ESP indicator: work, role and price

For your safety, vehicles are equipped with driving aids. ESP (Electronic Stability Program) helps you better control your vehicle's trajectory. If you're new to ESP, here are the details on how it works and how much it costs!

🚗 How does ESP work?

ESP (Electronic Stability Program) optimizes the vehicle's trajectory control in hazardous situations (loss of traction, braking on corners, sharp steering, etc.).

To do this, ESP will individually apply the brakes of each wheel to correct the vehicle's behavior. Thus, ESP consists of many sensors (sensors for wheel, acceleration, steering angle, etc.), which inform the computer about the state of the car in real time.

So, if, for example, you turn too quickly to the left, ESP brakes the left wheels slightly to optimize vehicle handling. Works in the same way as on a sled: to turn left, you need to brake to the left.

Good to know: ESP is dependent on other elements such as ABS (anti-lock braking system), ASR (acceleration slip control), TCS (traction control system) or EBD (electronic brake force distribution).

🔍 Why does the ESP indicator light up?

When the vehicle's computer deems it necessary to turn on ESP to correct the vehicle's behavior, the ESP warning light will illuminate to alert the driver that the system is working. Therefore, the warning light should automatically go out when the car is back to normal and the ESP is no longer working.

If the ESP indicator is on continuously, it is a system malfunction. Therefore, you need to go to a car service as soon as possible to check and repair the ESP system.

Good to know: Typically, the ESP warning light is in the shape of a pictogram that represents the vehicle with two S-shaped lines at the bottom (as in the image above). However, in some cases, the ESP indicator light may be represented as a circle with ESP written inside in capital letters.

🔧 How to disable ESP?

First of all, you should remember that ESP is a system that increases your safety on the road, so disabling ESP is not recommended. If you really need it, here are a few steps on how to disable ESP.

Step 1. Make sure you really need it

In some cases, it may be useful to temporarily disable ESP, for example, to drive off a hill with ice. Indeed, in this case, the ESP can block the vehicle due to its traction control function. Thus, you can disable ESP for the duration of the maneuver and then reactivate it.

Step 2. Disable ESP

On most car models, you can turn off ESP by pressing the button with the same icon as the ESP warning lamp.

Step 3. Reactivate ESP

On many car models, ESP is automatically activated again after a certain time or after a certain number of kilometers.

🚘 How do I know if the car has ESP?

If your vehicle has ESP, you should see an ESP indicator light on the dashboard when you start the engine. In fact, when the ignition is on, all the headlights in the car should come on.

When in doubt, check your vehicle's technical review to see if it has ESP or not.

💰 How much does it cost to replace a car ESP?

It is impossible to give an exact price for an ESP repair, because it is a system consisting of a large number of elements (sensors, computer, fuses ...) with very different prices. However, electrical diagnostics are required to determine the exact fault and which item is faulty. This costs an average of € 50 and usually includes ABS and ESP checks.

So, if the ESP light stays on, be sure to drop the vehicle to one of our trusted mechanics as soon as possible for an electronic diagnostic to diagnose and fix the problem as quickly as possible.