How to Turn Off Hill Descent Control on Jeep?

To start with, hill control, also referred to as hill assist, is a great feature, especially if you’re a rookie driver and have very little experience with Jeeps. For novice riders, driving is a big enough challenge on its own, but when hills come into play, that’s when things get really hard. This is exactly why the hill control feature was invented.

That said, at some point, when we become more experienced and skilled on the road, we switch to a manual transmission. And in most cases, the hill assist, the feature that used to help us handle the vehicle, becomes more bothersome than helpful. So, if you’re wondering – how to turn off hill descent control – read on, and you’ll find out!

Turning off the hill descent control

As mentioned, turning the hill assist is only a wise decision if you’re 100% sure you can, indeed, do without it. This is especially true for a big, powerful truck like a Jeep. When it comes to vehicles, there is no such thing as being too careful, and turning the hill assist is not something you are obligated to do. It’s just a matter of choice and convenience, so be absolutely sure you know what you’re doing.

That’s because dealing with hills requires a certain level of skills. Even if you’ve got a hot new Jeep Wrangler packed with all the premium stuff out there, like the best transmission, best brake pads for Jeep Wrangler TJ, the best tires, and so on, that still won’t be enough. It’s the experience behind the wheel that helps you make it through tough corners.

But if you feel like it’s time to turn off the hill descent control and consider yourself an experienced driver, here is a step-by-step instruction on how to turn it off:

1. Make sure you’re not in a hurry and got enough time and patience to see the whole procedure through
2. Park the vehicle on a level surface and turn the engine off
3. If you have an automatic transmission, switch to PARK mode
4. With a manual transmission, the Jeep should be in NEUTRAL with the clutch out and parking brakes applied
5. Now you can start the motor
6. Turn the steering wheel 180 degrees counterclockwise from the center
7. Press the ESC OFF button four times
8. Turn the steering wheel 360 degrees clockwise
9. Switch the ignition button OFF and then ON
10. If you have done everything right, you’ll see the “ESC Activation/Malfunction Indicator Light” blinking a few times
11. This means you turned the hill descent control off
12. All in all, this procedure must be completed within half a minute (90 seconds) to turn off the hill descent control

In case you want to turn the hill assist back on, just repeat the procedure, and this safety feature will turn itself back on.