Modern cars are full of modern safety systems such as the Electronic Stability Program (ESP) and Trailer Stability Program (TSP) that support the driver during a ride with a trailer or caravan. The vehicle specific witing kit is an essential link that ensures that the control system in the car recognizes the trailer and activates the Trailer Stability Program.
TSP is an extension to the existing ESP in the vehicle. ESP takes over the control system of the vehicle when the car threatens to sway. The yaw-rate sensor transmits signals to the control system that intervenes at an early stage by braking crosswise. This is done subtly and without the driver noticing. When using a trailer, this function can be expanded with TSP.
TSP is an important safety system especially for trailers and caravans. It does the same as ESP, namely correcting by braking at an early stage. TSP is triggered as soon as a trailer is mounted. The movement and possibly swaying of the trailer is detected by the TSP and corrected at an early stage.
For a safe and correct operation of TSP is it essential that the vehicle system recognizes that a trailer is mounted. For this you need a vehicle specific wiring kit. When a universal wiring kit is fitted, or a vehicle specific wiring kit is fitted but not coded, the operating system does not recognize that a trailer is mounted and TSP does not work. The wiring kit does receive signals but does not return any communication.
Does the driver notice when TSP works? The system’s corrections are so subtle that they are unnoticeable to the driver. That is why it is so important that the driver can rely on a correctly fitted wiring kit.
In this video the comparison is made of a car with a caravan that is equipped with TSP (Volkswagen Tiguan) and a car with a caravan that is not equipped with TSP (Mazda CX5). The differences are obvious.
To encode the wiring kit to ensure that TSP is recognized, adjustments to the software of the vehicle are required. The trailer recognition module must be switched on. As soon as this module is switched on, other functions, such as Park Distance Control (PDC), the rear fog lights and Lane Assist are switched off. Other important functions, such as engine cooling, are switched on and Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC) is adapted for driving with a trailer. With some car brands, such as BMW, the software changes are automatically activated
ESP has been mandatory for all new cars within the EU since 2014. Although it is not mandatory to install a vehicle specific wiring kit, we do recommend this to ensure the safety of the driver and passengers. If the car provides safety systems, we, as a supplier of the towbar and wiring kit, will supply matching products. If you want to know if the wiring kit supports TSP then you can find this information in the catalog under the article specifications.
The gross price of a vehicle specific wiring kit that the consumer pays is approximately 65 to 85 pounds higher than a universal wiring kit. Installation takes approximately half an hour more time. An investment that offers the driver extra safety on the road, so that he can travel with peace of mind with his car and trailer.
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