Disable ABS

[eeetea]

Yes, this I believe to be true...and why I leave my ABS on.... 
 
But equally many including me, see the dangers when you stop on dirt...that shouldn't be an issue for road riding, but in the UK sometimes it is.

Mind you ABS is becoming so good these days that even on gravel it can far outperform non-ABS. 
I have attended Simon Pavey's Offroad Skills course in Wales on a number of occasions.  The first time was probably about 9 years ago using the relatively new at that time 1200GS.  On the first day they said, "We've disabled the ABS and whatever you do, don't try and switch it back on!".  In those days you had much more control modulating the brakes yourself.
 
Last time I did the course was about 2 years ago with the latest 1200GS with its various riding modes including Enduro mode.  This time they said on the first day "We've put the bikes in Enduro mode with the ABS [b style=text-decoration:underline]ON[/b], and whatever you do, don't try and switch it off!".  I must say it was amazing.  Riding down steep, gravelly inclines with slippery roots in your path and the front brake on and the bike just rolled down the hill in a controlled safe manner.  I was suitably impressed.
 
CS

Yes. I agree the technology is improving all the time. I'm not sure how sophisticated it is on the FJ/Tracer but I suspect it would out perform my 2009 KTM990. What was true then, may not be true now - I'm no expert on these things!
 
And again, I'm leaving it on - in fact I might find some dirt and try it out - probably better to do it in a controlled way, than wait for "the day"

[foxedupone]

On gravel roads you would want to lock up the back tire to get slowed. With abs needing to stop quickly you would have no braking and will end up in a tree or a ditch. Abs gives little braking on truly loose surfaces. If you ride sanely then yes just light braking will do the trick, but any type of riding over the limits of a 400lbs bike on gravel and needing to emergency stop or set yourself up for a hairpin and you will not want abs in this particular situation. Everywhere else on regular roads abs will probably save your butt in a panic braking situation. If you are engaging abs during regular dry weather riding then you ride like a maniac on the street. If it's engaged in wet weather with good tires then you are either emergency braking, not smooth enough on the brakes or there truly is very little grip for some reason like oil, sand or a slick surface like painted lines. When it engages when it's needed most riders will be happy it's there.

[adjuster]

I like the ABS. It's saved my butt two times already. Loose dirty debris on a new paved side, and wet cross strips while braking have me upright, and thinking about the crash that would have just happened on most of my previous bikes.
 
Same with the traction control. It's not a problem, this bike likes to push the limit too easy, or it's a rider thing..
 
 

[xlxr]

I was surprised the two times ABS mode kicked in, it was on dry pavement at slower speeds and I really did not consider the tire was on the edge of loosing traction. Based on my very limited experience with FJ 09 ABS, it kicked in too soon and actually increased braking distance. More testing will continue. I like to test ABS on wet paved roads for consistency sake. Problem is, it doesn't rain much where I live.
 
Question, why not just remove the rear wheel sensor and re-position it so it cannot pick up the signal from the rotor? Is there a connector so the sensor lead can be disconnected from the wiring harness?
 
Next question, how do you clear problem codes from ECU, just in case an error code is generated? So far, only one guy has said pulling the fuses did not kick off error codes.
 

[themilkman]

I was surprised the two times ABS mode kicked in, it was on dry pavement at slower speeds and I really did not consider the tire was on the edge of loosing traction. Based on my very limited experience with FJ 09 ABS, it kicked in too soon and actually increased braking distance. More testing will continue. I like to test ABS on wet paved roads for consistency sake. Problem is, it doesn't rain much where I live.  
Question, why not just remove the rear wheel sensor and re-position it so it cannot pick up the signal from the rotor? Is there a connector so the sensor lead can be disconnected from the wiring harness?
 
Next question, how do you clear problem codes from ECU, just in case an error code is generated? So far, only one guy has said pulling the fuses did not kick off error codes.

 
 
I think we can all agree some people like ABS and some people don't. Sorta like politics at this point. So what's the best way to go abouto disabling it? I would think if you removed the wheel sensor it may disable TCS too, which I'd suspect plays more of a role in the ecu. I'd like to try the wired switch method somehow.

[foxedupone]

Tcs is great, go onto wet grass and pin it, then jam on the brakes and abs will get you a controlled upright stop.

[eeetea]

Alternatively we could all just learn to ride properly - people seem to have managed for the last 50 years without...well, except the ones that didn't survive, of course.  Natural selection  init.

[timg]

Alternatively we could all just learn to ride properly - people seem to have managed for the last 50 years without...well, except the ones that didn't survive, of course.  Natural selection  init.

At some point you could have said the same thing about radial tires, disc brakes, wet clutches, etc.  It's generally called progress. 

[suncoaster]

Tcs is great, go onto wet grass and pin it, then jam on the brakes and abs will get you a controlled upright stop.

Setup your video camera first .. 8-)

[foxedupone]

There wouldn't be anything too dramatic to see, computers work it all out for you no matter how abrupt you are on the controls.?

[eeetea]

Alternatively we could all just learn to ride properly - people seem to have managed for the last 50 years without...well, except the ones that didn't survive, of course.  Natural selection  init.

At some point you could have said the same thing about radial tires, disc brakes, wet clutches, etc.  It's generally called progress.

Tongue in cheek English humour I'm afraid

[wordsmith]

Tongue in cheek English humour I'm afraid <puts paper bag on head>

"Never trust a man who, if left alone in a room with a tea-cosy, doesn't put it on his head". [em]W[/em]
 

[eeetea]

Tongue in cheek English humour I'm afraid

"Never trust a man who, if left alone in a room with a tea-cosy, doesn't put it on his head". [em]W[/em]

Have you got a spy cam!

[timg]

At some point you could have said the same thing about radial tires, disc brakes, wet clutches, etc.  It's generally called progress.

Tongue in cheek English humour I'm afraid <puts paper bag on head>

Thing is, I'm of English heritage, and I still didn't get it.  I think the paper bag is mine, eh. 

[xlxr]

With 1,300 miles on my bike, I figured brakes were worn in enough to test rear ABS. On dry pavement at 40 mph I hit the rear brake by itself and measured the stopping distance by referencing cracks in the road and curb. If I just smashed the brake pedal as hard as possible and kept it in ABS mode all the way to full stop, the braking distance was 5 to 10 feet longer than if I tried to hold just enough pressure to NOT initiate ABS mode. The less I let the ABS cycle, the shorter the braking distance. If the ABS cycled only once or twice, the braking distance was still shorter than if I let the ABS cycle continuously. I encourage others to do the same test and post their results.
 
Then I unbolted the rear wheel sensor and just zip tied it out of the way. This killed the speed/mph reading on the dash gauge and lighted up the TCS and check engine light, but everything else seemed to work. This completely disabled the rear ABS, and made it much easier to lock up rear tire. I cannot remember for sure, but I think the front ABS still worked, I only tested the front once. Once I bolted the rear wheel sensor back in place, the error lights when out, speedo worked, rear ABS worked, but I have no idea if error codes remained in ECU.
 
I have a service manual and could not find separate fuses for front or rear ABS, but I will need to look in more detail when I have time. It looks like pulling fuses disconnects the entire ABS system. The video at the start of this thread shows how to pull one fuse, so I am not sure why later posts refer to 2 fuses.
 
I still want to disconnect rear ABS, but leave front intact. My main reason is that it is easy to tell if the rear locks up, and I do not need or want rear ABS. With rear ABS disconnected, if ABS kicks in and starts to cycle, I know it is the front brake that needs modulating.
 
 
More experimenting to continue when I have time.