Hello XD owners! I'm considering taking the plunge into the XD and was wondering about vehicle stability control (VSC). My dealer (and most others nearby) only keep the no-VSC models in stock, which I drove and found adequate, although I kept things pretty tame in my mixed highway/city test drive

I'm curious how popular this option is, and also (for those that have/don't have it) what your impressions are. I'm looking at putting aftermarket 17s on the car, probably with tires that are a little wider than the stock, if that matters. Additionally, if anyone has any other comments about other ways to improve handling, I'd love to hear.

Great forum! Reading a lot of insightful posts and seeing all the great mods has definately been pushing me toward XD ownership!

 

For a few hundred bucks its worth it to me for the safely of my family that one day in the slick snow or rain.

I would imagine it would only come into play on a road with poor traction. I have the 18" TRDs as well, and have not noticed the nanny whatsoever in any circumstance so far.

 

I have the VSC and I think it's great. At less than $600, if it prevents even one accident, it's paid for itself!
The main times I've noticed the VSC are driving on snow. It does something with the rear brakes when the back end starts to slide, so if you take a corner too fast when it's slippery, it keeps you on track. It kicked in for this once when I was traveling a little too fast on a gravel road also. It also works quite well as a traction control, but it takes some getting used to. It basically keeps the tires from spinning as you accelerate. So it feels strange, and actually slows the wheels down quite a bit, but it works - i.e. if you're going up a hill in icy conditions, instead of spinning, your tires slow down but keep you going up the hill. (That's assuming you have decent tires, but either way, you'll do better with it than without it.) This traction control has kicked in once or twice while accelerating from a stop on wet roads also.
If you think that spinning would be better in some situation, or if you want the back end to slide out, there's a button under the parking brake you can press to disable the VSC.

As for other handling mods, I have the TRD sway bar, and like that also. It just tightens up the rear end a little. If you decide on the sway bar, I'd recommend installing it yourself - very easy if you have even a little bit of mechanical ability. (I'd say if you can change your own oil and rotate your tires, you can install the sway bar - there are other threads and instructions on this forum if you'd like more detail.)

Hope this helps, and post back if you have any other questions,
Andy

Edit to add - I'm using 17" alloys (stock from the tC) in the summer, and the stock steelies in the winter. I don't notice that the wheel type affects the VSC.

 

My dealer actually talked me out of getting it. He said he was going to be honest with me and told me it did nothing for a car as small as an xD.

I have a honda accord without something like VSC and I've never lost traction. He said something so small would be hard to lose traction.

It could be my location though. CT

 

Actually I think if you had VSC on the xD it will have a higher trade-in value down the road over those without.

 

I have the VSC on mine. I thought it was worth the $650, as I view it as an insurance policy in that it may save me from an accident at some point. That being said I have only been able to trigger it twice on some rainy roads with some very spirited driving, so I think the xD has good traction by default with reasonable driving that you probably don't need it. That being said it was a feature I wanted and am glad to have.

 

I have to chime in. When I got my xD, it HAD to have VSC. My last car had it and saved me once. Now that I live in a snowy climate, this last winter the VSC was very helpful, and in fact, one icy morning I was on my way to work and hit a patch of ice where other cars were spinning out of control. My xD started to lose control, but as it swayed, or I should say, tried to sway, my xD beeped and beeped and beeped (the VSC system has an audible beeping when activating) and moving side to side as the system prevented me from spinning, but at the same time maintained my course and saved my butt. Never believe that "you'll never need it" or "it isn't necessary in a car like the xD" because the fact is, you really never know if you'll need it. Get it. I think it's a must have....Oh, and it controls all four wheels, not just the back. It controls both over and understeer and is a very advanced safety system.

 

I agree! I bet the dealer mentioned earlier just didn't have one with VSC handy to sell, so he was just trying to convince you to buy one of his. I can't imagine the dealer makes all that much profit off the VSC - seems like a relatively low price for a fairly complex system. And with the other add-ons, the dealer makes plenty of profit - easy to put in floor mats or a cargo cover or even the sway bar, for instance, and fairly cheap to manufacture.

Just my thoughts...
Andy

 

He knew I was ordering one custom and had plenty of chances to slip it in there.

Well, everyone is different. I don't have it in my honda accord and I've driven it for 7 years with no wipe outs due to loss of control. Well...I've never wiped out once...knock on wood.

 

I'm with you, don't see the need if you already drive safely. Just be smart while driving. Only accidents I've ever had is people driving into me from not looking and I dont see VSC helping me with that

 

Yeah, same with seatbelts - just be smart, and you don't need to bother with those either...

(No offense intended; I'm just saying that emergency accident-avoidance or unexpected road conditions aren't things you can plan ahead of time! And I'd much prefer to have the VSC there if I need it, rather than wish I had it after the fact.)

Andy

 

Thank you!!!! No offense either, but why is that people think if they just drive safe, they won't need these safety systems? YOU DON'T KNOW. My first activation of my VSC on the ice was surprising. I had no idea how slick it was until I saw all the other cars spinning out of control. It did what it was suppose to do and I am thankful!

 

I dont have it on mine and it did pretty good at the auto x road race

 

Well I never drive without a seatbelt cause thats just plain dumb.(Not taking offense.) I've driven in days with +5 inches of snow on the ground in rear wheel drive cars with no ABS, etc. Its simply just knowing the limits of my vehicle which allow me to drive safe. (can thank doing snow drifts in empty parking lots and auto-x for that) If the VSC activated then you should realize that your just going too fast to begin with. If you depend on it to go off all the time to save your butt, then how safe are you really driving then? If thats the route you want to go, then everyone should be driving 4wd vehicles too.

 

I was actually driving less than 15 MPH and it was black ice...I didn't "depend" on it for the situation at hand or all the time as you claim I have said. Do you think you're invincible to every road hazard? It was ice, not snow...And for the record, 4WD vehicle are not in any shape or form going to prevent you from an over or an understeer. Basically what you're saying is that if VSC is activating, then obviously the driver is doing something wrong? You CANT control everything, that's why these systems were developed.

 

Well I'm going to give you a good example. Here in Portland we don't get much snow, but we do get cold weather. Typically we will get a good heavy rain (our rainy season goes from Jan 1 to Dec 31) and then it freezes overnight. Next day we have more freezing rain, so everything LOOKS wet, but is mostly black ice. It's impossible to tell the difference! We will still have black ice even when the temp goes above freezing.

I've been driving to work in my tC and will be banking around a corner and all of a sudden feel my rear end start to drift. Times like this are when VSC comes in handy.

Keep in mind that if you are going to go with wider tires it will be even more useful. With wider tires you won't have as much traction on wet and slick surfaces...