How Traction control works: Explained through a Toyota Innova Crysta [Video]

Modern cars come with a lot of electronic safety and driveability enhancing aids embedded in them by the manufacturer. Though some purists may argue against it, the electronic aids on modern cars make them a lot safer to drive for everyone. Some of these features are ABS, EBD, traction control, and ESP among others. ABS here stands for Anti Lock Braking system, EBD for Electronic Brake Force Distribution, and ESP for Electronic Stability Program. Coming to traction control, it is something that is quite obvious by its name itself. However, many have a wrong idea of what it is and how it works. For the same, take a look at this video by it’s me BISHNOI which illustrates the working of traction control using a Toyota Innova Crysta.

Traction control is now equipped in many cars sold in India. Basically, it prevents loss of traction when the vehicle is accelerated. This is very useful in vehicles with powerful engines or those cars which are quite heavy. The powertrain on the Toyota Innova Crysta sends power to the rear wheels, which means that the MPV is a rear wheel drive vehicle. It is quite a hefty vehicles and weighs well over 1800 kg. All these factors contribute to traction loss in the Innova when accelerated hard over the non-linear surfaces or over inclined surfaces. Let’s now see how the traction system works.

As seen in the video, when the Innova is put into reverse gear and accelerated over an inclined surface, the wheel starts spinning resulting in tire burn (burnout). This translates into the loss of engine power, more pressure on the gearbox and moreover, loss of fuel. The traction control prevents the wheelspin from happening and provides grip to the tires so that the vehicle can move easily. It does this by means of a system of sensors and other electric equipment. The system judges when the wheel began to spin freely and stops it from spinning, which provides adequate grip to the wheels. Traction control can be turned off easily in cars and is done when burnouts and drifts among other stunts are to be performed.

Talking about the engine and transmission options on the Toyota Innova Crysta, the MPV comes with 3 engine options which consist of one petrol engine and two diesel units. The petrol engine on the Innova Crysta is a 2.7-litre unit that produces 164 Bhp of power along with 245 Nm of torque and is mated to 5-speed manual gearbox. The diesel options include a 2.4-litre engine and a 2.8-litre engine, producing 148 Bhp-343 Nm and 172 Bhp-360 Bhp power outputs respectively. While the smaller diesel gets only a 5-speed manual, the bigger diesel engine gets a 6-speed torque converter automatic gearbox too.