Electronic driving aids - love, hate or indifferent?

[Richard A Thackeray]

Your handbrake shouldn't illuminate the brake lights, mine doesn't (Skoda Superb). I pull up at lights using the footbrake, pull the handbrake switch, release the footbrake, and I can see the brake light glow extinguish behind me.
It annoys me too when people in front stand on the brakes for 3 full minutes, burning your retinas out. And that's pretty much ubiquitous, I'd say over 80% of drivers can't be bothered with a handbrake now.

Yes that's really common now isn't it! People obviously don't do that mental checklist any more, the one they teach you on the driving lessons where you go "Before I set off: It's dark / wet, so I need my lights on, it's raining, so let's put some wipers on" etc. People just jump in and go.

And I think the DRLs and the lit dash unintentionally contribute to the driver's cosy reassurance that their lights are on. Plus other passing motorists don't give "the flash" any more, again DRLs contributing to that practice going the way of the dinosaur. Not all tech is good.

Brake-lights; they stay on, if it's the 'automatic handbrake' as I can see them reflected in the vehicle behind
If I switch it off, & use the 'manual switch' they don't

DRLs are a menace, yesterday (for example), I was on the M1/M62 (Stourton, Leeds - Pontefract) & the amount of drivers with just those things on was ..... well, it no longer surprises me

 

[oldwheels]

Is this not an Urban myth it's been going around as long as I have been driving

Probably as you say not true but anything is possible given the stupidity of some drivers.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I have adaptive cruise control and use it for 99% of the miles I drive.
Speed limit sign recognition which turns red should I stray over the limit, not 100% accurate, but much better that a previous car's iteration, which seemed to make them up as it went along!
Lane Assist which is poor and I have it turned off for 99% of the miles I drive, as it is not very good at recognising anything other than a lane clearly marked on both sides by some form of white lines.
Automatic lights including, if I want to select it, automatic dip. I have to manually switch them on in fog, but they work well with regard to light levels.
Proximity sensors, which help manoeuvres in tight spots, given the bonnet falls away from sight long before it ends.
Reversing camera which is a boon as the rear window sill is so high bollards lurk out of sight!
Airbags galore.
Emergency braking which comes on hard and fast if needed, I tested it with an empty cardbox acting as an obstacle and from 30mph the car damn nearly put me through the windscreen, but it didn't touch the box!
I feel the car is safer than my earlier cars, helps me drive better and safer. While maintaining the correct speeds to comply with limits I can be looking out for hazards 100% of the time.

Not yet had the pleasure of the front brake assist although the two systems on the back work fine:

Manouvre Braking: reversing on a steep hill into a tight space (it was dark & in a skinny country lane) and for some reason I decided just to roll back the 4 metres or so, ergo no parking sensors.

Suddenly there was what sounded like a crunching bang and the car stopped dead. Thought I had crunched the rear bumper on an unseen rock. Turns out it was Manouvre Assist which stopped me backing into a projecting piece of muddy bank not visible in the dark.

Rear Assist (wider sweep than Manouvre Assist) detected a car coming pretty fast through an Aldi car park as my wife was trying to back out of a space obscured by a huge van. Again, a heck of a noise as the anchors went on. She thought she had been hit but the speeding car had actually just missed her.

 

[a.twiddler]

Re electric handbrake: certainly in my unwanted education of the shortcomings of these devices on a VW I learned there is a motor in each brake caliper which drives a train of plastic gears which puts pressure on the brake pad, and hopefully releases when the system detects when intentional forward or reverse motion occurs. After a few years of salty roads you can imagine what might happen to critical electrical components so close to the road. If the mechanism becomes stiff, the system detects an overload and you get the familar brake system fault symbol and refer to dealer messages and the system doesn't allow the brake to release. Most embarrassing if it were to happen in traffic. Alternatively, the motor can fail, or the gears can actually strip. I have also had a fault related to high resistance in a connector which was solved by replacing the connector but in the meantime gave various fault warnings unrelated to the brakes, eg engine warning lights. The Passat was a good solid car spoilt by this unnecessary, intrusive technology.

Perhaps all the gizmos in modern cars are designed to appeal to the better-off who replace their cars every two years or lease them and change them every six months but it doesn't bode well for those who traditionally bought older cars as the out-of-warranty repair costs for some of this stuff could be astronomical, particularly as some of the systems are linked. A lot of the cost could be the labour involved in diagnosing the problems before adding the cost of parts.

Our current SEAT Ateca makes similar sounds from the rear calipers when the handbrake is applied or released so it seems the motor is still in the caliper, at least on VW group vehicles. Perhaps the motor is remote from the caliper in other manufacturers' systems, needing a Bowden cable to link to the brake itself. A bit self defeating really, as not only do you have the electrics to worry about but also cables. The only reason I can think of for the insistence on this design is that in some not so distant future when self driving cars are the norm it's much easier for the robotic system to activate an electric handbrake.

 

[fossyant]

Oh and modern canbus systems can throw all sorts of errors is there is a poor earth somewhere, usually not obvious. My car's not really moved much in the last couple of years, especially last 12 months as back to cycle commuting. Been getting the odd rough running, or sutter. Quite random. Then recently noticed one rear light wasn't as bright, and on further investigation, both would dim a little when indicating. Removed both clusters cleaned up the immediate connector then both loom connectors in the boot. Noticed a little corrosion on one connector. Car now running fine.

