In sports cars and other performance-oriented vehicles, launch control is an advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) that aids in swift acceleration from a standing start. Like blind-spot warning and lane-keeping assistance, well-known ADAS are specifically designed to provide safety support. Launch control, on the other hand, aims to generate as much power and traction as feasible so that a car may accelerate as rapidly as possible from a stop. Although the “control” portion of its name has a safety component, the “launch and following zero-to-60 mph times are what are highlighted.
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How does Audi launch control function?
How does launch control directly benefit race drivers? It determines the rpm at which the clutch is released (on a manual or DSG) to enhance consistency and off-center acceleration. An efficient launch control system will spool up the turbo on a turbocharged vehicle, eliminating turbo lag once you’re moving.
Does your car suffer from launch control?
Launch control is a piece of software that enables you to accelerate your car without experiencing any drama, such as wheelspin or, worse, exploding an engine cylinder.
Anyone can accelerate off the line, especially in a manual car, by putting the clutch in, reducing the throttle until it reaches a set RPM, and then releasing it. Pretty basic, yes?
Doing so, especially after several tries, might harm various components of your car, including the clutch, drivetrain, engine, and gearbox.
How does launch control work?
A computer program and an electronic accelerator are used in launch control. Based on engine specs, the software regulates acceleration to make the automobile accelerate smoothly and quickly while preventing difficulties with the clutch and gearbox, spinning of the drive wheels, and engine failure due to over-revving. Only at the beginning of the race, when the car is still on the starting grid, is this capability available in racing cars. The program is turned off after the car reaches a specific speed.
What is launch control used for?
Pressing a button is all that is necessary for activation. Alternatively, that is how the series begins. Dynamic stability control must be off, the engine must be warmed up, and the automatic transmission must be put to sequential mode with the vehicle in first gear on a BMW M vehicle. The next step is as follows:
- Firmly apply the brakes.
- Accelerator down till it kicks down, then hold
- A start flag should eventually display in the driver information screen.
- Control the beginning speed and rpm.
- As you release the brake, keep your foot firmly planted.
- Once the clutch or gear engages, you can start moving.
For Dodge Hellcat automobiles, the procedure is the same, and the vehicle information center also provides instructional help. With the sadly defunct Challenger SRT Demon, which includes a transbrake feature, a little modification is necessary. The transbrake locks the vehicle’s output shaft and enables a launch without using the brakes when the launch control is engaged using the paddle shifter. The initiation sequence stays the same everywhere else.
Do two steps damage your engine?
What are you hearinganti-lag, two-step rev limiter, or something else? We go in-depth on the advantages and drawbacks of two-step rev limitation.
Even if you get carried away while having fun, a rev restriction protects your engine. For instance, if you’re driving your sports vehicle quickly through the gears on a track and you suddenly overshoot it, things won’t be too bad if you have a rev limiter, but if not, you risk damaging the engine.
Do you still play the classic Need For Speed Most Wanted? They really depicted this sensation in the video game very properly, unlike everything else car-related. You are expected to shift gears on your own throughout the race. The engine revs too high and you hear the phrase “blown engine” if you tried to make the “perfect shift” but delayed too long.
This occurs when you rev too high and don’t make a timely gear shift. Manufacturers include a rev limiter specifically to prevent the engine from harming itself for this reason. This is the main cause of why your car won’t go past the redline.
Revised: April 2022
A two-step, often known as launch control, is a secondary rev limiter that maintains a specific RPM for the best power delivery. Two-step rev limiters are often not detrimental for your engine, unless the setup is designed to boost pressure inside the exhaust manifold. A lot of aftermarket kits are now available for it as well.
Launch control: Does it violate the warranty?
BMW would not have incorporated it if doing so would breach the warranty because it can lead to premature wear. If the clutch on the DCT becomes worn from launching, they will classify it as “wear” and charge you for it. similar to an MT’s clutch. Abuse would be a problem because the car cannot be abused indefinitely under any guarantee.
Should an automatic vehicle be launched?
Driving a manual car is less direct and more complex than driving an automatic or a car with a CVT gearbox. However, if done incorrectly, you risk damaging your vehicle, and at that point, even mechanics won’t be able to assist you.
Here are the top 4 things to be on the lookout for when operating an automatic vehicle.
1. Never use neutral to coast down a slope
Although you do save a tiny amount of fuel when coasting down a slope in neutral, Modern automatic gearboxes cut off the gasoline flow to the engine when you are in gear, traveling up and down hills, then climbing another hill. You will therefore only use the engine and wheels, which are linked to the transmission. By using an automatic vehicle, you can save fuel in this way.
As the car can no longer accelerate to complete the length while coasting down a slope in neutral, you take control of it.
Another reason is that when you coast down a hill in neutral, you deprive the car of control because it can no longer accelerate to finish the stretch.
