"The reason Mercedes' engineers were driving up and down and across the dunes was to work on the car's brake control systems. As you slow with the brake pedal, the car's electronic brain juggles the input of the traction control, electronic stability control, antilock brakes, and a downhill speed governor that keep you going where you want, as opposed to careening down a slope at speed."
"As I climbed a dune, my view was nothing but sand, then the deep blue sky. Despite the steep slope and the fact that the car was shod with regular street tires, the wheels found traction where needed, "churning" where necessary. Under braking, the ABS allows the front wheels to remain more controllable, taking into consideration any steering angle you have. And that may be a lot, because as Lightning McQueen learned in Cars, to go left, sometimes you have to turn right."
"Driving on a loose surface like sand, similar to driving on snow, requires a fair bit of torque, and the GLC's 596 lb-ft (808 Nm) was more than enough to throw a rooster tail or two as the speed picked up and propelled us along. And the low center of gravity that results from the 94 kWh battery pack between the axles no doubt helped keep the car planted even while driving sideways along the dune."
Mercedes engineers drove across dunes to calibrate brake control systems. The vehicle's electronics coordinate traction control, electronic stability control, antilock brakes, and a downhill speed governor to preserve intended direction. Tests showed the car maintaining traction up steep dunes on regular street tires, with ABS keeping the front wheels controllable while factoring steering angle. The GLC's 596 lb-ft (808 Nm) torque provided propulsion on loose surfaces, while a low center of gravity from the 94 kWh battery helped stability during sideways motion. Engineers repeated routes, collected data, updated configurations, and re-tested iteratively.
Read at Ars Technica
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