what exactly does turnin the ect on do?

 

It changes the transmission's shifting point.

Best example would be my mom's camry. To get around city, all it needs is 2.5k RPM in first gear. If I have the ECT on, i am able to run the car up to 3.2K rpm with the same amount of throttle. It also shifts more aggressively and responds to downshift better.

 

Those voting yes, do you really understand the trade off? If you can respond that you have gone sideways with VSC off in your GS and are more comfortable with controlling your own destiny with VSC off then on, then by all means have fun and be safe. (if yes, skip to here ** )

For the rest of you I have some friendly advice:


1. Yes, the VSC is too sensitive, but to accomodate all conditions of slip from ice to black rain, Lexus went ultra conservative on the sensitivity. Admittedly a little too sensitive.

2. Yes, it can be dangerous when you are in a critical situation to have VSC kick in, but then with VSC off, you also stand a chance of spinning the tires anyway and losing control of the car. What's the lesser of the evils and how good are your car control skills?

3. Best advice is to learn what situations cause VSC to kick in and learn how to be a little more gentle on the throttle so it doesn't kick in. Those of you romping on the pedal, should lighten up a tad. You might be surprised how little VSC will kick in "with the right touch".

4. This is not the ideal answer to the problem, but if your driving style kicks in VSC a lot, then you are a prime candidate to do the LSD mod. Those of us with LSD do not have as much a problem with leaving VSC on. If you have no LSD, I strongly suggest adjusting your driving style and leave VSC on.


** I will generalize my statement that those with performance driving experience in higher powered sports cars, those who are veteran experienced GS owners, those with LSD or those that consider themselves "skilled" performance drivers, can get away with VSC off forever. I am not speaking to those members and am not arguing their right to drive with VSC off.

If you consider yourself none of the above or haven't driven your GS in spirited driving or challenging road conditions YET. Then I say don't drive with VSC off, until you learn how to drive with VSC on and keeping it from kicking in, in the first place.



Confuscious Say: There are ONLY 2 Types of NewBie GS owners that drive with VSC off:

1. Those that have not YET experienced going sideways with VSC off.

2. Those that WILL eventually go sideways with VSC off.




.

 

I can't stand the ultra intrusive way the traction control cuts power, so unless it's raining I drive with VSC off. And it's fun.

 

well said...
but maybe a bit too harsh on the general viewer...

i think what Dr. RMMGS4 trying to teach us is "know what you are doing, and dont get urself killed".

 

yeah i agree

people should realise what their true capabilities are and that there are so many unknowns on the roads that a simple human brain can not comprehend for

it really takes a lot of skill and experience to get out of a bad situation without VSC's aid

 

I used to turn it off whenever I wanted to have some fun in the corners, that was before the LSD, now I almost never turn it off, want to know why look here

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/sho...=lsd+oversteer

Oh the horror

 

I'm a tuff luv kinda guy.

Like i said have fun , but be safe.

 

I've skid before, in the rain with the VSC off. I was able to regain control. Not saying I will do that 100% of the time, but i'm confident enough that I wont be drifting anytime soon.

 

The VSC helped me on two occasions. Both times in icy slick weather, once entering the freeway when I hit a patch of black ice. I leave it on most of the time.

 

leave it on unless i race someone, then it goes off and power goes on

 

ic and what does the VSC do?

is it automatically on or something?

 

I leave VSC on All the time

 

That is very true. Leave it on and be safe, unless you know what you're doing.

Before all this computer stuff stated making cars safer, we use to take cars to large empty parking lots on weekends or at night and practice recovery. I grew up in Ohio so there was plenty of snow and icy conditions. My Dad took me to the bowling alley parking lot when I was 16, we took his 73 Pontiac GrandPrix (402 ci) automatic and rear wheel drive..of course. He had me do fish-tails and hard braking to see what happens if you get into these situations. He taught me how to recover and control the direction the the car by pumping the brakes and steering correctly. Sometimes a slide turns into a 180 degree rotation or worse and you can't do much about it at that point but pray.

 

I leave mine on unless the situation calls to have it turned off.

Here's why: at my old job, the boss had just purchased a new '03 BMW M5 (Carbon black/black/wood). He had been driving a '91 Acura Legend Coupe previously, so this was a big step-up.

The boss-man used to like to play with the car with the traction control off. One morning on the way to the office, he was doing his usual routine with the big Beemer (he had only had the car about three weeks) - traction control off, casually drifting the car around the corners of the industrial complex near our office. It was early and the streets were empty; a slight fog and morning dew were present.

Just down the street from the office, he downshifted into second gear and booted it gently as he entered a 90 degree left turn. The back end slid right. And right. And further right. He had a fair amount of momentum, and kept in it, knowing if he lifted he would encounter a snap-oversteer situation.

The rear of the car kept yawing to the right while the nose went left. BANG; the tires found the curb on the left side of the road. The BMW's nose climbed the curb where it was abruptly stopped by the concrete light post. The airbags never deployed.

Just as tried regain his composure and collect his thoughts he wondered: "I wonder if that light pole is going to fall over." Sure enough, the impact caused the pole to snap, causing it to fall DIRECTLY on the roof of the new BMW. He closed his eyes, anticipating the impact; there was nothing he could do now. With a deafening crash, the roof caved in and every window in the car blew out.

The car had 1200 miles on it and was a complete write-off.

He replaced it with a Lemans Blue/two tone black/blue interior/aluminum trim 2004 M5.


I've had my GS sideways on a few occasions. All but one were done on purpose. One time I had forgotten that I had previously turned the VSC off. 3800 pounds of sedan's **** swinging around on you mid-corner can be quite eye opening!