[lsturbointeg]

had a conversation with a buddy who says he leaves it off every time he drives. I find that odd especially if you're just going to run errands and what not. I have yet needed to turn it off myself. wanted to get your guy's input on when you actually use DSC and what are the safety hazards on leaving it off every time you drive? thanks!

[antych]

The risk is that you may die if you get caught out in a specific situation. Look up "moose test". Other than that it won't really make a difference, because no one drives on the limit doing errands.

[jlstyle]

What gets you buy turning the DSC other than amber warning light? Or does he like to fishtail going off the stop signs?

[Our03z4]

I turn my off in my 2.5i z4 when I need to pull out fast, always dogs the car down too much if I get even a little spin. My 3.0si I've never turned it off except at a auto cross event.

[X Driver]

Always on, when i want to, then i switch to M dynamic mode. Completely off almost never. The problem is you will not expect to use it when you use it. And then will be no time to switch on.

[KenB925]

Originally Posted by lsturbointeg

had a conversation with a buddy who says he leaves it off every time he drives. I find that odd especially if you're just going to run errands and what not. I have yet needed to turn it off myself. wanted to get your guy's input on when you actually use DSC and what are the safety hazards on leaving it off every time you drive? thanks!

What does he drive?

I don't turn mine off as a general rule.

[zx10guy]

Don't mess with mine either.

When I took the M Car Control Clinic, the instructors said under no circumstances were we to turn DSC off.

[hybris]

Run in Sport as a general rule, Sport+ for spirited driving, and DSC OFF if I feel tail happy.

[clee1982]

have almost never turned it off

[AlpineWhite_SJ]

M dynamic in Sport mode all the time for better throttle response. DSC never fully off.

[clee1982]

Originally Posted by AlpineWhite_SJ

M dynamic in Sport mode all the time for better throttle response. DSC never fully off.

that I would say +1, though now with wife and kid in the car all the time I learn to drive less heavy foot...

I used to drive sport mode all the time...

[ShocknAwe]

I like living. Leave it on in some capacity.

[0w40X1]

My X1 s28i was great at using the rears DSC or whatever for turning, and I even left DSC on for the track, but I could feel and see it was jerking one side to stop and other side would launch.

I fixed that by putting ceramic pads on rears only. Now it has very reasonable shoot off the line.

If your car is bogging ceramics could help, but it also really needs some good rubber like Michelin PS4S or whatever.

[Soterios]

The first thing I do when I start the 135i is press and hold the traction control button until it and DSC are off.

I'd love to just code them to be off by default and on when I press the buttons.

EDIT : To address OPs question about safety, I guess. I bought a turbocharged rear wheel drive sports car. I want it to be fun. With DSC on, any amount of throttle input or over-steer and the car shuts itself down. That's not fun. The whole reason I want to drive a sports car is that it's more exiting.

I am, by no means, a pro driver. I do think, however, that I'm competent enough to handle the car stepping out from time to time. I don't think it's dangerous to drive with DSC off. I think it's boring.

[iqraceworks]

I do. Every time I feel it kicking in to keep the back tires from spinning, it's helping me out

[No one]

I drive in Sport+ mode. That is DSC is limited (neither fully on or off). I like to drive the car rather than just ride in it. It means to control the wheelspin (to a reasonable extent, at least) too. It does eat my rear tyres though even while I try to avoid it.

[SFCM3]

i only turn DSC off in controlled environments. On the street, M dynamic mode is more than enough to get into trouble.

[arashir]

I always put it in MDM since repeatedly experiencing some scary computer interventions on certain curves during otherwise non-scary situations. I've never been able to verify what precisely causes the scary intervention or whether the machine is indeed capable of modulating individual brakes without telling you it's intervening by activating the DSC light (cause that's what the scary interventions feel like) but it never happens in MDM.

[Ickdeep]

I leave it on 95% of the time (work, around town, general driving, etc..). The only time I disable is when I'm doing a little run with someone (for me, its programmed into M2 mode). Traction control almost always kicks in from 2nd gear with how the car is setup right now which just slows the car way down.

[G35POPPEDMYCHERRY]

i mean it really depends on what one is driving no? i could turn the traction off in a miata and have a blast; little risk of death. f80 will kill you just getting a tad eager on the throttle.

for the f8x; mdm in summer; fully on in winter. way to tail happy to mess around on public roads lol

[Tambohamilton]

Worth pointing out that the default mode ('SC', if you like) is different from DSC mode (short-press the button) which is also different from long-pressing the button to turn off almost all driving nannies...

I think it's pretty selfish/irresponsible to drive on a public road with it fully off (long press the button). If you think you're better than the car's control system, you're wrong.

Switching to DSC mode (short press the button)...sure if you must. But not in rush hour traffic etc - that's just pointless. You really are a tool if you're trying to go sideways on a busy public road.

For me, I can appreciate driving my car without even losing traction (before the stability control kicks in at all). Occasionally I do drive like a d*ck, and can see why DSC feels like the fun-police, but really for the safety of others around you, surely just leave it be. If you want to get loose in your car, go to a track or maybe even a disused parking lot (which you folks in the US seem to have a few of - lucky sods!), and do what you like.

Sent from the comfort of my rocking chair and slippers, using my Android phone, because seemingly I'm an old fart.

[DanG]

I never turn it off. Run in Sport all the time.