Patent ID: 7693639

Claim:
A vehicle dynamics control (VDC) apparatus for an automotive vehicle with a differential limiting device configured to limit at least one of (1) a differential motion between front and rear wheel axles, and (2) a differential motion between left and right wheel axles, comprising: a VDC system that controls a braking force of at least one of road wheels to control vehicle cornering behavior depending on a vehicle's turning condition; wherein the VDC system is configured to initiate vehicle dynamics control at an earlier time for a differential limited state than for a differential non-limited state; wherein in the differential limited state at least one of front-and-rear wheel axle differential motion and left-and-right wheel axle differential motion is limited; wherein in the differential non-limited state the front-and-rear wheel axle differential motion and the left-and-right wheel axle differential motion are not limited; wherein the VDC system is configured to use a first VDC initiation threshold value preprogrammed for the differential limited state and a second VDC initiation threshold value preprogrammed for the differential non-limited state; and wherein the VDC system is configured to initiate the vehicle dynamics control at the earlier time for the differential limited state than for the differential non-limited state because the first VDC initiation threshold value is lower than the second VDC initiation threshold value.