VDS, acronym for Vehicle Down Sensor, is a sensor normally found in bigger capacity fuel injection bikes. The ultimate reason for this sensor, is to send a signal to the bike's ECU, to shut down the engine whenever the bike is tilted at certain degrees (eg; crash position).
So how did this thing saved my life?
It was a sunny morning in KL, i was rushing to my office, trying to negotiate with heavy traffic condition along the way. At one point, the traffic was a deadlock. Tried with my patience and waited for the lock to clear, but after about 15 minutes, i found myself still in the exact same spot.
In front of me, was a big construction truck also trying to push it's way towards many of the construction sites within KL. After of about 5 minutes later, the traffic moved slightly, when i saw an opportunity. There was a bit of space, just big enough for me to squeeze in, to get pass the truck ahead of me. But to get through it, i have to squeeze in between the truck and a car behind it, pass through the left hand side of the truck, onto the broken walkway pavement.
So i took the chance, managed to squeeze between the truck and the car, going to the left side of the truck, onto the broken walkway, when my front was suddenly locked into small pothole. I loose my balance, and the 200kg bike is slowly tilted to the right side towards the rear tyre of the truck. I tried to hold, only managed to find myself resting my shoulders on the rear tyre of the truck, with my left hand still holding the clutch lever (i was still in 2nd gear) and my right hand trying to ease the throttle. Due to my awkward position of being stuck in between the tilted bike and the giant truck, i find myself unable to ease the throttle. The engine were still revving at 4k rpm and if i were to release the clutch lever, the bike will definitely jump over, and with such horsepower on the bike, it will definitely crush me and the bike itself below the truck!
So i was unable to release the clutch lever, and being to try to hold the bike, my right hand were unable to reach the ignition key, not even the engine stop button which is only a few centimeters away from my thumb. Given the traffic condition, only god knows when the truck will be moving, and being in the position where i stuck, i am definitely sure that the truck driver didn't realize that someone is stuck, and resting the shoulder on the rear tyre of his truck. If the truck moved, i would definitely go with it, and make my way in the next day's newspaper, or even prime time news.
Then i remembered this little thingy - VDS. It was supposed to shut down my engine when my bike is tilted. So i gathered my strength, with my right leg painfully stuck below the bike and holding it's weight at the same time, i lowered the bike, just enough for the VDS to be triggered. When the sensor triggered, and with the engine now being electronically shut, i can now release both of my hands, pull my leg from below the bike, and lay the bike to rest on the rear tyre of the truck. Quickly repositioned myself, and pull the heavy bike back to rubber side down, properly. Once the bike is back on it's rubbers, i pushed the bike to a safe distance, and took my time off for some breath (while checking of there were any scratches on the bike - luckily, there was none! should i thank to the rear tyre of the truck?).
So there it goes, how VDS saved my life. Once, i almost bypassed the VDS system when the sensor is faulty, and now i am truly glad that i didn't bypass the system. It was there for a reason, and i have found mine. It helped me to return home to my kids that day.