Issue is the fuel pump's earth is located in the same wireing harness/canbus wires as the rear lights ! Fortunately it is an issue I know about, but hasn't affected my car until lack of use and condensation in the boot.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

Re electric handbrake: certainly in my unwanted education of the shortcomings of these devices on a VW I learned there is a motor in each brake caliper which drives a train of plastic gears which puts pressure on the brake pad, and hopefully releases when the system detects when intentional forward or reverse motion occurs. After a few years of salty roads you can imagine what might happen to critical electrical components so close to the road.

I wasn't aware they were on the calipers, I was shown a system I think it was Vauxhall (though may well not have been) but this one was effectively same as the normal handbrake but they'd removed the physical handbrake with a geared motor. Things may have moved on since it was a few years ago.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

I don't think the touch screens are a great advancement, far better for a button you can 'feel' or a joystick of some sort - some cars have these as well as the touch screen, but many don't.

Gordon Murray stated quite categorically that he wanted nothing to do with touch-screens when he designed the McLaren T50
He was against them, in terms of safety

 

[andy0001]

Re electric handbrake: certainly in my unwanted education of the shortcomings of these devices on a VW I learned there is a motor in each brake caliper which drives a train of plastic gears which puts pressure on the brake pad, and hopefully releases when the system detects when intentional forward or reverse motion occurs. After a few years of salty roads you can imagine what might happen to critical electrical components so close to the road. If the mechanism becomes stiff, the system detects an overload and you get the familar brake system fault symbol and refer to dealer messages and the system doesn't allow the brake to release. Most embarrassing if it were to happen in traffic. Alternatively, the motor can fail, or the gears can actually strip. I have also had a fault related to high resistance in a connector which was solved by replacing the connector but in the meantime gave various fault warnings unrelated to the brakes, eg engine warning lights. The Passat was a good solid car spoilt by this unnecessary, intrusive technology.

Perhaps all the gizmos in modern cars are designed to appeal to the better-off who replace their cars every two years or lease them and change them every six months but it doesn't bode well for those who traditionally bought older cars as the out-of-warranty repair costs for some of this stuff could be astronomical, particularly as some of the systems are linked. A lot of the cost could be the labour involved in diagnosing the problems before adding the cost of parts.

Our current SEAT Ateca makes similar sounds from the rear calipers when the handbrake is applied or released so it seems the motor is still in the caliper, at least on VW group vehicles. Perhaps the motor is remote from the caliper in other manufacturers' systems, needing a Bowden cable to link to the brake itself. A bit self defeating really, as not only do you have the electrics to worry about but also cables. The only reason I can think of for the insistence on this design is that in some not so distant future when self driving cars are the norm it's much easier for the robotic system to activate an electric handbrake.

we have a Seat Ateca as well, do you have the same issue with yours as in the over sensitive front assist? usually it's triggered by overgrowing grass etc when cornering on smaller lanes or anything near the front of the car(nothing there but the car has othing near it except for a mind of its own) and it triggers the brakes for a split second.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

we have a Seat Ateca as well, do you have the same issue with yours as in the over sensitive front assist? usually it's triggered by overgrowing grass etc when cornering on smaller lanes or anything near the front of the car(nothing there but the car has othing near it except for a mind of its own) and it triggers the brakes for a split second.

We have VW T.Cross so possibly/probably the same system.

If so, within the Infotainment system:

Menu > Assistants > Front Assist

Three trigger options appear early/medium/late

 

[andy0001]

We have VW T.Cross so possibly/probably the same system.

If so, within the Infotainment system:

Menu > Assistants > Front Assist

Three trigger options appear early/medium/late

we have to do that each time we start up, my mrs tends to turn it off, i set it to late most times.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

we have to do that each time we start up, my mrs tends to turn it off, i set it to late most times.

That's odd - ours is set and done re the 3 trigger settings in Infotainment. Obviously we can turn the whole system on/off in the digital dash unit.

Is it worth asking Seat if it should remember the trigger settings?

The only thing we have to do each time we staet up is to turn off lane assist.

 

[SpokeyDokey]

I like our car's phone app too.

Confirms car lock/unlock status gir all doors and windows.

Can unlock/lock doors, flash lights and/or horn remotely via data on phone.

Can locate car on Google Maps car also automatically sends message to phone if alarm is triggered.

Handy if you have forgotten exactly where your car was parked. Easily done at eg Trafford Centre or at football grounds.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I like our car's phone app too.

Is that a sim you have to pay for?

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

I like our car's phone app too.

Confirms car lock/unlock status gir all doors and windows.

Can unlock/lock doors, flash lights and/or horn remotely via data on phone.

Can locate car on Google Maps car also automatically sends message to phone if alarm is triggered.

Handy if you have forgotten exactly where your car was parked. Easily done at eg Trafford Centre or at football grounds.

Though not infallible. Multi-storey carparks can befuddle the GPS. I've mislaid my car at both Heathrow and Gatwick so I now make a point of remembering where I'm parked.

 

[Richard A Thackeray]

I like our car's phone app too.

Confirms car lock/unlock status gir all doors and windows.

Can unlock/lock doors, flash lights and/or horn remotely via data on phone.

Can locate car on Google Maps car also automatically sends message to phone if alarm is triggered.

Handy if you have forgotten exactly where your car was parked. Easily done at eg Trafford Centre or at football grounds.

Daughter can lock/unlock, locate car via phone
(M-B ‘A-Class’)