bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

Does anyone know if it's illegal to 'modify' your ABS system. And I don't mean disable it... I mean to piggyback off the ABS system while leaving it's operation intact. ie. use the wheel sensors in the ABS system as input into another, totally separate system??

I read the HTA, it doesn't say isht about ABS at all??

imported_kane2k

Well, ABS isn't mandatory but it is a safety feature. This puts it into a bit of a gray area I would think. What are you planning on running off of ABS sensors? I would think that if you ran your wires discreetly, i.e. patch into the ABS sensor wires a couple of feet away from the wheel, nobody would be able to tell you'd done anything. Make sure you fuse the new wire though, you wouldn't want to surge your ABS controls.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

well each sensor would be connected through diodes, so there is no way power could flow the opposite way TO the ABS sensor. besides, the ABS wheel sensors are simply magnetic pickups, like the crank sensor kinda...

imported_kane2k

Heh diodes. I used to think they didn't allow flow backwards too. Until a power supply blew up 3 ft away from me. Crazy **** happens when circuitry fails, you should fuse it as well since it is a part of your braking system. I wasn't concerned about the actual sensors being damaged but the ABS controller which would have sensitive inputs and would be wired to your new system as well.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

well I personally don't have ABS

I just wanna use the ABS sensors for something... so there is no danger to that

imported_kane2k

Well if you don't have an ABS system then those sensors are just spare parts on your car and you can use them however you want. Since your car doesn't have ABS, it's not like you're tampering with a safety system so it can't be illegal.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

well, I was wondering actually for commercial applications, like if I was to make the system and sell it to others.

imported_kane2k

As long as their cars weren't ABS equipped to start with then it wouldn't be an issue. If you are, however, selling a product that taps into an existing safety system on a car, I would imagine that the amount of certification that you would have to go through would be crazy. Alternately, you could skip the certification and wait for the first lawsuit from someone who doesn't think their car stopped quick enough after they bought your system.

bdotdan

couldn't you just state it is for off-road use or track use only?
and also state that consumers should check with local laws and regulations before installing.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

yeah... there are a lot of liability issues, that's for sure. the funny thing is, it CANNOT interfere with brake operation for sure.

bah, I've figured out another way to do it w/o using ABS sensors anyways thanks for your input though!

motti

Liability implications would be huge whether or not you target it for on or off-road use. If anything went wrong for a user of such a system, even if the system itself wasn't at fault, you would have to be able to demonstrate that your product did not contribute to the failure.

You would have to do so with credible engineering proofs from the standpoint of both your product and that of the ABS sensor system it was tying into. If you can't do so, then there is a good case for engineering negligence against you.

The defence costs against such a law suit alone would be huge and involved. The potential damage payout could be much much more.

bbarbulo

iTrader: (2)

it's cool motti... got a way to do it as a stand alone peice. easier install and no liability. yay for meeeee! now I gotta go and see if a patent exists... maybe some other clever bastard already thought of it.