Traction Control Operation - Pontiac 2009 Montana SV6 Owner's Manual

The STABILITY CONTROL ACTIVE message will
appear on the DIC only when the system is both
on and activated. It means that an advanced
computer-controlled system has come on to help your
vehicle continue to go in the direction in which you are
steering. StabiliTrak activates when the computer senses
that your vehicle is just starting to spin, as it might if you
hit a patch of ice or other slippery spot on the road. When
the system activates, you may hear a noise or feel a
vibration in the brake pedal. This is normal. When the
STABILITY CONTROL ACTIVE message is on, you
should continue to steer in the direction you want to go.
The system is designed to help you in bad weather or
other difficult driving situations by making the most of
whatever road conditions will permit. For more
information on the stability messages, see Driver
Information Center (DIC) on page 3-43.
If the StabiliTrak system turns off, the traction control
system warning light will illuminate, and the STABILITY
CONTROL OFF message will appear on the DIC to warn
the driver that StabiliTrak is no longer available to assist
you with directional control of the vehicle. Adjust your
driving accordingly.
To realize the full benefits of the stability enhancement
system, you should normally leave StabiliTrak on, but it
may be necessary to turn the system off if your vehicle is
stuck in sand, mud, ice or snow, and you want to "rock"
your vehicle to attempt to free it. See Rocking Your
Vehicle to Get It Out on page 4-17 and If Your Vehicle is
Stuck in Sand, Mud, Ice, or Snow on page 4-17.

Traction Control Operation

The traction control system is part of the StabiliTrak
system. Traction control limits wheel spin by reducing
engine power to the wheels (engine speed
management) and by applying brakes.
The traction control system is enabled automatically
when you start your vehicle. It will activate and display
the TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVE message in the
DIC if it senses that one or both of the front wheels are
spinning or beginning to lose traction while driving.
If the brake traction-control system activates constantly
or if the brakes have heated up due to high-speed
braking, brake traction-control will be disabled and the
TRACTION CONTROL ACTIVE message will be
displayed. In the limited mode, the traction control
system will only use engine traction-control and is limited
in its ability to provide optimal performance since the
system will not utilize brake traction-control to control
slip on the drive wheels. The system will return to normal
operation after the brakes have cooled. This can take
up to two minutes or longer depending on brake usage.
4-7