when my local beach opens to cars on September 15th.

 

[Gvsukids]

I can't find button mapping instructions on the Z Auto website. Link?

https://www.zautomotive.com/product/z_tzr_jlm/#camera-kit

 

[jav_eee]

I use the off road + on the beach with fake manual mode, even if I shut TSC all the way off, I still hear the diffs buzzing transferring power, Off road+ with the fake manual mode is best for me, still can use all the power and it sort of negates the throttle controls

Is that how you’re supposed to use it? The couple of times I’ve used OR+ it stays in first gear way too long. Like up to 5k and that’s with calm, cool beach cruising.

 

[Brojave22]

Is that how you’re supposed to use it? The couple of times I’ve used OR+ it stays in first gear way too long. Like up to 5k and that’s with calm, cool beach cruising.

suppose too ehh idk, but for me i cant stand the engine screaming like that and it also wastes gas, so i control the shifts to 2k rpm. its revving high to give you more power and grip based on feed back from the terrain, if I'm not stuck or in bad conditions, I use manual mode

 

[BearFootSam]

I generally turn it off when I'm offroad. We mostly have soft sand around here and the TCS just kills power and slows you down, the exact opposite of what you want.

For normal driving, it stays on.

I have the same finding except on steep gravel/dirt forest roads. There will be a lot of washboarding from folks going to fast or driving inappropriate vehicles and without TC off the jeep will hop a bit (2WD). I ascribe what I'm feeling to the TC cutting power to control the wheel light wheel slip which would make sense on pavement but not on these roads where that slip is an aid.

If I turn off TC the hop goes away, and the truck is much more planted with some light controlled backend drift through steep tight corners which can be managed with throttle. Same effect if I drop into 4Hi but it really isn't called for with decent tires and traction isn't really an issue otherwise. In the winter, 4WD is obligatory on these roads.

I have to give credit to the little sedans that make it some of these places, but they really do tear up the roads spinning wheels and driving too fast to keep momentum up.

 

[BearFootSam]

Is that how you’re supposed to use it? The couple of times I’ve used OR+ it stays in first gear way too long. Like up to 5k and that’s with calm, cool beach cruising.

The first time I tried OR+ (? mode) was last November. I was just 5 miles east of Yellowstone NP in whiteout conditions pulling a trailer over snow covered road and felt like it was the moment. I really just wanted to mess with the rear locker and didn't like that it was revving to all heck without the need. That would be a nice feature though in mud or deeep snow when you want some wheel spin.

Part of the fun of this thing offroad is the suite of tools at your disposal to adapt to the conditions. The flip side being that there is a real learning curve to knowing how and when to setup the system in various configurations. It reminds me of my father making a show of engaging 4wd in his XJ during blizzards as a kid. In turn I also have to make a show of engaging 'snow mode' for the benefit of my kid while ignoring the eye rolls of my wife.

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