What Does VDC Mean in a Car? Definition and Mechanism

The letters VDC seem puzzling but they make sense in the world of motor vehicles. What does VDC stand for? Well, the VDC meaning is Vehicle Dynamic Control, which is a unique system for correcting steering issues in cars of several automaker brands. Being potentially life-saving, this stability control system is a part of the vehicle dynamic control. What does VDC mean in a car?

What Is a VDC?

VDC is another name of the stability control system or the electronic stability control (ESC) in Nissan, Subaru, and Infiniti models. It kicks in in the case of understeer and oversteer and prevents these steering issues by lowering the speed and applying brakes on the wheels causing this problem. Since 2012, vehicles sold in the United States must have either the ESC or VDC.

The technology in the VDC system monitors the wheel movement all the time. For that reason, it can catch the sign of wheel slippage before the driver detects any symptom. It instantly applies countermeasures to fight off the loss of steering control and traction. This is a continuous process and the driver is not aware of all these actions going on.

This system helps with keeping the car on the road. However, it’s not an alternative to safe driving techniques. It may help in certain situations but if you are not careful, it’s still possible to lose control while driving. Despite keeping the system on, it may not be effective in the case of a sudden throttle and steering application.

You should keep the system on all the time to ensure better driving safety. However, it needs to be disabled in some situations, such as freeing a car stuck in mud or snow.

What Does VDC Mean in a Car?

The Nissan vehicle dynamic control system means that your vehicle can correct the understeering and oversteering issues in most driving conditions. It’s similar to the traction control system used in the vehicles of other automakers. So, what does VDC off mean? When the VDC OFF indicator light on the dashboard lights up, it indicates that the system is currently not in use.

With an engaged VDC system, driving in adverse weather conditions becomes more challenging. You may lose control when driving in rain or on snowy roads if the VDC system is off. It’s very common for car wheels to slip when the road is slippery due to water or ice. To avoid such accidents, you need to apply the brake and reduce the speed within seconds, which is difficult for a human being. The VDC system literally saves lives by stepping in those situations and taking necessary actions in a jiffy.

What does VDC mean in a car? It means that the driver can exercise more control over the handling of the vehicle. The system helps in this regard by supplying the necessary power to the wheels to keep them grounded.

You should leave this system ON all the time, except for situations when the car is stuck because of snow or mud. In those cases, turning the system OFF will help you to shift the car to a safe place.

Nissan VDC is turned on when you start the car. If it does not switch the system on or the VDC OFF indicator light is on, you will need to manually push the VDC button to engage the system. Switching the engine off and then starting again may also work in bringing the VDC system back.

SEE MORE

• Is There Any Benefit of Turning Turning Traction Control Off?
• Tips for Preventing Slipping Back on a Slope

Mechanism of the System

Learning about the mechanism will help you to understand the system better.

To understand the VDC mechanism, keep in mind that it’s always on when you are driving the vehicle. This system continuously checks the vehicle’s directions and steering. By analyzing the steering wheel angle, VDC predicts the possible direction of the driver and compares it with the actual vehicle direction.

In normal conditions, both these directions will be the same. However, they will differ in the case of traction loss or wheel slippage. It calculates the gap between the actual and intended direction and takes necessary actions to correct this issue.

When the system engages the brakes, it does so to individual wheels to correct the oversteer or understeer of other wheels. For example, when a car understeers, it does not respond to the steering wheel turning. In that case, it forces the vehicle to turn by applying brakes on the exterior front wheel.

Conclusion

What does VDC mean in a car? This is a mandatory safety feature that vehicles should have to ensure driving safety in hostile road conditions. It prevents wheel slippage, which may lead to serious road accidents.