Hi All,

I have been reading this great board and found out about holding the DSC button on for 5 seconds where it turns the DSC/TSC off.

I gave it a try and went for a nice test drive.

I am so much happier with the car! I had said the car seems a little docile and soft in earlier posts. However, turning this off makes it more of a sports car IMO.

I could slide the backend out, there was no lag (reduced throttle) when switching gears, and I felt like I had more control of the car.

I am sure the DSC is a great thing and will prevent lots of accidents but it is just not for me unless of bad conditions.

I have had a sports car since I was 16 (and am 36 now) with most of them being high hp rear-wheel drive. I guess I am just used to no computer assisted stability. This is a night and day difference to me.

If you are a sports car fan and have driven cars w/o traction control then I would highly advice you to use this feature. As always, be careful!

Dean :D

 

Good to hear that but since I got the AT I can't drift it in summer. But winter is coming I am getting excited....

Have fun with your 8

 

You're gonna drift in Toronto at Winter time huh? Yikes! Make sure you don't kill people including yourself with that! I guess we'll never hear about it if that happens.

Seriously, keep it safe man.

I wanna try driving a DSC/TCS equipped RX-8 someday to better appreciate my 8 :D

 

I just wish there was a way to set the computer where the DSC/TSC stayed off until you pushed the button to turn it on.

Actually, I am probably safer without the computer making braking, etc. I don't oversteer and I know how to accelerate around curves.

I just don't like the idea of cars adjusting to try and make it safer. Ok, maybe if I was in my wife's 4Runner but those just arent fun

Dean

 

I had just read about holding the button down and went out for a drive as soon as I finished reading it. I definitely felt the difference too, I lit up the tires at an intersection and got the back out a little bit, felt great, more like a rear wheel sports car should.

Another post about this same topic says that by disabling both TCS and DSC it improves gas mileage by 50%, i'm going to keep it off this week and see how better my mileage is. Give it a try too, post the results.

Love my 8

 

Jdunsh,

I actually have gotten worse mileage since cutting it off. However, I drive the car harder with it off.

I don't believe for a second that it will improve mileage though.

I don't know if it improves performance but I no it makes the car more fun.

Dean

 

traction control and all that other BS is like your mom riding shotgun. It sucks!

 

i think that dsc is a milf

 

I agree Dean, I don't know if the mileage is much better but it sure is a lot more fun to drive. Drives the way it was designed to.

 

So many threads on this topic, but I found the info here concise and not too technical. Thanks, guys! So, I gave it a shot on a 40 km 'try it out' tool around the area yesterday and wow, what a difference! The AT reacted as though it was on steroids and the gas needle didn't budge. [Have recently had the 'M' flash with no appreciable difference in mileage].. Am off on a 800 Km trip to Northern Ontario tomorrow..can't wait!

 

I am glad you enjoyed it. I am hesitant to make a open suggestion for everyone to try it since I don't know their driving background.

There are many people who have never driven a RWD car because they grew up on FWD.

The DSC makes it like a frontwheel drive car in a lot of ways.

BTW, I got less gas mileage with DSC off but this is because I was driving harder especially around the turns to get a feel for the handling capabilities.

I am still new to car so I slow down before curves and then accelerate through. I slow down on the acceleration slightly when the backend starts to fish tail.

It is the best handling 4 seaters I have ever driven.

Dean

 

I know that in Formula 1, traction control is not allowed. But when it was allowed, almost every team had it. I presume that the teams would not have used it if it made the car slower. So is the only purpose of turning off traction control to allow you to fish-tail?

 

Yes pretty much. That is half the fun of a RWD sports car for me.

I also know that Car & Drive, Road & Track, etc. turn it off when they do the 1/4 mile runs.

I believe in theory you can get a better 1/4 mile with DSC off. However, I have not had my RX-8 long enough to find out.

Dean

 

Good points, Dean. I was used to RWD with the Miata.. although just after coming off an Itegra it was a bit hairy without snows on my frst encounter with black ice.. Sure as h... got Blizzacks pdq!
As you said, it is the best handling car that I have ever owned, too.

 

Slip slidin' around is fun, isn't it Dean ?

 

Yes, I agree that being able to bring the rear around just a bit can be great fun....when done properly!