Anyone use car electronic sensors?

[Wade Lippman]

I am shopping for a new car. I have back problems and love the blind spot monitor and backup camera on my wife's car; I will definitely be getting those. But I have serious doubts about the other stuff available; lane departure warnings and the thing that stops the car before hitting the car ahead of me.

I have never left my lane or hit a car in front of me, and to get those I also have to get navigation, fancy speakers, and a sun roof; none of which I want. So I am not sure how necessary they are.
I test drove a Mazda CX3 yesterday. The lane departure only works over 44mph, and I found it only went off about half the time even then. I couldn't get the collision avoidance thing to do anything at all, but maybe I had to be willing to hit the car in front of me to get it to work. (and that seemed a bit extreme)

Anyone have these things? Your experiences?

[Garth Almgren]

My dad has a 2014 Mitsubishi Outlander with all the bells and whistles (almost literally) including lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, and auto-braking/collision avoidance. Oh, and rain-sensing windshield wipers.
I could live without the LDW - it is overly sensitive and sometimes will go off from patch lines in the roadway, and it beeps like crazy when I try to straighten out the curves. :) It gets turned off as a matter of routine.
The adaptive cruise control is flat out wonderful - you just set your desired speed and following distance, and the car takes care of managing your speed including braking if need be. I had to borrow the Outlander for a couple weeks when my Jeep was waiting for a new motor, and during my regular 40 minute commute I only had to touch the brakes about 4 times, for turns and in residential areas. Works really well in all traffic above 15mph and on long road trips too.
The auto-braking is a nice safety feature especially in conjunction with the adaptive cruise control, but like the LDW tends to be a little over sensitive for my tastes. Usually I'm already covering the brake when the warning beep/light comes on telling me the car in front is stopping suddenly. If you don't brake quick enough or hard enough, it will do it for you.

[Roger Feeley]

+1 on the backup camera. I added that to my 2002 XTerra because the visibility was so bad and the way my driveway sloped. I love it.

I drove recently with a co-worker who had a new Suburu with adaptive cruise control. I think that would be worth looking into. His is sort of primitive. It has a video camera located on each side of the rear view mirror and it watches for the car ahead. You can set it to your speed and take your foot off the gas and it will follow at a safe and respectful distance, evening coming to a stop if need be. Another nice feature is that if you are in manual mode, you can set it to alert you when the car ahead starts up at a stop sign.

There are some great features coming soon. I work a lot with Bluetooth and two new features being worked on will change a lot. One is the ability of a BT radio to tell direction. It's called Angle of Arrival. It means that your car can tell if a transmission is coming from the car ahead of you or not. That opens the door to the car ahead of you telling you that the driver just tapped the brakes a bit when those brake lights go on. So your cruise will not overreact like you would and cause a traffic jam.

Another feature is a little bit scary. It's called meshing. It's designed for lights and switches and stuff. You issue an order to mesh network to turn off the lights and the command it relayed from device to device. So you could be standing in a 1000 foot hallway and turn off every light using your phone. The scary part is when meshing comes to your car. Now a cop can put out a call to find a VIN number and every car starts relaying the query until the VIN is found. Then the response along with GPS data and whatever else, is relayed back using passing cars. It would be fantastic for and Amber Alert but anything like this could be abused.

Bottom line, a lot of this tech is in it's infancy and will change fast. Be prepared to buy a car and have something ground-breaking come out in a year or two.

One more thought. A couple of years ago there was a drama in Kansas City where a woman was driving a Kia Sorento and the computer went crazy and locked the throttle full open. For 90 minutes, she raced north on I-29 at over 100 mph while on the phone with 911 as they had her try all sorts of things. She had cops in front of her trying to clear the left lane but she still had to swerve in to the median from time to time. They finally got the car stopped, she got out of the car and fainted dead away. The lesson I take away from that is that I will NEVER buy a car that doesn't have some sort of mechanical kill switch. Even if I have to wire it up myself, there will be a way to stop the vehicle. More and more, cars are fly by wire.

[Jim Koepke]

My lamentations on newer cars and pining for the old days of automobiles seemed to be in the minority among many of the fine folks here.

Searching > new cars being hacked < makes me want to be on the lookout for something like a 1956 Chevy Nomad station wagon or maybe a panel truck from the same time period.

I do like the modern safety features of cars.

jtk

[George Bokros]

My 2014 has the bells and whistles. It must be standard practice that the lane departure only works above 40 mph. I like all the bells and whistles I have. I do not have adaptive cruise control or the automatic braking. I like the rear view camera, the lane departure warning, the blind spot warning, the rain sensing wipers, the navigation, basically I like all the toys my Fusion has, the wife would rather have very basic car with just automatic trans, heater, AC, not even a radio (first thing she does is turn the radio off when she drives).

[Terry Hatfield]

Agree with the others on the back up camera. I had an aftermarket one installed in my '96 Chevy dually that I use to pull our race trailer. Very handy. The backup sensors are a good thing to have. The forward collision warning and abatement technology is one of those things that you don't know you need until you need it. We have it on my wife's 2012 Charger R/T Hemi. It's part of interactive cruise control on the Charger that keeps a set distance between you and the vehicle in front of you. It's a good thing in my book other than if the bumper sensor gets plastered with bugs on a trip the cruise won't work until you stop and clean it. The lane waning is also a handy thing. I get spoiled to it in a hurry when I drive the Charger. I find myself looking for it when I'm driving my 2011 Ram truck that doesn't have it.

