my friend and I were looking under the hood the other day and he started poking fun at the throttle by wire deal we have. He drives an m3 so he can be kind of an @sshole about my japaneese car, but it got me curious: why do we have a setup liek this instead of the usual direct throttle?

 

Start making fun of him because he doesn't even have it in his m3

 

because its japanese... and everything in japan is done for a darn good reason because their engineers are like 500 times smarter than americans.... Actually, I have no clue why, I'm sure somebody like otter or Joe might be able to answer this question.

 

best explination ever !

 

Linearity. With our setup, every jab of the gas pedal gives an equal response from the throttle. On the BMWs that I've driven, the first part of the pedal is the "soft spot" and the response increases the more you step on the pedal.

Hopefully that makes some sense.

 

I know it's semantics, but I thought drive by wire meant electronic throttle, and we had a conventional throttle cable. I know it's nitpicky, but is this incorrect?

 

I think that the computer tells the throttle to open up x degrees. thus "Every jab of the gas pedal gives an equal response from the throttle" instead of having a completely computer driven such as the BMW thusly causing "Soft Spot" Jeep Grand Cherokee's have the same thing.

 

We have a conventional throttle cable, but it goes to a sensor behind the passenger headlight instead of to the throttle.

And if we're getting nitpicky, "drive-by-wire" is where the throttle and steering is electronic, but "throttle-by-wire" is just the throttle.


IMO, they did it just to give more control to the car. Now if the ECU wants to close the throttle, it can, no matter what you're doing to the pedal.

 

I have no doubt in the japaneese, they make some incredible machines it just sparked some interest in me. his M has no soft spot in the throttle, I'm not sure if it is just the newer m cars or if the same goes for the z3 m cars too, but his as well as the new m5's and m6's have individual throttle bodies for each cylinder, making incredible throttle response. in his mind the germans got it right, I dont see any bimmers holding 30+ pounds of boost on stock internals like the supra or skyline

 

Good info. Thanks, Mark.

 

Best I can figure is that the reason for giving us throttle by wire is that it was the best way to accommodate our rather awesome cruise control. Of all the cars I've used CC in, ours is definitely the best and most smooth.

 

i always thought all new cars were like that. i never used CC in my matrix and my only other car was a 92 accord and the CC sucked but so did everything else.

 

We have to preserve some technology that can withstand EMP's.

 

 

The Japanese have only recently figured out cruise control and how to make it smooth. Drive by wire controls certainly help. I've owned a few late 80's and early 90's Toyotas, Hondas and Acuras, a 2003 Subaru. It was not uncommon for my Legend or the Toyotas to lose 10 mph up a hill in cruise before it would realize it and attempt to correct the situation. The Subaru was miserable in cruise, most of that was the way too long overdrive.

Drive by wire throttles increase throttle response big time over conventional throttles, especially fully electronic ones, not "hybrid" systems like our cars. Although the Lancer has one of the most responsive throttles out of all the cars I've driven. And it's not a "hair-trigger" throttle like most GM cars, where it gives you a big jump when you initially push into it and the same response at half throttle.