Is DSC really necessary?

2902 Views 21 Replies 13 Participants Last post by Griff, Feb 6, 2002

coopercrazy

Discussion Starter · Jan 8, 2002

How necessary is the DSC on a Mini,(or any other front wheel drive car for that matter)? I currently own a 2000 BMW 323i and it comes standard w/ DSC. All this electronic device seems to do is stop the rear wheels from spinning in slippery or skidding conditions. This comes in hand during the rain and snow, but it takes the fun out of driving hard in good conditions. Many a times I shut it off to have some driving fun! And to me this seems to be the point of having the MINI... Driving Fun! And on top of it, front wheel drive is much better in the rain / snow than rear wheel drive. I believe DSC is geared toward the "typical" non-enthusiast U.S. BMW owner(in this case). Any opinions from some of you who have the car with / without the DSC option or from anyone else?

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zoooooom

· #2 · Jan 8, 2002

I have a cooper without it cos i did'nt want it.
Done 5000 miles now in dry,wet and snow and dont regret not getting it.
But I have never had it so I wont Miss it will I.

I think it would take out the FUN factor

Mr T

· #3 · Jan 8, 2002

Mine will be one of the first batch with DSC later this month, so will be able to tell you then.

ELISEBOY

· #4 · Jan 8, 2002

i have ordered it but u can turn it on or off so i dont see the problem
there are times when its handy but i agree that the mini should be fun to drive so i intend to switch it off and have some!!!

Jazzy Jase

· #5 · Jan 8, 2002

I am going to order it for my S.

It will be really handy in slippery conditions and if I want to drive fast without worrying about losing it.

When I want to have some fun I will switch it off.

I think on the BMW that switching it off leaves the traction-control on. If you hold down the button for a few seconds it then turns off the TC. Will this be the same on the MINI?

coopercrazy

Discussion Starter · #6 · Jan 8, 2002

WOW!

Maybe I should delete this post. With the pricing of the MINI now revealed, who cares? It is almost too inexpensive not to take it...

Garry

· #7 · Jan 8, 2002

What does DSC cost?

Is it only available for the Cooper S?

Amberthecat

· #8 · Jan 8, 2002

DSC, why bother??

I agree with the fun factor people. If you're in the mood to hustle you'll turn it off for extra thrills. If you're driving sensibly you won't need it anyway !

ASC+T however is useful, this will kick in at a much lower level and worth having. (pulling out of side road in wet conditons etc. etc.)

LMB

· #9 · Jan 8, 2002

I don't get what DSC is

Now the Mini comes with Conering Brake Control (CBC) as standard. What is the difference?

And what is Electronic Braking Distribution (EBD)?

LMB

Amberthecat

· #10 · Jan 8, 2002

I think DSC does this

I'm sure some petrol head will prove me wrong but I think DSC does much the same as ASC+T, CBC, EBD etc. The big difference is the above are active safety features while DSC is passive. In other words the above compensate when you over cook it but DSC stops you from getting there in the first place. It uses a gyroscope and other clever sensors to "predict" what the car is going to do and prevent anything bad happening. At the end of the day it still applies brakes and reduces engine power, it just does it before it gets messy.

If you're just wandering along you won't need it, if you're blasting you won't want it and if it's an emergency manouver you'll need the active stuff anyway so why bother???

LMB

· #11 · Jan 8, 2002

Re: I think DSC does this

Amberthecat said:
If you're just wandering along you won't need it, if you're blasting you won't want it and if it's an emergency manouver you'll need the active stuff anyway so why bother???

You couldn't have put it better

I am glad to hear you car is problem free. I am due to pick mine up a week on Monday so the signs are good. I am praying I don't get a Lemon

Genie, I would like a problem free car please

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G

· #12 · Jan 8, 2002

Try this link for info:-

http://www.bmwworld.com/technology/dsc.htm

BruceK

· #13 · Jan 8, 2002

kotlewm said:
Try this link for info:-

http://www.bmwworld.com/technology/dsc.htm

So, in other words, like ASC+T, DSC works to maintain control in a turn when you have your right foot on the accelerator, whereas ABS, EBC and CBC work in the same turn when you are pressing the brake pedal. Is that right?