2. Completely stop the vehicle before shifting into reverse.
When moving from drive to reverse or from reverse to drive in an automatic transmission car, you always want to be sure that you come to a complete stop first. This is necessary since you are stopping the car using your brakes, not your transmission. While your brakes are made to stop the car, the gearbox in an automatic vehicle is made to change gears.
3. Do not accelerate your car.
Never launch your vehicle if you want it to last as long as possible. It will just subject the car to great pressure and stress.
One habit that many people who drive automatic cars have is revving the engine in neutral before putting the car in drive to move forward. This must be avoided. It won’t do anything but harm the automatic gearbox, and replacing one is pricey. The proper procedure is to engage drive mode on the gearbox and begin driving. It’s that easy.
The engine continues to operate while being idle by maintaining the gearbox in drive mode.
4. Never put the car in neutral while waiting for a signal.
There is no justification for shifting into neutral while waiting for a signal. It’s okay to leave it in drive, and against popular belief, shifting back to neutral won’t actually save fuel. It will just increase the gearbox’s stress.
The engine continues to operate while being idle by maintaining the gearbox in drive mode. While placing the car in neutral and switching to drive mode as soon as you start moving merely results in that additional fuel usage.
While most of these ideas are common knowledge, we thought it would be worthwhile to highlight them for individuals who may have been doing things incorrectly up to this point. The aforementioned pointers are some of the fundamental guidelines for operating an automatic transmission car to ensure a comfortable and hassle-free journey.
Which RPM setting for launch control should I use?
The sweet spot appears to be 5400… Though always adaptable, ensure sure the traction control is turned off. At the track night, I committed that error and lost some time because I was unaware that it needed to be corrected. When I took my car to the test and tune night, I didn’t even consider that because I never launch it on a regular basis, but it kicked my behind!
The clutch also needs to be slipped a little; else, it would just grab and fall on its face.
When my car was still white, scroll down to see a video of me utilizing launch control. And yeah, I came in last, but to be fair, it was my friend’s 500 horsepower M5. lol
What is your maximum number of launch controls?
We on the F90 board discovered a few weeks ago that BMW only allows the ZF8 transmissions to carry out 50 launches. For those of you who are interested, this means that after 50 launches, the 0-60 times on these automobiles will probably go up by almost a full second.
In order to let you know to limit launch controls, I just wanted to offer this as a warning. My 0-60 times climbed from 2.5 to 3.0 seconds, and my 1/4 mile timings went up by 2-3 tenths as well, because I used up all of mine in the first two months of ownership.
In other words, BMW is misrepresenting the performance of their vehicles by employing this method. If you utilize it, the figures in publications won’t match what you’ll see in the actual world.
What is the launch control speed?
According to Road & Track, significant powertrain damage from multiple launches wasn’t uncommon. According to Car and Driver, Nissan had to reprogramme the R35 GT-system R’s exactly because the dual-clutch transmission of the supercar would be destroyed. In some cases, careful human input could surpass computer control in performance vehicles. It was demonstrated on an SRT Viper by Car and Driver.
Launch control is now necessary to obtain the finest acceleration data, though, as of recent years. For instance, it enables the future Hummer EV to achieve a stated 0-60 mph pace of 3.0 seconds. According to MotorTrend, the electronics just react more quickly and reliably than even some of the greatest humans can.
Is using traction control while launching better or worse?
While racing, disabling your car’s traction control can let you drive more quickly and significantly reduce your lap times. The ability to maintain your car on the track does, however, call for a lot of talent.
Disabling it on your car carries risks, though. The safety net of traction control permits drivers to make mistakes. But as soon as you remove that safety net, driving becomes far more difficult and dangerous.
In a less powerful automobile or on a simulator, which is considerably more forgiving of your faults, you should have practiced driving without traction control beforehand. Because you need to have a delicate sense of the automobile and a responsive right foot, the learning curve can be rather steep.
Before attempting to establish the quickest lap, it is necessary to start out slowly and understand how to handle your car and how your automobile responds to your throttle inputs. It can be very exciting to be able to finish a lap at full speed without traction control.
Can a car be launched without a launch control system?
Without a lot of practice, launching a car with a manual transmission can be challenging. Even without a complex launch-control system, your duty will be lot simpler if your automobile is an automatic.
Just use your left foot to depress the brake pedal and your right foot to depress the throttle to increase the revs. Push the throttle pedal hard after releasing the brake.
Now, there is undoubtedly more going on beneath the car’s sheet metal than what you could feel from the driver’s seat. By using gearing and the torque converter, your transmission modifies the amount of torque sent to the wheels after absorbing it from the engine.
In the video above, our friend from Engineering Explained, goes into much more detail on that subject.
But what we admire about this clip is the deeper exploration of the mechanical details. It’s a good idea to be aware of what you’re doing to your car and which sections you’re stressing if you’re going to conduct specific tasks in it.
So enjoy your journey while you’re out there, but be aware of the things you’ll break if you only launch your automobile.