The STABILITY CONTROL ACTIVE message will appear
on the DIC only when the system is both on and
activated. It means that an advanced computer-controlled
system has come on to help your vehicle continue to go
in the direction in which you are steering. StabiliTrak
®
activates when the computer senses that your vehicle is
just starting to spin, as it might if you hit a patch of ice or
other slippery spot on the road. When the system
activates, you may hear a noise or feel a vibration in the
brake pedal. This is normal. When the STABILITY
CONTROL ACTIVE message is on, you should continue
to steer in the direction you want to go. The system is
designed to help you in bad weather or other difficult
driving situations by making the most of whatever road
conditions will permit. For more information on the
stability messages, see Driver Information Center (DIC)
on page 3-49.
If the StabiliTrak
®
system turns off, the traction control
system warning light will illuminate, and the STABILITY
CONTROL OFF message will appear on the DIC to
warn the driver that StabiliTrak
®
is no longer available
to assist you with directional control of the vehicle.
Adjust your driving accordingly.
To limit wheel spin and realize the full benefits of the
stability enhancement system, you should normally leave
traction control on, but it may be necessary to turn the
system off if your vehicle is stuck in sand, mud, ice or
snow, and you want to “rock” your vehicle to attempt to
free it. See Rocking Your Vehicle to Get It Out on
page 4-32 and If Your Vehicle is Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice
or Snow on page 4-31.
Traction Control Operation
The traction control system is part of the StabiliTrak
®
system. Traction control limits wheel spin by reducing
engine power to the wheels (engine speed management)
and by applying brakes.
The traction control system is enabled automatically
when you start your vehicle. It will activate and display the
TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVE message in the DIC if it
senses that one or both of the front wheels are spinning
or beginning to lose traction while driving.
If the brake traction-control system activates constantly or
if the brakes have heated up due to high-speed braking,
brake traction-control will be disabled and the TRACTION
CONTROL ACTIVE message will be displayed. In the
limited mode, the traction control system will only use
engine traction-control and is limited in its ability to
provide optimal performance since the system will not
utilize brake traction-control to control slip on the drive
wheels.
4-11