Sad thing is, with all the yuppies on 285 that day, half of them were driving 4X4 or AWD vehicles with the latest traction control and ABS bullshit.
And they were still losing thier fucking minds.

You need to spin the wheels a bit sometimes during a tight turn. I only use TC when it rains.

A few nights ago the road was slightly wet.  I came up to a stop sign in the middle of no where.   No one around.  turned off traction control and stability control.  Put the 2013 4x4 Duramax in 4 h, Stood on the brakes started pushing on the accelerator when the wheels started to turn I left off the brakes and stomped on the accelerator.  It is amazing how fast you can go with out the traction control and stability control not interfering.

Going uphill on a gravel logging road, the TC keeps cutting power and it's annoying as hell.

This.

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!  I was going to ask just how the hell you're supposed to do a proper burnout or power slide in an 03/04 Cobra with the damn traction control turned on.

I've had to turn it off to get traction on snow. I suspect traction control would suck for high speed driving. Think controlled four wheel drift.

A little off topic but how many people know the trick of applying brake pressure to get both wheels to spin on an open differential?

most that have ever been off-roading with an open diff.



 

It greatly depends on the car, but I think a lot of wailing and gnashing of teeth are often just like any other newfangled thing "nobody needs".

In my 2009 Tacoma, the ABS and traction/stability control were very obtrusive, and the ABS was a little scary on snow/ice.  You can do a lot on the threshold before ABS kicks in, but if it does you're in for a long ride on ice and very slick surfaces.  If I was in 4WD, traction control wasn't really even an issue getting going in snow, though.

However, my 2012 4Runner does far better with its traction control and ABS.  Not very obtrusive at all, but full-time 4WD probably makes a difference.  A few weeks ago, stability control may have even saved my life--definitely a bad accident.

I've never had the opportunity to use it, but apparently A-TRAC is the way to get yourself out of a sticky mess, and it's a computer-controlled feature.  My Taco didn't have it, and the 4Runner hasn't been in any fun yet.

This is the only traction control I've ever owned;







And screw ABS.  I'm putting mine on a toggle switch...

T H I S

 

This depends GREATLY on the vehicle. Some aren't bad, some suck. Known issue with the 99ish Rangers was that the ABS in 2wd would slide you into shit with no stopping power to any wheel on snow or ice covered roads. Modern cars are generally better, but my road is snowpack and/or ice for 2-3 months at a time. Had a problem driving a friend's new Taurus this winter, similar to the old Ranger issue. Slide all the way out into the intersection because one wheel locked up a bit and it turned off the pressure to ALL the wheels. That shit is dangerous around here.

Try driving an ABS and/or TC vehicle on roads that never have bare tar for 2-4 months a year. You'll understand why. We expect wheel spin, slip, and individual wheel lock up and use it to our advantage. Try driving up a hill on snowpack with TC. Good luck. Try stopping on a downhill grade on snowpack with ABS. Unless you have something with a higher-end system like an Audi or Beemer, you are fucked.

Physics are physics, however situations differ. Where preventing a sideways slide might be good in some circumstances like hitting black ice while accelerating around a corner, it is damned dangerous when you are driving on a road with a base of packed snow and 5" of fresh snowfall on it and are pulling out on an intersection with a pulp truck coming your way and you have to intentionally slide to make the turn and get going in the right direction. No slide and cut power= Peterbuilt through the passenger door. Lots of us drive many thousands of miles a year on roads that don't have bare pavement for 2-4 months a year. We get pretty good at it. We need the car to do what we tell it, not what it decides to do.

I had a car with it and I had to turn it off every time I turned in the drive way or it would do this loud annoying clicking shit if I spun a tiny bit of gravel.

No thanks.  Tires ain't cheap!

I routinely turn mine off. It sucks to have the throttle get cut back as you're turning onto a highway from a slick gravel road.

Couple years back I was driving my CTS-V on a day in which snow had basically shut down all of the South. I had left the TC on, got to a small hill, and when the wheels started to spin a bit, the TC decided the best course of action was to apply the brakes for me. Going uphill. Killed all my momentum, and I had to back down the hill (no other cars on the road), turn the TC off, and with it off I got up the hill just fine.

Oh, also, traction/stability control both leave a considerable amount of grip unavailable to you. With all that stuff turned off, I know exactly how my car will react in an emergency situation. With it turned on, handling is a lot less predictable.