Saved by the TCS?

[DukeTen]

Yesterday city crews were sealing streets in my neighborhood. When I rode home at night it was raining quite a bit and streets were wet. As I turned into the first street in the neighborhood I crossed some sort of oily mud used on the street and the rear wheel slid from under me me. I only had time to kick the ground with my left foot and was able to regain control of the bike. I got home safely with no damege to the S10.

After I got home I kept thinking about what happened and how "lucky" I was to get the S10 back under me to avoid a spill. This is a heavy bike, I haven't been riding it for that long and that corner was really slippery. I was obviously busy and did not notice any lights flashing but the bike regained traction very quickly. I am now wondering if the TCS had something to do with it.

Has anyone experienced something similar? This is my first bike with traction control and if it did work this well I'm impressed.

 

[JonnyCinco]

you were losing the rear? I would think if it was that slippery you would have lost the front...unto which the TCS would not have helped

 

[~TABASCO~]

you were losing the rear? I would think if it was that slippery you would have lost the front...unto which the TCS would not have helped

Not if he was rolling out of a turn in a neighbor hood............................................... Good save, all the little software tricks along with ABS can save your butt...... ::008::

 

[DukeTen]

you were losing the rear? I would think if it was that slippery you would have lost the front...unto which the TCS would not have helped

Yep. Losing the rear. I don't think I would have had a happy ending if it were the front.

 

[digitalmoto]

What TC setting did you have it set to? TC2 will let the rear kick out a bit before it engages. In TC1, I can pin it in the rain and nothing much happens even on crosswalk stripes.

Also your drive mode might play into it. Touring doesn't have the slow speed rip that Sport mode has.

I find my XTZ very easy to ride when the weather isn't perfect using TC1/Touring. Lately, I've been playing around it has been dry the last couple of days, so I'm using TC1/Sport mode. When the rain starts up again, I'll be back in TC1/Touring mode.

Good save by the way.

::026::

 

[GrahamD]

I think YAMAHA has tried to make sure this bike is as safe a possible for what it thought was the average buyer.

If you think of the ads "Take your soul anywhere and come back" I think was an advertisers way of saying that it is reliable and safe and dependable.

It may not be for everyone but solid and dependable can count for a bit if you ride for the experiences and travel rather than ride for the bike.

It's nice to get home safe and share some good memories I reckon, rather than having a big chunk of the only 3 weeks you had off consumed in a tow truck with or without a few busted ribs.

Good one Duke ::003::

 

[3putt]

Fast reflexes on the stab, good save.

I see my TCS light all the time, when hitting railroad tracks on accel in a turn, skipping small rocks when accelerating. Pretty cool electronics as you can not feel it kick in. On the Multi it is very abrupt almost like one cylinder quits, nearly upsetting the bike.

 

[rem]

On my way down south in early September, there is a short patch on the Stewart-Cassiar Highway that is not paved. Neither is it indicated, and it is located at the very bottom of a hairpin curve. It was wet and all of a sudden the road goes from wet pavement to mud. As it was on a hairpin, I was going slowly but I slowed even more. Right at the junction, it turned uphill, so I had to accelerate. Instantly, my back wheel began to spin and I figured I was toast. Equally as instantly, it stopped. Saved my sorry butt. I have no doubt that the TC was responsible. I like it. R

 

[markjenn]

On TC1, I'd be surprised you could get the back out far enough under power enough where you could save it from a foot dab. Keep in mind that the TCS can do only one thing when it senses rear wheel slip - reduce power - and you can exceed available traction on either end simply by lean angle. If you had TC1 on, I suspect your save had nothing to do with TC - it was strictly your superior skill and cunning.

- Mark

 

[rem]

That's interesting. I'm pretty much ignert about stuff like that. What I sensed was exactly that .. an instantaneous decrease in power to the back wheel ..... it happened so quickly that I doubt it was me backing off the throttle. It MOST DEFINITELY wasn't my skill and cunning. So I figure it either had something to do with the TC, or just damn stupid luck. And I don't seem to have a lot of that. Anyway, I remained upright so I'm all good with it. Since I stayed upright, I'll go with skill and cunning. Had I gone over, it would have been due to a failure of the TC. You get my drift ..... R

 

[markjenn]

That's interesting. I'm pretty much ignert about stuff like that. What I sensed was exactly that .. an instantaneous decrease in power to the back wheel ..... it happened so quickly that I doubt it was me backing off the throttle. It MOST DEFINITELY wasn't my skill and cunning. So I figure it either had something to do with the TC, or just damn stupid luck. And I don't seem to have a lot of that. Anyway, I remained upright so I'm all good with it. Since I stayed upright, I'll go with skill and cunning. Had I gone over, it would have been due to a failure of the TC. You get my drift ..... R

I was referring to the OP, but let's go with skill and cunning in your case too.

- Mark

 

[big dave]

I posted about my experience in this post

http://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?topic=1227.msg20504#msg20504

BD

 

[rem]

Sounds pretty close to what happened to me, BD. It happened so quickly that I can't imagine it was anything I did. I'm talking microseconds. I felt myself starting to slip, then I didn't. Bam. It was instantaneous. If nothing else, it makes me feel safer. R

 

[Checkswrecks]

I wouldn't say "saved" but it sure was handy and a bit of a load reliever in miles of sand and gravel today.

 

[DukeTen]

On TC1, I'd be surprised you could get the back out far enough under power enough where you could save it from a foot dab. Keep in mind that the TCS can do only one thing when it senses rear wheel slip - reduce power - and you can exceed available traction on either end simply by lean angle. If you had TC1 on, I suspect your save had nothing to do with TC - it was strictly your superior skill and cunning.

- Mark

Mark, you may be right and I'd love to think it was just my skill. That said, over the years I've been in this type of situation twice before, with lighter bikes. The first time I went down and the second was very, very close. This time it just felt too easy, especially considering the size and weight of the S10. If the TCS had nothing to do with it the riding dynamics of the S10 are way better than any of my previous bikes.

What TC setting did you have it set to? TC2 will let the rear kick out a bit before it engages. In TC1, I can pin it in the rain and nothing much happens even on crosswalk stripes.

Also your drive mode might play into it. Touring doesn't have the slow speed rip that Sport mode has.

I find my XTZ very easy to ride when the weather isn't perfect using TC1/Touring. Lately, I've been playing around it has been dry the last couple of days, so I'm using TC1/Sport mode. When the rain starts up again, I'll be back in TC1/Touring mode.

Good save by the way.

::026::

Thank you! I was using TC1/Touring. I found that this combination is great for wet/slippery conditions. The S10 is far more stable in these conditions than I expected. One more big plus going for it.