Still, at $500 it is a fairly costly option.

G

· #14 · Jan 8, 2002

Yes, that's pretty much how I see it, I think DSC will work even if your feet are on neither pedal! I used to have a great video clip of a Mercedes A-class fitted with the Mercedes equivalent of DSC which they call ESP.

In the slow-mo clip of the Benz, you see it coming around a blind corner to find a tractor blocking it's path, the car swerves at the last second and just catches the grass verge with it's outside rear wheel. You can see the car start to oversteer before the ESP system individually brakes the outside wheels to counter-act the oversteer and bring the little a-class back on course.

I'll have a good rummage around the web to see if I can find it again, I had downloaded it around the time of the A-class launch when it fell over during the "Elk" test, and as a result got ESP fitted as standard.

This is the sort of scenario that you would be glad to have DSC and I will probably order it for my "S". At least you have the option to turn it off when you are fully concentrating on giving it "ten-tenths", it's the cruising along listening to the radio/chatting to (getting nagged by. . .) the wife moments when you are distracted that you will most need DSC.

M

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rich

· #15 · Jan 8, 2002

Customised stability control

Does anyone know if either the Works conversions or the Superchips-type mods tweak the DSC, ASC+T, CBC, ABS, etc.

Presumably this is possible in principle & standard BMW settings err on the side of caution

LMB

· #16 · Jan 8, 2002

Re: Customised stability control

rich said:
Does anyone know if either the Works conversions or the Superchips-type mods tweak the DSC, ASC+T, CBC, ABS, etc.

Presumably this is possible in principle & standard BMW settings err on the side of caution

I doubt very much that they alter any of them, there is no reason to.

LMB

rich

· #17 · Jan 8, 2002

Re: Re: Customised stability control

LMB said:
I doubt very much that they alter any of them, there is no reason to.

LMB

...I was just thinking someone might want to push back the settings at which the DSC etc. kicked in to give the driver a bit more leeway to take the car to its true limits

Like I said, maybe BMW set the cut-in points for DSC conservatively within 'what the car *could* handle without letting go' if driven skilfully

I guess though, drivers picking a chipped or Works'd car would probably just turn the DSC & ASC+T off

blade929

· #18 · Jan 9, 2002

I think the overall point of DSC is that it is there in case of a severe emergency. It is not designed to make the car corner more quickly or go faster, you cannot beat the laws of physics.

It is true that a highly skilled driver ( I am talking Colin Mcrae Here) could do what a DSC system does. That is cadence braking whilst using the handbrake to balance a vehicle during an extreme situation. But even he cannot react as quickly as a computer when confronted with a broken down car that appears around a blind corner. The driver would just hit the middle peddle and let the computer sort out the ensuing chaos. True there would be a huge dollop of luck involved as well.

One other factor is that if all of these electronic devices are purely gimmicks, then why would every Formula 1 team love to have ABS and dynamic YAW control (DCS).

I would say that if you can afford it go for the DSC, you can always switch it off, but ultimately it could save your life.

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Mr T

· #19 · Jan 9, 2002

And DSC includes the functionality of ASC+T, so in the UK it is effectively a £200 upgrade on it.

rich

· #20 · Jan 9, 2002

I never knew Colin McRae was an insect

blade929 said:
It is true that a highly skilled driver ( I am talking Colin Mcrae Here) could do what a DSC system does. That is cadence braking whilst using the handbrake to balance a vehicle during an extreme situation. But even he cannot react as quickly as a computer when confronted with a broken down car that appears around a blind corner.

...He must be to control the 4 separate brake pedals required to emulate DSC "manually"

(Check out the BMW tech page linked somewhere above)

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