I was out earlier today and hit a bendy section of a local bypass that seemed to have soaked up more water than the rest. The traction control lit up as we rounded the bend, but it didn't bog down as I was expecting based on other people's experiences - instead it felt as if it was shuffling power between the front tyres, and settled into a very smooth controllable slide allowing me to balance the power and exit the bend completely unruffled.

I've noticed on other occasions where the grip has gone suddenly, it hasn't cut the power off in line with expectations (the wet roundabout exit syndrome) and wondered why. I remember reading in the manual that there was an option that used the brakes lightly to hold a slipping wheel so that more torque would transfer across the diff to the opposite side, and wondered if that was a standalone option. My car only has ASR marked on the button which I don't believe is that sophisticated and cuts power rather than shifting it.

Does ASR always killl power in the way many people describe, and is there a chance that I have an extra option fitted that tightens it up? If so, how would I tell?

ASR will kill the power if both wheels spin IIRC. The option you're talking about is EDL (electronic diff lock). It's not really a diff lock, but merely brakes one spinning wheel. I had an A3 without ASR but with EDL, and if you got on ice, it would shuffle power from left to right and back.

I was always under the impression that ASR braked wheels if one is faster than the other. If both are spinning madly then i thought it would cut power. Have had very similar experiance when hitting standing water to what you describe and always turn the TC off. Can get a bit hairy on the motor way with it on, snatching brakes and things

Does ASR always killl power in the way many people describe, and is there a chance that I have an extra option fitted that tightens it up? If so, how would I tell?

You will either have a switch that says ASR (standard on the vRS) or ESP (option) on the dashboard. EDL as far as i'm aware was never on the 'options list'.

Steve:)

Ahh nice one, thank you - I was wondering about that I must have got lucky, as it seems that my traction control seems to actually do what I'd like it to without killing all my power when I need it .

i reason it didn't go mad at you is because it was only a gentle wheel slip rather than massive spin from stand still

oh yeah, i thought EDL was standard on all octavia's

i reason it didn't go mad at you is because it was only a gentle wheel slip rather than massive spin from stand still

Had those too, doesn't seem to make any difference The roundabout just down the road has a serious bump as you enter it from the city centre, and it'll flash the traction control light up immediately but never bogs down

Rev it and drop the clutch, trust me you will be stranded for what seems like a very long moment :thumbdwn: Though with good pedal control I find the asr is excellant for launching in the wet at busy junctions

I was always under the impression that ASR braked wheels if one is faster than the other. If both are spinning madly then i thought it would cut power. Have had very similar experiance when hitting standing water to what you describe and always turn the TC off. Can get a bit hairy on the motor way with it on, snatching brakes and things

ESP will brake wheels to correct vehicle direction.

ASR doesnt use the brakes at all.

But EDL uses the abs to provide grip should a wheel spin.

All pretty confusing.

Though with good pedal control I find the asr is excellant for launching in the wet at busy junctions

I think it might be that I've never owned a turbo-ed car before this one so I'm probably balancing the throttle differently to smooth out the initial surge into boost rather than hoofing it and waiting for the power to catch up

Either way, it seems to do exactly what I'd imagined it should, so smiles all round

TBH this sounds like how ASR works on the TDi110; it backs the power off and stops you accelerating, but doesn't actually slow you down in any way.

I suspect the answer might be to switch it off for launching on a wet curve, but leave it on otherwise.

It's far from the worst traction control I've felt. It does seem to work better when you're already moving too. TBH though, anything is going to feel rubbish after you've experienced proper traction control that does advance retarding and ignition cut. Most of the time you never notice that and when it gets to ignition cut time it sounds cool :P It's completely impractical for a mass production car though since it causes rather serious exhaust temperatures if used lots.

Of course, with a electronic pump and throttle diesel you can back out the fuelling to cut power.