HEY GUYS I AM STILL NEW TO THIS FORUM BUT WHENEVER I TRY TO TURN OFF THE TRACTION, IT SEEMS LIKE IT STILL IS ON JUST NOT AS HARD. IS THE ANYWAY TO TURN IT OFF.

 

You're completely right, the ESP OFF button only partialyl disables traction control, it just doesn't interfere AS much. To turn it off completely you'll have to set the car to DYNO mode, but when doing that you also lose abs, brake assist, and ESP, which can be dangerous if you don't know what you're doing.
Search the Forums, this has been discussed many many times before, and you should find a walkthrough on how to set you car to DYNO mode.

 

even if you do completely disable the esp system your car still won't launch or grab traction as hard if it were partially disabled.

 

yea, i made a thread bout it... here is the link

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w203/125455-disable-safety-feature.html

here is the direct link to the site

http://www.mbpower.net/uploads/files..._lowres_V2.pdf

-- Rinil

 

why is it like that, everytime i try to go sideways into a turn it just grips. why does mercedes do it like that you cant turn traction off

 

its security thing... it brakes certain tires, etc etc... i went on this back road at night, and floored it down, and went through this elongated s-bend (aka not as shartp) at like 75 - 80, and the front tires (i think) began to brake for me and stuff... its a good feature...

 

You got a Mercedes, not a ricer/drifter whatever car. Now first thing you should know is that the car has a lot of understeer (i drive the coupe, but i'm pretty sure it's same for the sedan). You're not going to get much oversteer (fish tailing) , instead the car is just gonna slide straight. Now if you're having problems losing traction on the car then you just need to practice your driving skills. Floor it through any turn with ESP OFF and i guarrantee you'll got some tire spin and a bit of sliding.
The ironic part is that this is a complaint... a car not losing traction through turns should be a praise. Cars go much faster through turns with no tire slip.

 

i'm kind of wondering why you are complaining about it haha. i think you'll be much happier with a 240. drive safe.

 

Trade your car in (make sure you get mommy's permission first) and then take the proceeds and get your mommy to buy this for you http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nissa...QQcmdZViewItem

 

this might be drifting to a different subject, has anyone experienced ESP, ABS, and Brake Assist, go off in a warning while in traffic? I was driving in LA traffic and then all of a sudden all three warning lights whent off stating please visit shop...abs, esp, and brake assist all idiot lights lit up. After my meeting in LA and decided to go home early evening...the warning lights was off and checked the warning code..there was no malfunction? Weird.

 

Kanji, only time i've ever seen all 3 go off is when i set the car to DYNO mode. It keeps saying it over and over again until i restart the car or put it back into the regular mode. Now i have no clue why it would do that, have you searched the forum? I think it might have been mentioned before...

 

i have driven many different c classes (loaner cars)
i have got all of them sideways to a different degree.
the new c280 w/ stock 16 in wheels was the funnest to drive.
i gets sideways relatively easy.
the c240 needs to be thrown into a corner sharply and then u gotta floor it after the front hooks up, itll get sideways, just no a lot.
the c230k is the worst, the thing with this car is that its tyres are too wide. and un proportional to its power. its still possible to ge tsideways but its not as easy and enjoyable as even the new 230 N/A v6 (im driving 1 as we speak, my car is getting a new tranny and diff and other drivetrain **** :p )
if i owned a c class (non amg or 350) with 225f and 245r tires, i would give up some ultimate grip for more adjustability and neutral handling by running 235 all around.
on more powerful mercedes cars the traction control isnt that bad when u press the esp button. i guess its b/c they have more power to kick the tail out and keep it there.
by the way i drive w/ esp off all the time, unless im on the freeway and its raining.

 

I've had ESP shut off on me but still have ABS/BAS. What I had done was start up the car (warm start..), and immediately pull a U-turn.. I figure the sudden "violent" motion must have prevented ESP from initializing properly (the gyro?).. it needs time after start up perhaps?

 

Kanji, this happened with my Parents' E320 before and I believe there was a TSB for this exact thing that was covered under warranty. It was a common problem on the w210. As for the w203's, I've never heard of this being that common.

 

You guys might complain that the difficult of turning of the traction control kills the fun of driving it crazy... I thought the same thing at one point... but trust me one day that system will save your *** and you will praise it! Why did mercedes put that system in? Easy, to save the mercedes drivers. I've had a few moments where the traction control saved me. You can still drive the car pretty fun, you just gotta learn the thresholds of the system and use the understeer to your advantage. Takes a while to get used to especially if you haven't been driving the car long. I also have it in 6speed so that makes it a lot more fun :v

 

thanx guys, may have to bring this in, and have them look at it.

 

My car its still in one piece thanks to the ESP!!!
When I am in my sporty spirit I usually turn off my traction control to play in some turns, but for some times it went wrong and ESP was there to help me
Its amazing how the ESP can help us in serious kill situations, I've experienced that for some times now :p

 

I agree, I dont ever want to drive my car in dyno mode unless in a big empty lot where I know I wont hit anything. Traction control helped to save me, I was getting off the parkway and wanted to play in the turn, so I turned off ESP. Well one of the many well maintained cars around here must have leaked oil right at the apex of the turn (there was definately oil, as to the source, I dont know). By the time I saw the oil it was too late to do anytihng. I start sliding sideways and ESP did kick in and help me to not over correct the skid. Drove like a 1/4 mile before the oil was gone from the treads, ESP helpingthe entire way!

Point is, on public streets you dont know whats ahead on the street, and if you are doing spirited driving in dyno mode, it could be the difference between a new pair of underwear or a new car. And yes I know people drove for years with out these safety features, but if you got it, use it... Work whatcha motha gave ya!