Hello, does anyone know whether the ABS could be disable by wiring a switch? In winter sometimes the only way to rotate the car in heavy snow storm (without getting stuck in the middle of the intersection) is to pull the handbrake and swing the tail and counter steer.

However, with the Fit, the ABS is quite sensitive and it kicks it pretty much the moment i pulls it (the Yaris i had before was much slower). So i'm wondering if i could wire a toggle switch to disable/enable my ABS without causing any CEL.

 

it will only throw an ABS warning light if you disable abs which is a good thing. You would know if your abs are active or disabled. Locate the fuse and start from there...

 

Yea i guess that's the only easy spot to start, but do you know if the system needs to prime when it turns on? Is there anything i should pay attention when doing this?

 

Link to Jazz ABS wiring diagram: Wiring Diagram I have found it to helpful and very similar to GD3, except for fuse numbers. Personally I would switch the ABS motor power line, using a relay. Motors only need power when they are being activated, the controller may take a moment to stabilize and be ready to work. With the motor power switched, the system could work as soon as power is restored.

Post back, let us know what works or doesn't work for you... I've thought about doing this for a while, just never got it off the back burner. I keep forgetting about it in early April, then have a Duh moment in November or so....

 

seems like a really bad idea to be messing with it, if you need your hand brake to get around in snow your driving your car wrong.

 

nah, all my previous cars had no abs, i've been doing delivery in my 1992 integra for 6 years, whether it rain or snow, it never had abs, i just manual pump my brakes. abs is nice, but i prefer manual controls... in certain situation, abs doesn't allow you to stop sooner... it may allow you to turn in the rain, but in snow, sometimes it won't even allows you to turn in really bad situation.

now saying you should do it, but if you know what you are doing without abs, it doesn't hurt. personally i prefer non-abs, on my Fit or on my current 1999 Integra.

 

I have to go along with MNfit here. The public road is not your private playground. Learn to drive sensibly.

 

Whatever, not using ABS doesn't mean driving like an ass. All old car don't have ABS. In fact, i found using ABS in snow is WORST than with non-ABS... Like i said, ABS is decent in rainy road, but is bad in snow. You didn't see me talking about using handbrake when is raining did you?

ABS doesn't save life, the driver's skill, awareness of the situation, and behavior does.

 

You don't need a hand brake for driving in any weather conditions. If you're out there slip-sliding around on snow and ice (also known as driving like an ass) your car is out of control and a potential threat to any one else on the road. Learn how to drive properly.

 

Living in AZ where you practically never see snows, don't lecture me on how to drive in snow. My point was, and still is, about ABS is not always needed/good to use in snowy condition and i want to turn it off when is snowing.

Here are some links you may want to check out, I'm not the only one feeling it that way, ABS significantly lengthen the braking distance in snow. You certainly can maintain steering control with ABS in dry/wet condition. You "MIGHT" be able to steer with ABS in snow, but not always depending on the condition underneath the snow/ice.

Anti-Lock Brakes?
Ford Truck World - Abs in Snow?Good or Bad? (Brakes)
ABS and Snow - Subaru Forester Owners Forum

Anyhow, if you don't have anything constructive to say about disabling ABS, don't post.
Keep it on the topic.

Thank you.



ps (off-topic): Whether handbrake is needed in any driving condition is for ME to decide. You may not know how to use it but i do. Your statement is incorrect:

Rally uses handbrake to get the car to rotate through corners when the car doesn't want to (whether is on gravel or snow).
Handbrake is also one of the several techniques to initiate a drift in drifting.

There, already 2 driving conditions used handbrake.

 

I was driving in the snows of Michigan probably before you were born. I'm not arguing the advantages or disadvantages of ABS. I understand using the handbrake. You refer to Rallies and drifting. That's fine. What I'm saying is you should not be using the handbrake technique in daily driving on public roads. If you want to do that in organized closed course racing, that's fine but again, not on a public roadway.

 

ok all this arguing aside, if you get into an accident and your insurance discovers you have disabled a safety feature (abs, air bags, seat belts, etc) you may as well kiss any insurance claim goodbye and they will probably drop you from their coverage as well.

 

quote for truth... happened to me once when I totalled my 6th gen accord in NY. Insurance deemed my car not "legal" and dropped the bomb on me and dropped me off coverage after. Now I'm using an insurance broker just to get me coverage and I'm paying very high premiums on my cars

 

but to think of it... FIT ABS is little Sensitive... i vote to not have an ABS :P

 

Was it in snow? You disabled your ABS because....? Were you racing? Having ABS or not doesn't save you from getting into accident (or reckless driving etc) in the first place...

 

but not modifying the abs or other standard safety equipment will save you from your insurance company refusing to pay out on an accident or dropping you from your coverage.

 

I think you're 50% right... Normally nobody should have to handbrake to turn. It's not called a parking brake for a reason... But it actually saved my ass quite a few times when bastards did pop in front of me because they did not brake in time or just didn't brake on a stop, a little handbrake job allowed me to turn on the snow or ice without problems! The problem with the ''Learn to drive properly'' thing is that you may drive properly but not the dude in front of you that have the fantastic idea of slamming the brakes on a highway to spare a cat's life....

My 2¢!

Marko!

 

Try upgrading the tires to get more winter braking traction. If the ABS doesn't detect lock-up it should kick in less.

John

 

I'm already running brand new winter tires. Anyway... lol

 

The once I tried making the Fit do a handbrake-assisted turn in a snowy parking lot with no traffic anywhere nearby, it swung the rear end out neatly then brought it right back into line. It needed coordination between the wheel and handbrake, but was possible.

An alternative to disabling ABS is stiffening up the rear end with a sway bar or Firestone airbags so it breaks traction more easily. It'll take a little more input and aggressive driving to break free, but it'll break the rear end loose far more readily and predictably than with the stock suspension. There are Air-Lift airbags inflated to 15 PSI in the Buick's rear coil springs, and it broke free far more easily this past winter than without the airbags. The rear also stepped in very nicely.