Patent US 4,886,291

A fail-safe system for an automotive suspension control system monitors inputs from one or more sensors monitoring vehicle driving conditions and producing sensor signals indicative of suspension control parameters, and operation of a controller. The fail-safe system performs fail-safe operation by which over-steering characteristics of the vehicle are prevented when malfunction of any of the sensors or of the controller is detected. In order to ensure prevention over-steering, the fail-safe system stiffens the suspension for driving wheels so that the damping characteristics at the driving wheels are stiffer than at the driven wheel.