traction control Acura RL 2005 Owner's Manual

When VSA activates, you may notice
that the engine does not respond to
the accelerator in the same way it
does at other times.
The VSA system cannot enhance the
vehicle’s driving stability in all
situations and does not control your
vehicle’s entire braking system. It is
still your responsibility to drive and
corner at reasonable speeds and to
leave a sufficient margin of safety.When VSA activates, you will see the
VSA activation indicator blink (see
page ).
The vehicle stability assist (VSA)
system helps to stabilize the vehicle
during cornering if the vehicle turns
more or less than desired. It also
assists you in maintaining traction
while accelerating on loose or
slippery road surf aces. It does this
by regulating the engine’s output and
by selectively applying the brakes. When the VSA system indicator
comes on, you will also see a
‘‘CHECK VSA SYSTEM’’ message
on the multi-information display.
Without VSA, your vehicle still has
normal braking and cornering ability,
but it does not have VSA traction and
stability enhancement.
If the VSA system indicator comes
on while driving, pull to the side of
theroadwhenitissafe,andturnoff
the engine. Reset the system by
restarting the engine. If the VSA
system indicator stays on, or comes
back on while driving, have the VSA
system inspected by your dealer.
If the indicator does not come on
when the ignition switch is turned to
ON (II), there may be a problem
with the VSA system. Have your
dealer inspect your vehicle as soon
as possible (see page ). If the low tire pressure indicator
comes on (see page ), or the
multi-inf ormation display shows a
‘‘CHECK TPMS SYSTEM’’ message
(see page ), the VSA system
automatically turns on even when
the VSA system is turned of f with
the VSA OFF switch. In this case,
you cannot turn the VSA system of f
by pressing the VSA OFF switch
again.
63
63 280
277
VSA A ctivation Indicator
VSA System Indicator
Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) System
Driving
281

Your vehicle has been designed to
primarily carry passengers and their
cargo. You can also use it to tow a
trailer if you caref ully observe the
load limits, use the proper equipment,
and f ollow the guidelines in this
section.The weight that
the tongue of a f ully-loaded trailer
puts on the hitch should be
approximately 10 percent of the
trailer weight. Too much tongue
load reduces front-tire traction and
steering control. Too little tongue
load can make the trailer unstable
and cause it to sway.
The
maximum allowable weight of the
trailerandeverthinginoronit
must not exceed 1,000 lbs (450 kg).
Towing a load that is too heavy
can seriously af f ect your vehicle’s
handling and perf ormance. It can
also damage the engine and
drivetrain.
CONT INUED
Load Limits
Tongue Load:
T otal T railer Weight:
Towing a Trailer
Driving
283
Exceeding any load limit or
improperly loading your vehicle
and trailer can cause a crash in
which you can be seriously hurt
or killed.
Check the loading of your
vehicle and trailer carefully
beforestartingtodrive.

................
Identif ication Numbers . 364
................................
Specif ications .366
DOT Tire Quality Grading ......................
(U.S. Vehicles) .368
.................................
Treadwear .368
......................................
Traction .368
.............................
Temperature .369
.................................
Tire Labeling .370 .......................
Emissions Controls .371
.....................
The Clean Air Act .371
Crankcase Emissions Control ....................................
System .371
Evaporative Emissions Control ....................................
System .371
Onboard Ref ueling Vapor ................................
Recovery .371
...
Exhaust Emissions Controls . 372
....................
PGM-FI System .372
Ignition Timing Control ................................
System .372
Exhaust Gas Recirculation ...................
(EGR) System . 372
Three Way Catalytic ...........................
Converter .372
....................
Replacement Parts . 372
..
Three Way Catalytic Converter . 373
..............
State Emissions Testing . 374
Thediagramsinthissectiongive
you the dimensions and capacities of
your vehicle, and the location of
identif ication numbers. It also
includes inf ormation you should
know about your vehicle’s tires and
emissions control systems.
T echnical Inf ormat ion
T echnical Inf ormation
363

µ
The tires on your vehicle meet all
U.S. Federal Saf ety Requirements.
All tires are also graded f or
treadwear, traction, and temperature
perf ormance according to
Department of Transportation
(DOT) standards. The f ollowing
explains these gradings.
All passenger car tires must conf orm
to Federal Saf ety Requirements in
addition to these grades. Quality grades can be f ound where
applicable on the tire sidewall
between the tread shoulder and the
maximum section width. For
example: The treadwear grade is a compara-
tive rating based on the wear rate of
the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specif ied government
test course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one and one-
half (1 1/2) times as well on the
government course as a tire graded
100. The relative perf ormance of
tires depends upon the actual condi-
tions of their use, however, and may
depart signif icantly f rom the norm
due to variations in driving habits,
service practices, and dif f erences in
road characteristics and climate.The traction grades, f rom highest to
lowest, are AA, A, B, and C. Those
grades represent the tire’s ability to
stop on wet pavement as measured
under controlled conditions on
specif ied government test surf aces
of asphalt and concrete. A tire
marked C may have poor traction
perf ormance.
Warning: The traction grade
assignedtothistireisbasedon
straight-ahead braking traction tests,
and does not include acceleration,
cornering, hydroplaning, or peak
traction characteristics.
DOT T ire Quality Grading (U.S. Vehicles)
T readwear 200
Traction AA
Temperature A
Unif orm T ire Quality Grading Treadwear
Traction AA, A, B, C
368