I'm concerned that my ABS is not working. There was fresh freezing rain the other day and I almost lost control and narrowly missed the curb. I noticed that only the symbol for vehicle assist went on and I didn't feel the ABS kicking in. I went to my Toyota dealer who said that is normal, in conditions when vehicle assist is needed there will be no ABS. Today there's some fresh snow hitting the ground so I tried to test my brakes with sudden stopping. Again only the vehicle assist symbol went on but then again I was able to brake without swerving. This is my first winter with the Prius c (obviously) but my previous car only had ABS. I'm so used to feeling it kick in that I'm a bit paranoid that it's not working on my c. What do you guys think? Oh ya forgot to mention I just put on hankook iPike snow tires on.
Take your C into a snowy parking lot and test the cars limits. This is the only way you will learn how to handle your car in the snow. Have you tried doing a panic stop on a regular dry road? I tested this in my C and I could tell the ABS was working. I have also tested it in the snow and, of course, the ABS doesnt help much.
Are some tires actually sliding? Or are you just expecting the same buzzing / pulsing ABS feel as a previous car? My newer Prius ABS (meaning the 2010 Liftback, as the 2012 hasn't yet been tested by winter) feels nothing like my older (1997) nonhybrid ABS car. The new one is much faster and smoother.
It was kind of slick the other morning (no snow though) and I found that using the "B" gear really really helped slow the car down to a stop pretty quick. You should try using this so you don't have to use the brakes really at all.
