Well, my car is completely stock, and I'm the OP.

 

im with Orchid on this one.. I have a completely stock suspension. nothing wrong with it. It's the fact that the ABS system is just too sensitive and should not have over reacted the way it has under normal circumstances it sees as a problem.

 

the entrance to the partking structure here at work is interesting. as soon as you turn into it, just past the sidewalk, there is an angled incline followed by a longer decline. where the incline meets the decline the pavement has a peak shape to it like this /\ (only not that pronounced). anyways, if you can picture that, it's an interesting entrance.

if i make a quick right into the structure without straightening out the car before i hit that peak, i can hear the frame and sunroof crackling every time from the stress this wierd position puts on the car. needless to say, this is the only time i've heard this strange sound which i now realize is the ABS kicking in. like io333 mentioned, i think it's from the weight of the vehicle shifting such that i'm almost doing a "three-wheel motion" move which frees up one of the tires. this tricks the ABS into thinking that wheel is about to lock up. it all makes sense, but like other people are saying, this should not be happening.

i'm also not going to say that the ABS system is too sensitive because i braked rather hard today after accelerating then realizing that i wasn't going to beat the red light. i thought for sure that the ABS would kick in but it didn't. i ended up stopping between the cross walk stripes because the car just didn't slow down as fast as i thought it would. i had the pedal depressed pretty far, further than i've ever had to push down before. it was scary for a bit and i'm definitely going to be careful when i have a car ahead of me. next time i go to the dealer i'm going to have them check the brakes. never hurts to try.

 

Oh my God, see, this is what I was afraid to hear. I can see myself rear ending someone while trying to break... I'm going to have to think about my car choice over again...

 

hahaha, just get another car if your seriuosly that worried about it...

 

honestly, i haven't been worried about it and i still wouldn't consider myself worried. the more i think about it, my car is due for an oil change and the dealer usually adjusts the brakes because i always get the car back and the pedal feels higher and firmer than before. so i know after i take it in they'll adjust it again and i wont have that problem.

the tC is a great car and has saved me from close calls that would have been an accident in my old car.

 

You know when ABS kicks in when you press the pedal, and it suddenly feels like its lost tension and continue to sink into the flooboard, further and further...

of course, this is assuming that you don't hear the intermittent screech of tires and grinding noises from the ABS

 

seriously, i came onto SL ready to do a huge search about this...thought i'd be the only one with this problem!

but this has happened to me 2x in the past week! The roads in MA are absolutely terrible (esp on my way to work), and this has happened when I'm going relatively slow (~20 mph), braking to a light or whatnot, then i hit a bump, and the ABS kicks in! It's not slowing me down enough, and would propell me into whatever's in front of me, but then I let up the brake, and start to brake again. Close calls. Not good. Never like this has happened to me with any other car, and I have a clean driving record. I don't want this to screw it up!

I'll def take it to the dealer...please let everyone know what happens if anyone takes it to the dealer!

 

Exactly. Go down to the dealership and test drive a tC. Play with the brakes and experience firsthand the feel. If you don't feel comfortable, get a different car.

 

Alright. I'm a victim now. I was driving on a wet surface (rain/flurry) last night and ABS kicked in once. Since then. the ABS indication light has been on. How am i supposed to live in snow now!?

I'm gonna go see a dealer i guess.

 

I guess I don't understand the problems that you all are having. My 06 works perfect. If it detects that one wheel is sliding even the slightest bit when braking it activates, as it should. It stops in plenty of time and distance. Guess I got a good one.

Joe

 

This seems to be the nature of a lot of cars equipped with ABS. My 02 WRX does it to me on ANY uneven surfaces.. Luckily the roads where I live are mostly flat and unscathed.. The best you could do is some kind of ABS deactivation mod (of which I do not know) if it causes you that much trouble. I've yet to hear about a "great" ABS system on any vehicle.

Jay

 

Actually, now that I think about it, my old Integra-- I couldn't stand the abs on that thing. Always kicking in when I didn't want it to, especially at uh... high speed. Scared the **** out of me several times.

On the other hand, the ABS in SAABs, Volvos, and BMWs I've driven works flawlessly, every time. My Volvo stops so hard it makes my teeth hurt -- on any surface, in any conditions, at any speed.

I think the ABS is all made by Bosch for both european & japanese cars?

 

My old Xb was the same way.

Joe