FordCurve Controlis a driver assistance system that aims to assist the driver with under-steer when cornering. The system has initially been implemented into the next generation Ford Explorer, which isn’t a vehicle we get in South Africa, but Ford do mention that they plan to fit Curve Control onto not just SUV’s but many of their car models as well in the future.

Improved safety with Ford Curve Control

If a driver enters a turn too fast, then the Ford Curve Control system will automatically slow the vehicle down in 2 ways. First it will reduce the amount of torque to the engine and secondly it will automatically apply breaking to each of the wheels depending on how much is required, the system can apply all four wheel breaking if necessary.

The next obvious issue then is how does the Ford Curve Control system determine when and to what extent it will assist the driver. The system will use sensors that are the same used in the Roll Stability Control. These sensors will measure roll rate, yaw rate, lateral acceleration, wheel speeds and steering wheel angle.

The Ford Curve Control system uses the data taken from these sensors when the driver is taking a corner, it then determines if the car is turning the amount that the driver wants the vehicle to turn. If the answer is no, then the system kicks in and does something about it. Ford have tested this system while pulling a trailer and mention that it still works as intended.