How Elite traction control decides to act
The idea is simple. If the driven wheels are turning faster than the car is actually moving, the tires are spinning instead of pushing. The Elite measures that difference, compares it with the slip you said was acceptable, and removes power by cutting ignition or injection events until the numbers line up again. A little slip is good, since tires make peak grip with some slip, so the goal is control, not zero.
Choose a traction control type
- PID From Vehicle Speeds: the common choice. Wheel speed sensors tell the ECU what each end of the car is doing. You need at least one front and one rear sensor. Our guide to using ABS wheel speed sensors with an Elite shows how to reuse factory hardware.
- Vehicle CAN Torque Limit: for cars with a supported CAN module that already transmits a torque limit request. The Elite follows that request instead of calculating slip itself. When you choose this, the Traction Control Torque Limit Source option (Disabled or CAN Input) and the Traction Control Torque Limit Input connection become relevant.
Adding an on/off switch
Tick Switch Enable if you want the driver to be able to turn traction control on and off, for example from a dual switch panel. You then pick the input on the Wiring tab. Either an SPI or an AVI works.
Using an SPI
- Edge Select: Falling if the switch grounds the input when it is on. Rising if the switch feeds voltage to the input when it is on.
- Sensor Type: Hall Effect for any switch.
- Pullup: enable it when the input needs help sitting at a voltage while the switch is open, which is the norm for a ground-switching setup.
Using an AVI
An AVI reads a voltage, so you tell the ECU which voltage means on and which means off. Leave a healthy gap between the two to ride out electrical noise and voltage sag. For example, if your switch pulls the input from about 5V down to ground when pressed, setting on at 0.5V and off at 4.5V gives the ECU a clean decision with plenty of margin. If a switch sits around 2.5V at rest and jumps to 12V when pressed, the thresholds go the other way: an on point comfortably above 2.5V, and an off point between that and the resting voltage.
Settings tab
| Setting | What it does | Our advice |
|---|---|---|
| Driven Wheel Minimum Speed | Traction control stays inactive until wheel speed passes this, because slip math is unreliable at a crawl | Low enough to catch a launch, high enough to ignore parking-lot noise from the sensors |
| Ramp Out Rate | How aggressively power returns after a cut | Start gentle. A fast ramp can break the tires loose again |
| Cut Method | Ignition Cut or Injection Cut | Ignition cut is the usual choice and responds quickly |
Conditional activation
You can require an ECU condition before traction control is allowed to work. Enable the condition, pick a channel, choose a comparison (equal, not equal, greater than, less than, or the or-equal versions) and set a value. If you also use the switch, the And/Or choice decides whether both must be true or either one is enough. A practical example: only allow traction control above a set vehicle speed, and only when the switch is on.
Desired slip and PID tables
Find these under ECU Navigator, Traction Control.
- Desired Slip Table: the target speed difference. On a front or rear drive car it compares driven wheels with undriven wheels. On AWD it compares the fastest sensor with the slowest. When measured slip exceeds the table value, the chosen cut kicks in. You can map it up to 3D, 8 by 8, so slip can change with speed, gear or another channel.
- PID Tuning: sets how hard and how quickly the closed loop controller works to bring slip back to the target. See our PID mapping explainer.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Usually |
|---|---|
| Never activates | Wheel speed below the minimum, a switch or condition not met, or a sensor not configured |
| Cuts on smooth pavement | Desired slip set too low, or mismatched tire sizes front to rear |
| Car bogs, then spins again | Ramp out too fast or PID too aggressive |
FAQ
Do I need four wheel speed sensors?
No. One front and one rear is the minimum for the wheel speed method. More sensors give a better picture, especially on AWD.
Is this the same as launch control?
No, they complement each other. Launch control holds RPM on the line; traction control manages slip once you are moving. For the full walkthrough, read our traction control user's guide.
