Braking in the snow
 

I have to admit, this my first encounter with the ABS brakes and I really don't like the way they work.
Here it goes: with snow/slush (just like today in TO) or ice, if I step on the brakes the ABS starts chattering and the car just keeps rolling, and it takes quite a time and distance for it to stop. I tried to switch off ESP but cannot see any difference. This happens even at low speeds and my old Sable with no ABS, in the same conditions, just stops. On black pavement the braking seems to be normal, I never got the ABS to intervene. Is this how the brakes are supposed to work on 2001 Allroad?

What kind of tires do you have? On mine with snows Ihardly ever get the ABS to kick on in the nasty stuff.

Your Saab is much lighter = shorter stopping distance.

Tire makes a huge difference.

ESP only turns off traction control. Does nothing for ABS or braking. You cannot turn off ABS without pulling the fuse.

Even if you disabled the ABS, your car would just slide the same distance with the wheels locked.

What tires and how much tread left?

All right, it points to the tires then. I put used Raptors on the second set of rims to replace the worn out Pirellis to get the car through safety. They have a decent tread of .250/.300 but it looks like they are crap in the snow. I had various tires over the years but don't remember tires with so little traction in the snow. I have Toyo winters on the other car which I use most of the time now so I guess this explains why they hold well.
Thanks for the input.

It's a Sable and it is heavier but I have Toyos on it. As I said in the other reply, the tread is good but the tires most likely not.
As per manual, ESP off activates a different ABS mode to take advantage of extra braking power due to snow or other material present in front of the tire. To what extent it works, cannot tell, the slippery tire probably overrides any advantage.
Funny, the original Pirellis behaved the same way but now I realized the marginal tread must have made them work this way.
The most obvious explanation is sometimes hard to arrive at, thanks...

Yeah, I have Toyo snow tires on and they are great. The ABS can only do what the tires will give them. When you put some snows on an allroad it really is a beast in the snow.

Get a pair of blizzacks or similar dedicates snow tire. I have been using them for years on tahoe. Worth their weight in gold.

i have a brand new set of studded tires. and fairly often my abs kicks on and gives me some nasty sounds in the brake system.

Brakes lockup
 

How do I know my 2001 A4 has ABS, and if so why do my brakes lockup?
I do not have any brake indicators on, so I'm not sure what's up? But its scary on icy roads...

All allroad's had ABS standard. If all four tires are sliding on ice then ABS won't help since there isn't a difference in speed between any of the tires. When you turn the key to ON but not start you should see the ABS light on.

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/5882/absissueaf.jpg