Abs Braking In Slush

[Stephenw]

Friday we had rain which turned into snow and then slush. Scraped slushy snow off car and set off at about 10 - 15mph. At the first corner slowed down and put my foot on brake. Car wheels locked and car skidded slowly for some yards. Thought it might be a tyre problem but all 4 were fine. There was also a slight banging as I hit the brake. Is this an ABS thing?

[cg51]

yes. ABS systems make a grating noise.

[shoota]

Yes - try and slow down way before a corner using the engine braking and gears, only brake with the wheels in a straight line and depress the brake pedal gently.
Abs will not slow you down if the wheels have lost grip due to a slippery surface.

[Stephenw]

Thanks for these.

[Toureman]

ABSsystems make a rapid ticking noise when in use and you can feel the rapid juddering,
it seems like you let your foot of the brake to early.

Using ABS will still let you corner without skidding but on ice or snow will not improve the braking much.

I wonder what car you are asking about?

[mjwman]

You will find thete are a odd noises as the abs kicks in. Sometimes , especially when starting off it is better to turn it off if you can.

[ChuckFickens]

Why would ABS have any effect at all when "starting off"?... and I only know of one car you can turn ABS off at all, and that's the original Audi quattro.

Traction control is sometimes better to turn off when "starting off" in snow or ice, but not ABS.

[coccinelle]

Thanks Stephenw for this thread. I had exactly the same problem on Friday so now I know why and will feel more comfortable next snow day.