For the most part, no... usually. For instance, if properly programmed, Traction Control can (and in some cases does) increase performance. However, if tuned improperly and/or calibrated for a driver with no real driving skill, then those aids CAN hurt considerably. Unfortunately, most of the time, these aids are tuned by the same people that decided that all cars should understeer because inexperienced drivers can't deal with spins (oversteer), so the systems do not live up to their potential. Drive a car designed for the unskillled masses (90+% of drivers out there) and you'll be hamstrung.

Well having high technology can make cars worse by making it more expensive and unnecessary.. Traction control, stability control, ABS, computed controlled differentials, sequential manual gear boxes, and all the other driving aids make a car easier to drive. That's great if you want a car that's easy to drive. At some point, however, you start to lose some of the connection with the driving experience. I prefer cars with a minimum of electronic driver aids. Stability control can make a car slower on the track, but only in the hands of a very good driver. For an average driver, stability control will generally make a car faster, provided that the stability control is "agressive" enough to allow decent slip angles around corners. Really good drivers, familiar with a car are able to handle their own stability control, and thus don't really need a computer nanny stepping in and interfering with their driving..... For businessmen driving to and from work, all is good. But I'm reading alot of articles about the new technology taking away the skills that used to be necessary to drive a vehicle in an agressive fashion. The higher-up sports cars (think Ferrari, Audi, etc.) have 'modes'. Usually a Normal Mode and a Sports Mode. Normal has aids on, and Sports have the electronic aids' interference with driver input reduced, so it is still there, but it lets the driver have more freedom in controlling the car. I think this is a great idea, as you get the best of both worlds ^_^.....

There are many different answers to this question, some based on fact, some based on opinion. This is but one take. I assume you are also talking about aids like Vehicle Stability Control, Anti Lock Brakes, etc. My take on it is this: stability aids will extend the performance capabilities of a car past the driver's natural ability. That means it will hold together better compared to a normal car when subjected to the driver's errors and punishment. HOWEVER... the problem with this is that when they do finally let go, the stack will be much worse, and it will be nearly impossible to regain control without some very good driving techniques. I also look at how some of them work. For example, really cheap and nasty traction controls work by retarding engine power rather than actually controlling wheelspin. Proper traction control either controls differential slip by progressively locking differentials, or by applying the brake on the spinning wheel. The effect on this is to slow the spinning wheel and divert the power out through the other side of the differential. I would never buy a car with the engine retarding traction control, as it really does nothing for you. Things like Active Yaw Control, Vehicle Stability Control and ABS do have a real positive effect on the car, though. That's from one viewpoint. Another viewpoint could be the 'purist' opinion that any electronic interference takes away from the experience of driving. It's a valid point. A relatively unskilled driver can punt a 'controlled' car with little risk, whereas an 'uncontrolled' car would need lots of skill to do the same thing. At the end of the day, it all comes down to what you prefer. From a purely mechanical point of view, then traction aids are designed to enhance the car's performance and safety. From the purist's point of view, the car will never perform as well as when they are in total control of it.

I have to agree that it depends upon the driver. I was taught to pump the brakes in my camaro but doing that in my Mustang GT would be bad cause it has anti-lock brakes. One thing I wonder about is the traction control stuff. In my Camaro I didn't have it. Driving it in snow was an experience and took skill on my part that I had to learn by making mistakes. If I got one of my wheels spinning I usually would get stuck and that wheel would continue to spin unless I could put something under it to give it traction. When I got my Mustang GT (automatic) it has a button for traction control and I thought... Oh boy... no more stuck girl this winter... Boy was I wrong... First good snow we had I headed off thinking I have traction control... I'll be just fine. What happened was quite a surprise... As I hit some deep snow my rear wheel (probably my right) began to spin. I hear this clicking and a light came on on the dash showing that I was spinning my wheels and my car slowed down and my engine sounded like it was coughing and sputtering... Needless to say I came to a complete stop very quickly having lost virtually all my momentum and when I would try to go my car would rev up, my tire would start to slip then the clicking would start and the engine would cough and sputter. I was still very stuck and unable to move. I turned off the button thinking something was wrong with it and found I could now rev (and spin my tires) like I did in my Camaro. A few seconds of rocking spinning and shifting back and forth and I was able to get moving slowly forward again. So the traction control actually got me stuck because it caused me to lose momentum. So in this case I think technology made things worse. I think AWD cars that have advanced traction control and no slip stuff probably are way better than the system on my GT. I basically turn it off the moment I start my car. So I tend to think that at times the aids do help. Other times they don't. But one bad thing is the false impression they give the driver. In my case I was convinced that with traction control I would be able to drive through snow better than I did before. All I did was get stuck faster. I also see this mind set that I fell into happen to those with front wheel drive and all wheel drive cars. New drivers go into conditions thinking they have a superior setup (and maybe they do) but are often quite surprised when it doesn't do what they expected. In my case getting stuck in the snow was nothing more than just embarrassing. But what about the people that roll over because they thought their stability control system would handle that. Jen

It is proven that an experienced driver can stop a car faster if it doesn't have Antilock brakes.

drivers with expirience can control a car better than traction control. Some systems wont shut off either. for most though, its made cars safer.