Would someone be kind enough to explain traction control, when to use it and when not 
Thanks in advance 
Traction control is basically there to stop wheelspin. If you try to accelerate too hard, the tyres do not have enough grip on the ground, and the wheels start to spin. A sensor on the wheel/axle detects that this is happening, and applies the brakes to that wheel to slow it down, plus I think in some cases it also reduce the engine power.
You’re most likely to wheelspin when pulling away hard, in the wet, with a light trailer. If you turn the TC off, then you’ll just wheelspin constantly, and never actually get any speed up until you’ve destroyed your tyres.
If you’re wheelspinning whilst you’re trying to turn a corner, then because the tyres aren’t gripping on the road, the spinning axle tends to go straight on rather than in the correct direction, so you’re more at risk of jackknifing.
Basically, it’s there to get you out of trouble; you shouldn’t ever be “using” it. You shouldn’t be triggering the TC regularly; if you find you’re engaging the TC a lot, then you need to be a bit more gentle on the throttle and/or raise a lift axle if possible.
As for when to turn it off, I can’t think of any time when you would, except for playing around and showing off 
although there are some situations (driving slowly over kerbs, up hills with very heavy trailers etc.) where the TC can make the unit lurch around as it engages and disengages, so maybe you might want to turn it off then to get it to work a bit more smoothly?
I always found after taking several defensive driving courses in various makes of vehicle if you get the vehicle going in first just by lifting the clutch with no or very little gas and the put it into second or third the wheels don’t spin.
Ok guys is a scania 420, there is a switch in the cab, on and off. Im pulling a loaded double decker both ways on my journey, I try to be very gently when pulling away and dont find I have suffered with wheelspin. If i turn it on, an orange tc light comes on intermittintly usually while driving in the yard.
kevin.red:
Ok guys is a scania 420, there is a switch in the cab, on and off. Im pulling a loaded double decker both ways on my journey, I try to be very gently when pulling away and dont find I have suffered with wheelspin. If i turn it on, an orange tc light comes on intermittintly usually while driving in the yard.
Don’t bother with the switch in the Scania’s, it doesn’t do anything. Just keep your revs down or dump the air on your lift axle and you won’t have any problems.
With these TC switches you have to think arse about face. When the switch is in the Off position the TC is on, putting the switch to the On postion switches the TC off.
Coffeeholic:
With these TC switches you have to think arse about face. When the switch is in the Off position the TC is on, putting the switch to the On postion switches the TC off.
Just run that by me again 
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basically just leave TC on all the time.
I wondered why vehicles with TC had a switch to disable it. I found the reason when driving a sprinter.
I pulled out onto a main road into a gap in the traffic, so i needed to get a move on. As i turned the weight transfer made one of the rear wheels lose traction and spin slightly, this caused the TC system to kill the power, which is what you’d do if you were on loose ground, but the oposite when pulling into traffic. Hence this is when you turn it off.
kevin.red:
Ok guys is a scania 420, there is a switch in the cab, on and off. Im pulling a loaded double decker both ways on my journey, I try to be very gently when pulling away and dont find I have suffered with wheelspin. If i turn it on, an orange tc light comes on intermittintly usually while driving in the yard.
IIRC, the Scania switch has “TC” with a line through it. This means that switching the switch on cancels traction control.
With the switch in the “on” position, you should have a TC warning light on the dashboard to warn you that traction control is off.
With the switch in the “off” position, the TC warning light should normally be off, but it will flash on when the TC is triggered.
Driving in the yard is one likely candidate, as without a trailer, you have very little weight on the drive axle (especially if it’s a 6x2 with the lift axle down), so it’s very easy to get wheelspin. Or, alternatively, you can get wheelspin when you’re trying to pull the loaded trailer round a tight corner (manouevring in the yard), since you’re trying to drag the trailer wheels sideways.
Thanks guys you’ve been great
dennisw1:
basically just leave TC on all the time.…
As i turned the weight transfer made one of the rear wheels lose traction and spin slightly, this caused the TC system to kill the power, which is what you’d do if you were on loose ground, but the oposite when pulling into traffic. Hence this is when you turn it off.
And at the moment TC kills the power you’re stuck in the snow or in loose ground.
Basically need to turn TC off comes at low speeds in situations where you are expecting low traction at low speeds. Quote above is one example, but not very likely to happen with a truck. In those situations it’s better to let wheel spin some amount than to let it stop. When speed raises there isn’t any advantage in switching TC off as it will most likely prevent jackknifing for example.
if the tc light flashes when at standstill then its off. the the switch work inth e opposite way to the other switches. the tc is on if the top of the swich is in the dash if you follow wat im saying
Thanks for all the interesting info!! I had many doubts on this topic too and now most of them are cleared out!! 
Dont mess about wit it, you will wear it out 
Apparently if you press the TC switch in a scania R420 it does not turn it off it widens the parameters of the traction control. Even though the switch has TC with a line through it. A guy in the training department where i work told me this, this week, he says you cant turn traction control off at all,however not everythng he has told me so far has been altogether factual 
any comments
Could well be right.
On the sprinters, it comes back on at 40mph, so it must still be active just a little more forgiving.
On the Actros, i know there is a construction site mode, when you flick the diff lock in it taylors the gearing and TC for loose ground, so makes it less sensitive.