Modeling Cruise Control Initiated Wheelspin in Rear Wheel Drive Vehicles

There are driving situations in which a rear-wheel-drive vehicle, operating with an active closed-loop cruise control, can experience wheelspin and a subsequent oversteer/loss of control. The situations involve low-μ surfaces (ice), weather-related phenomenon (rear-wheel hydroplaning), slope-climbing or a combination of these external effects. Although traction control and stability control, depending on the sophistication of the system, can negate many of these situations, the active fleet contains many vehicles not equipped with these features. In the present work, we calculate the conditions under which cruise-control-initiated rear wheel spin can occur.