abaazov

does anyone know why the gx beeps when traction control is engaged by the car? is there any way to shut the beeping off? also does everyone's car make a ticking noise when the traction control is doing its job? can anyone explain what it is exactly?
TIA
amnon

The G Man

Beeping or ticking, either way, it is trying to tell you to slow down.

abaazov

really??? so when i slowly accelerate after a light turns green, and it beeps, it's telling me to stop???
keep it to yourself

The G Man

No, its not telling you to stop. Its telling you the road is slick, so keep it slow. I like this safety feature on the GX. If you dont then try to disable the beeper.

loflin

Tell us some more, maybe we can help. The Trac Control and VSC in explained in the manual started about pg 430 (in the 2005 manual).

If your saying your Traction Control is lighting and buzzing when you "start slowly" and on dry pavement, then you have a problem.

It the buzzing continues, this is the warning that Trac Control is now temporarily off, due to a brake overheat issue (due to overuse of Trac Control dictated by you "overdriving" for the conditions).

P.S. When you post a question and someone takes the time to answer it, like G-man did, with basically the correct answer. The fact that you don't understand or like the answer, is not cause to insult a person trying to help you. Otherwise you might not find much help here (or other boards).

abaazov

no, the traction control is not buzzing when on dry pavement, but when on an icy road. i understand the traction control, i believe it is working fine, i was wondering why it had to beep, and is there any way to get rid of the beep. also i was wondering if anyone could explain how the traction control worked, mechanically speaking. when it is engaged there is a ticking sound, i guess when one of the wheels is being "braked". i just wanted to know if someone could explain exactly what that ticking or braking sound from under the car was.

p.s. i apreciate immensely all the help and responses i've gotten here. what i didnt appreciate was what i thought was a somewhat condescending tone. there is no need to tell someone to slow down, he must be driving too fast. i do not see it my place to criticize others' driving habits, specially since i do not know them. i know Gman is trying to help, but no need to make it sound like i dont know what i'm doing.

amnon

The G Man

amnon, I wasn't criticizing you for driving too fast, I was basically saying the VSC beep is nice a safety feature to warn someone to keep it slow. A lot of people simply don’t know when their VSC is activated, the beep and the light is a good visual and audio warning.
As far as I know, the VSC beep is not a customize option that you can turn off. Just like the seat belt beeper, it is a safety feature that most dealers will not turn off. I have read on other forums that people have gone as far as pulling the buzzer out from the dash, it is part of the instrument cluster.

V8_Fan

I think it beeps when it's unable to compensate for the loss of traction, like if you turn too fast on ice.

loflin

abbaazov, for completeness on this item...

first your question: " does anyone know why the gx beeps when traction control is engaged by the car?"

G-man answer: " Beeping or ticking, either way, it is trying to tell you to slow down "

Operative part of answer is IT is trying to tell you.., not G-man

No one was commenting or "criticizing" your driving.

Anyway, have your read the references in the manual, I cited. It actually has a VERY thorough explanation of what is going on (much more then you might expect in a Car manual).

But to summerize:

- if you hear/feel mechanical noise that is the Traction Control and/or VSC applying the brakes quickly and independently at the wheels

This is normal

- if you have a warning buzzer sounding, then this is truely a warning (according to Lexus's design engineers, not me).

The buzzer indicates that the vehicle is being operated beyond the capability of the TC/VSC to do it's job.

If the buzzer continues, then that means, the TC/VSC system was trying so hard to compensate that the brake system was in danger of overheating, and so now the TC/VSC has GIVEN UP and is no longer even working. Until it cools down.

So for YOUR situation it would seem either:

- according to Lexus the car is being overdriven for the conditions

or

- if you feel that the driving conditions are "normal" then there is a problem with the TC/VSC system or your brakes and it should be checked out

Good luck.

abaazov

ok let's get it out of the way, i apologize to Gman, i overreacted i guess. no harm no foul i hope.
well now i think there might be a problem with my brakes/tc/vsc because definitely my driving habits are not extreme. we did have extreme weather conditions here in montreal the last couple of weeks, but still, i will have it checked. i will keep you guys posted on what lexus says.
thanks for the info loflin.
amnon

The G Man

No apology necessary, hope everything works out for you at the dealer.

Lou19

The scary thing about this system is the "dead pedal" interaction. This happens, at least to me, when trying to accelerate from my snow/ice covered driveway onto dry road. The car senses the spinning and retards the throttle, but takes 1-2 seconds to give you control of the throttle back. May not seem long unless someone is coming at you at 60 mph! I'm not sure why Lexus never installed a switch for this system.