[pillainp]

I have, as some of you may know, a Swift VXi with ABS. Now I love this car, and would not trade it for a chance to save my life. A friend of mine who owns a ZXi, describes the Swift as "and amazing car". I totally agree with this sentiment, niggling rattles aside.

But there is something I would like to know.

Has anyone who has ABS ever had to do an emergency stop?

What does it normally sound like? - I notice that no matter how hard I brake, the car just rolls to a stop, but sometimes, when some idiot stops flat in front of me and I stab the brakes, the car skids. Sometimes, though, I can hear the scrubbing really loudly, even on really good asphalt.

I am told that ABS may generated a scrubbing sound, but I vry rarely hear it. Normally this sound only occurs when the car is on a sand or mud surface, but this only occurs just before the car actually comes to a stop.

Is there a problem with my ABS? Should I have it looked at?

All responss appreciated. Please ask if you need further clarification as to what I mean.

NPP

[sgmuser]

You may have to check the tyres first. Thread condition, life of the tyre and tyre pressures. Good tyre and with correct pressure makes of lots of difference (This is from my 3lakhs kms of driving experience!). And, other than a well paved tarmac roads, the braking distance is more in ABS fitted vehicles! So dont panic in wet conditions.

If everything above is ok, then immediately drive to the Maruti WS and do a thorough checkup.

Then, go thru this, you will get some idea :
Anti-lock braking system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[Vid6639]

It's the sound of the tyres scrubbing against the sand or mud. The only thing in ABS is you feel a small pulsation from the brake pedal under heavy braking when the ABS is active.

Instead of locking and giving a skidding sound it will give a scrubbing sound as the ABS will try and prevent the locking.

Also you mention that your car skids? If you have ABS that shouldnt happen.

[theMAG]

Originally Posted by vid6639

Also you mention that your car skids? If you have ABS that shouldnt happen.

I agree.

pillainp - ABS on Indian roads especially with potholes are not known to be effective. That apart if your car skids on flat surfaces is an indication that ABS on your car is not efficient. From that PoV, you'll need to find a solution from MASS.

[mail4ajo]

Originally Posted by vid6639

Also you mention that your car skids? If you have ABS that shouldnt happen.

I dont think anything will help you keep the straightline while braking on loose gravel, sand, oil etc. ABS just distributes the braking on each wheel so that wheels dont lock and induce skidding.
For that you would need the higher end traction control or ESP(Electronic stability program)

[low_bass_makker]

I have a swift ZXI.....but with wider wheels of 215.....which are quite big for a car like swift......and for the abs.....it does come into effect when I brake hard on a slippery surface only not on road as the grip of the tyre is quite good.....

also one more point I have to say here earlier I had a viva petrol which had abs....but it worked so bad that it activates the abs mode on the normal road unlike the swift one.....so get your abs check from the showroom.....

[squarecut]

Does swift have ABS only on front wheels or in all the wheels. If it is on the front wheel but not on the rear wheel, then skidding is likely.
Moreover, if one stabs at a brake ( instead of squeezing it), the ABS may not be effective, as mentioned in articles on threstold braking.

[sinhsha]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

I dont think anything will help you keep the straightline while braking on loose gravel, sand, oil etc. ABS just distributes the braking on each wheel so that wheels dont lock and induce skidding.
For that you would need the higher end traction control or ESP(Electronic stability program)

ABS has nothing to do with distributing of braking. That's the job of EBD electronic brake force distribution. ABS just senses if the car is still moving but wheel is locked it cut's the braking and reapplies after a short while and keeps repeating the same loop. In wet condition this results in longer stopping distance on certain surface but in that case also it's a safer bet as you would be able to steer your car out of trouble till it stops. Traction controls is exactly opposite of ABS. It senses if the wheel is spinning and car is not moving then it cuts engine power to corresponding wheel and reapplies.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

I dont think anything will help you keep the straightline while braking on loose gravel, sand, oil etc. ABS just distributes the braking on each wheel so that wheels dont lock and induce skidding.
For that you would need the higher end traction control or ESP(Electronic stability program)

The ABS system just has wheel speed sensors. If it records a mismatch with the wheel speed and vehicle speed it activates the ABS.

Also the pulsating sensation you feel on the pedal is due to the brake on/off action which prevents the locking.

traction control is not while braking. EBD is but it just senses an emergency braking and increases the braking force based on the force applied to pressure. It can also distribute braking force individually to each wheel.

[vikram_d]

The only way to check if your ABS is working fine or not is to test it out on an empty stretch of good road. Touch speeds of 80-90 kmph in a straight line and then slam on them with all your might and maintain that pressure on the brake pedal till your car comes to a halt. If there is skidding then there is a problem.

Another thing that I can think of is that if during braking you have stabbed at the brake pedal then there will be most definitely be some amount of skidding. This condition is very easy to replicate.

I cannot stress enough on the fact that if you do try these things, do them on a good stretch of road with no traffic.

[suman]

Originally Posted by squarecut

Does swift have ABS only on front wheels or in all the wheels.

Never heard of ABS on two wheels only - how would that work? Is there such an option available?

[squarecut]

ABS works on disk brakes. Lower end cars, such as Swift has disk brake only on front wheels, and drum brakes on rear wheels. I have my doubts whether drum brakes respond to ABS. I will not be surprised if the claims of ABS on a car like Swift may not be entirely correct.

[pillainp]

Originally Posted by squarecut

ABS works on disk brakes.....

Huh?

Did a lot of reading on ABS systems and nowhere does anyone mention that it works only on Disc Brakes.

Originally Posted by vikram_d

Touch speeds of 80-90 kmph in a straight line and then slam on them with all your might and maintain that pressure on the brake pedal till your car comes to a halt. If there is skidding then there is a problem.

Tried this test, repeatedly, on various road surfaces. Sometimes, on apparently good roads, ABS kicks in as soon as I touch the brakes, but at other times, it kicks in very late. I am beginning to think the sensors may need some attention.

On the other hand, maybe the JK tyres are pretty good too. On most (good eg rubberised/bitumen-concrete) roads, no matter how hard I brake, the car absolutely refuses to skid, and ABS is not necessary at all, or kicks in only when the car is almost at a stop. I was beginning to get complacent with this, when wham, a Verna brake-tested me, and horror of horrors, the Swift skidded, (the b**t**d was only a few meters in front of me, so I had to stab the brakes) and I just narrowly avoided hitting the Verna.

So I guess I had better just get the car looked at, then. Maybe the system is operational but the sensors are dirty or something.

[vikram_d]

Originally Posted by pillainp

I was beginning to get complacent with this, when wham, a Verna brake-tested me, and horror of horrors, the Swift skidded, (the b**t**d was only a few meters in front of me, so I had to stab the brakes) and I just narrowly avoided hitting the Verna.

So I guess I had better just get the car looked at, then. Maybe the system is operational but the sensors are dirty or something.

By stabbing do you mean you hit the brakes and then eased of pressure or did you continue to hold the pressure on the brake pedal? I think you might have eased of on the pressure almost instantaneously. As this is the only condition under which I was able to get my Swift to skid on good roads. I have done brake testing with my car on rain soaked roads and could not get it to skid.

[squarecut]

If you stab at the brake, ABS will not be effective.