new explorer, new technology

[jimbo74]

not sure if this is in the right spot or not.... but i saw a commercial last night for the brand new ford explorer.. it uses some gyro chip for constant input and its the only vehicle to have it....

anyone know more about this?

my friend made the chip!!!! (my second parents) no seriously, he worked for a company called imi-mems, but they got bought out by a company called analog devices inc..... his wife actually told me a couple months ago about it becasue she knew i was an explorer guy and i was just didnt understand what she was talking about... then i saw the commercial last night, and sent her an IM, she said it was indeed his chip......

 

[briwayjones]

I think there is another SUV or two that have a similar gyro chip that does the same thing.

 

[jimbo74]

according to the commercial, the new explorer is the only vehicle that has it.....

 

[ntrpriz]

Its the Advancetrack with Roll Stability Control (RSC). My 2005 has it. Theres a button to deactivate it between the cup holders. Theres a light in the dash to tell you its active. It individually controls the brakes oneach wheel to help keep the truck under control. Its used in quick reaction scenarios and where uneven traction is prevalent (such as going off the road and 2 of the wheels are in dirt) or where something was spilled on the road (gravel etc). I have never seen mine engage, but the truck is extremely stable. It would take a real dumb a** maneuver or some outside force to get that sucker to tip over. Much more stable than my old 1994 XLT and 2000 Sport were.

 

[jimbo74]

thats cool, jsut wanted to hear more about it... the guy who made it used to live around the corner from me, during my teen years i spent more time over at his house than i did my parents house....
i actually played with the prototypes he machined and brought home before he got his patent

 

[FordLover]

yeah, this has also replaced the trac lok on the explorer. you can no longer get a limited slip rear end from the factory. I kinda wonder how well the RSC works?

 

[Bwana Bob]

My nephew's new Nissan Xterra has some sort of stability control, with a switch to defeat it. I don't know if its the same system as used in the Explorer.

I saw that commercial, too, with the guy who drops his mountain bike off a cliff right in front of an oncoming Explorer. Pretty entertaining (he wasn't on the bike when it went off the cliff).

The micromachined gyro and accelerometer technology has been around awhile, but it looks like the prices are finally low enough for non-military applications. Basically, its a tiny vibrating beam that can sense rotation or acceleration.

My question is, does it really have a beneficial effect or is it just a gimmick to sell SUV's to people afraid of rolling them? Would be interesting to see a road test report.

The Ex has certainly come a long way since my '92 1st generation model. When will the hybrid version come out?

Bob

 

[jimbo74]

i know the technology has been around awhile... the guy that made the one the xplorer uses is my good friend.... yeah, when he was building it among other things, it was all for military applications.... he used to come home from work and be like, today was a good day at work, we got $100k from the air force...... something about a Z axis gyroscope i beleive.... i remember years ago seeing the exact picture they show in the commercials as the CAD printed drawings i saw over at his house......

 

[briwayjones]

according to the commercial, the new explorer is the only vehicle that has it.....

Ah, you've got to take in marketing into account. It's the only vehicle with that specific chip, or the chip with that specific name (which Ford gave it). It's like saying an Explorer is the only vehicle with Control Trac 4wd, doesn't mean that it's the only vehicle with 4wd just with that specific system or the only only that has that specific name that Ford made up and gave it.

 

[gijoecam]

The same system has migrated to the Expeditions as well.

Another feature is that should the system detect an imminent rollover, it will brake the appropriate wheels to initiate a skit in the hopes of preventing the rollover. (i.e. if the vehicle is skidding to the right and is in imminent danger of rolling, it will attempt to lock the right side wheels to force the skid and hopefully prevent the rollover)

The logic behind the system is sound.... for me, it's just one more control removed from the driver. Modern vehicles are taking the driver out of driving!

-Joe

 

[briwayjones]

You said it gijoe. People are getting worse and worse at driving so they are taking the control away from drivers. But that in it self also makes worse drivers. You guys may call me crazy but I think one day it will be illegal for people to drive their own vehicles.

 

[first explorer]

I would not pay extra for that ****! probably won't have a choice, it'll probably be standard equip, so stupid people that can't drive won't file a lawsuit.

 

[japesc]

RSC is basically Stability Control with the ability to monitor the vertical plane, basic stability control, like was optional on the late 02-03 V8 and all 04 explorers monitor the horizontal plane. The system looks at where your going vs. where you want to go and will make changes based on that. Volvo was the first one that had the RSC on the 03 XC90. Ford then added it to the Navigator and Aviator in 04 and the Explorer/Mount/Expedition in 05, for 06 the 15 passenger vans get the system. Actually, I think Stability control will be std on all Ford SUV's by the ‘07 model year.

Continental Teves developed the system with Ford for the RSC, if you go to http://www.esceducation.org/ they have a ton of info about the system, basically it reduced some types of accidents in SUV’s over 60% and over 30% in cars in studies of vehicles that have the system vs. those that don't. It was a must have option on my Explorer. It works and I wouldn’t buy a new car or SUV without it today, I was looking for a used car – I’d make an effort to find one that had the system.