"Rick DeBay" > wrote in message
...
> The system expects braking forces of only 150 to 200 pounds to be used
during
> braking. If it senses 265 pounds, it shuts down. The problem is that up
to 330
> pounds can be applied during an emergency stop (from the translation).


I think something else is also at play here. Applying 260 or 330 pounds on
the brake pedal is a pretty high threshold (I don't care if you do sled 800
lb. in the weight room). The angle of the leg and position of the driver
body make that threshold pretty hard to reach. It is more likely that the
car was already in some difficulty and the addition of forward body momentum
and leg braking, applied the high amount of pressure to the pedal (the
proverbial "standing on the brake" scenario). And it may be that once the
car is already in that amount of trouble it is proper for the stability
systems to be off, as they may not be mapped to work correctly or securely
under those extreme conditions. Just a guess, but I don't think it is as
simple as pushing the pedal to the tune of 260 lb. of pressure or that the
260 lb. is an arbitrary threshold.

If memory serves me well, (and at my advanced age it sometimes doesn't :^)
all stability systems on all current cars have a shut off point. Some work
from pitch and yaw, others from rotation, still others from simple G force,
and maybe some combination of each or all. I am certain that BMW's systems
shut off from more than just this one dynamic (brake pedal pressure).

This whole thing about the police though, reminds me of when ABS first hit
the market. Police all over the country were getting into accidents because
they had been trained to pump brakes...and of course pumping ABS in those
days was tantamount to asking for lose of vehicle control.