Overzealous traction control leaves Prius owners stuck in snow?

Some owners of Toyota's Prius hybrid are reporting having problems getting moving in snow due to the car's aggressive and permanent traction control system.





"When my car is on any kind of slick surface that causes one of the front wheels to slip, all power to the drive system is stopped," Prius owner Christopher of Reston, Virginia told ConsumerAffairs.

He said his first experience with the problem was "on a sloped gravel driveway in July but [I] discounted it as a temporary thing."

When snow fell, the problem became apparent. "This past weekend I was on a snow-covered road with about an 8- to 10-degree grade. Driving at 20 miles per hour, one tire began to slip on the snow and the car came to a stop. The wheels then refused to engage, because one would slip a little, regardless of throttle position," he wrote.

Christopher said he "had cable style tire chains and installed them properly on the front wheels and tried again. Still, a tire would slip on the 4 or 5 inches between the cables and the car would refuse to move."

Toyota insists the system works as intended, and spokesman Bill Kwon believes without it, drivers would still be stuck.

"A vehicle without TRAC in those conditions," Kwon said. "would probably just start spinning in place and eventually spin out of control. In my opinion, it's better to have the vehicle stop then to have the wheels spinning and out of control."