How many guys does it take to push a riv?

well i got stuck in a parkin spot about 1am ET. luckily a few friends were there. 1 is strrronngg as hell. the other 2 arent anything id put on sports field lol and me welll...u should know..im in pretty good shape. well..cars stuck..missing just gettin over the snowy hump by just a little bit. they came out...had a girl sit in the car...and us 4 pushed it about 15 feet up a snowy hill with very little traction. wooo go us lol.

well thats the story...alls good.

but my question is....as i was stuck prior to callin my friends...the tires wuold spin, could hear traciton tryin to work its magic...but the traction off light popped on. some sortt of feature so traction computers dont get burn it out for an impossible feat?

Good shape? BAHAHAHAHA

it's easyer if you hold of the tyres(from top) and truy to push them to roll.
truy it and you will see.
Also if the tyres have the right pressure it's not that hard to push to roll.
If you get stuck...then hold whit one feet on brake pedal and whit other gentley on gas.
keep the balance whit brake and gas so the tyres will spinn slowly but same time steady. much eacher to get to move then just pressing the pedal to the metall..

on a side note. how many guys does it take to push a riv? 5- one drunk behind the wheel yelling," push!" one in the passenger seat assessing the situation,one scratching his head wondering where in the hell on that smooth sculpted body is he going to find some leverage, the other two loudly proclaiming the impossibility of such a foolish manoeuvre

lol

xxsupergman25xx wrote:

but the traction off light popped on. some sortt of feature so traction computers dont get burn it out for an impossible feat?

That's something that typically happens with cars that have ABS and/or traction control. The issue in a lot of situations is just snow build up on th sensors that tells the traction/abs system that something isn't right so it disables the system. Honestly the traction control going off probably did you a favor. It's useless when you're stuck in snow. ABS and traction control on cars around this area are always turning themselves off and lighting up a dash light around this time of year. The up and down temps along with ice buildup causes a lot of issues with the sensors.

In a related note, a Riviera with decent snow tires on it can go through 8 inches of snow with not much of an issue. I did it the other day getting out of a driveway. I had to shut the traction control off because it wouldn't allow the car to move much at all, but after that it climbed right up and out of the driveway. I was shocked.

GMFreak8 wrote:

xxsupergman25xx wrote:

but the traction off light popped on. some sortt of feature so traction computers dont get burn it out for an impossible feat?

That's something that typically happens with cars that have ABS and/or traction control. The issue in a lot of situations is just snow build up on th sensors that tells the traction/abs system that something isn't right so it disables the system. Honestly the traction control going off probably did you a favor. It's useless when you're stuck in snow. ABS and traction control on cars around this area are always turning themselves off and lighting up a dash light around this time of year. The up and down temps along with ice buildup causes a lot of issues with the sensors.

In a related note, a Riviera with decent snow tires on it can go through 8 inches of snow with not much of an issue. I did it the other day getting out of a driveway. I had to shut the traction control off because it wouldn't allow the car to move much at all, but after that it climbed right up and out of the driveway. I was shocked.

Does anyone know if the Riv transaxle contains a limited slip differential?

Allbertj

it does not

first...the riv handles amazin in the snow. no probs drivin in it. problems while parked goin up a small hill lol. the traction control came on..but i could still hear it tryin to work.

xxsupergman25xx wrote:

but my question is... the tires wuold spin, could hear traciton tryin to work its magic...but the traction off light popped on. some sortt of feature so traction computers dont get burn it out for an impossible feat?

First of all, Snowdog's point about using the brakes along with the gas is correct, it helps reign in the spinning wheel and transfer the power to the other one... like a limited-slip diff. That's what the Traction Control does with a single brake caliper, it's an "ePosi".

I doubt that snow on the sensors would make a difference unless you had compromised seals or insulation - and then rain water would do the same thing.

What the system IS designed to do, is shut off the TC to prevent the brakes, not the computer, from burning out... I don't know what the time limit is, but In a snow situation, the TC system is going to quickly exhaust all of it's tricks. It can bypass SC boost, retard ignition timing, and shut down 1 to 3 fuel injectors... In fact, if you were far enough in the throttle, you should have felt some missing from the engine, too.

Eldo wrote:

xxsupergman25xx wrote:

but my question is... the tires wuold spin, could hear traciton tryin to work its magic...but the traction off light popped on. some sortt of feature so traction computers dont get burn it out for an impossible feat?

First of all, Snowdog's point about using the brakes along with the gas is correct, it helps reign in the spinning wheel and transfer the power to the other one... like a limited-slip diff. That's what the Traction Control does with a single brake caliper, it's an "ePosi".

I doubt that snow on the sensors would make a difference unless you had compromised seals or insulation - and then rain water would do the same thing.

What the system IS designed to do, is shut off the TC to prevent the brakes, not the computer, from burning out... I don't know what the time limit is, but In a snow situation, the TC system is going to quickly exhaust all of it's tricks. It can bypass SC boost, retard ignition timing, and shut down 1 to 3 fuel injectors... In fact, if you were far enough in the throttle, you should have felt some missing from the engine, too.

gotta agreee

Thanks for the '+'

Isn't there a 'snow driving' thread around here?

Yes, turning TC off in snow driving is a must, otherwise you just don't go anywhere.

As to the OP, I agree that it probably disabled to protect the ABS motor.

C'mon Derek, how short a duty cycle is this? Do you really think that the pump motor can't run as long as the outrageously over-amped starter motor? The only thing the Service Manual says that it's worried about overheating is the front brakes...

Well when the ABS kicks in it's high load and short duration. TC is usually the same, short duration. Okay, actually I have no idea how many amps the ABS system will draw when it's active, but given the fluid pressures involved I'd assume it's a good amount. If the OP was trying for minutes to get out of a stuck situation, I could see this happening. You don't crank the starter for 5 minutes either...

All I'm saying is, I could see it happening.