IMHO the whole hacking into these cars deal was overblown when it first came out. I have no doubt that someone somewhere can do it but the manufacturers are making it very difficult to do. It's a non-issue as far as I'm concerned. I deal with these cars every day and obviously own 2 with lots of bells and whistles and it's hard enough to get them to do anything with a scanner physically plugged in to them.

I would like to say that as a body shop manager that most all of these things are bad for my business. :D

[Dan Hintz]

IMHO the whole hacking into these cars deal was overblown when it first came out. I have no doubt that someone somewhere can do it but the manufacturers are making it very difficult to do. It's a non-issue as far as I'm concerned.

The media blew it out of proportion, but that's because they needed to make a story out of it.

But I completely disagree with your sentiment that the manufacturers are making it difficult to do (it's not), and the control is pretty severe. It is most definitely an issue. Trust me.

[roger wiegand]

I don't have most of the newer gizmos, but I love the electrochromic rearview mirror and the wipers that adjust to the amount of rainfall. Just put a backup camera on the truck for use with the camper and trailer (three cameras) and I'll see how we get on. Vehicles in the camera are *much, much* closer than they appear, we'll see how I adapt to that.

At least until cars go completely fly by wire, my solution to the runaway car problem would be to push in the clutch. Really don't like automatic transmissions.

I'm hoping self driving cars are ready for prime time just about the time I'll need one.

[Steve Peterson]

My lamentations on newer cars and pining for the old days of automobiles seemed to be in the minority among many of the fine folks here.

Searching > new cars being hacked < makes me want to be on the lookout for something like a 1956 Chevy Nomad station wagon or maybe a panel truck from the same time period.

I do like the modern safety features of cars.

jtk

I like the safety features and reliability of new cars. The xenon headlights on my last car were awesome. Rain sensing wipers, also awesome.

The distance warnings in my wife's car are really annoying. A car cuts in front of you and you get all kinds of lights and beeps scaring the crap out of you.

I like the aftermarket backup camera on my current car. I can turn it on as I enter the garage and stop just after I see the crack in the cement. This keeps my car close to the door so I have more room for my woodworking tools. I could do the tennis ball thing, but it is easier to just watch when the car crosses the line.

Steve

[Lee Schierer]

Both of our vehicles have back up cameras and they are great to have. They don't work well in dusty, rainy or snowy environments as the camera gets coated with moisture, dust or snow. If you tow a trailer, you will love the back up camera for hitching up. I believe that back up cameras are required now on all new vehicles. Our sedan has the blind spot camera and that is useful as well.

The lane departure warning is annoying, but can be useful on long trips when you are getting tired. On narrow country roads it can be annoying as it doesn't give you much room for error. It is easy to turn off.

We also have a forward collision warning system that simply flashes a warning and beeps, which is essentially useless in the daylight, but works better at night. Ours does not apply the brakes.

[George Bokros]

The lane departure warning is annoying, but can be useful on long trips when you are getting tired. On narrow country roads it can be annoying as it doesn't give you much room for error. It is easy to turn off.

My lane warning doesn't work if there are no stripes or edge lines so on a country road it likely won't work, don't know about other cars though.

[ryan paulsen]

I turned off the collision alarm almost immediately after we got our new car. It was so sensitive, it would go off if we approached a steep enough hill. I don't want a car to brake for me, ever. For the number of situations where it could save an accident (actually, by the time it engages the brakes it's too late anyways) I can think of plenty where it would cause one-thinking of getting rear-ended or spinning out on ice. If you have any of these alarms, make sure you have the ability top turn them off.

I will say the lane departure is good piece of mind for long overnight trips, but otherwise I have it off too. I agree that the backup camera is a nice feature.

[Mike Null]

I have a Volvo XC60 with most of the features described above. It does not have gps nor remote start but I believe the rest of the features are there.

I like the blind spot warning and the proximity sensors warning that a person or thing is very near to the car. I have yet to take this on a long trip so the lane departure warning hasn't been used nor have I used the adaptive cruise control. The only time I have used auto braking was when the dealer demonstrated it--it works.

[Erik Loza]

My mother-in-law swears by the proximity sensor in her Lexus. I wish I had a backup camera in the 4Runner at times but not enough to want to invest in an aftermarket one. However, if I were buying new, it would definitely be a consideration.

Erik

[Mike Berrevoets]

We have a new Subaru outback with the "eyesight" system. It replaced a 2006 subaru that was totaled after I got rear-ended on the interstate. I earned a new appreciation for vehicle safety after looking at the back seat and being thankful my kids weren't sitting there. So I set out to find another safe car. I wavered on the Eyesight system until I took it for a test drive.

it has a forward collosion avoidance system, lane drift warning, back up camera, blind spot monitors, and at highway speeds it will correct steering if you drift outside the lanes. (That option has to be manually turned on every time you want to use it)

forward collosion option also doubles as adaptive cruise control. This is what actually sold me on the eyesight option on the test drive. I drive for work and I can drive on the interstate for hundreds of miles without taking off the cruise. Through city traffic or stop and go traffic. It works well. I don't trust it all the time but it has always proven to work and there are enough indications on the dash to let me know that it is working. Tells me when it has "locked" into the vehicle ahead and is pacing that vehicle. I can adjust the distance at which it will follow depending on the travel speeds.

Lane drift warning is annoying for everyday driving on surface streets. More annoying when it goes off and my kids tell me to stay in my lane from the back seat.

Blind spot monitors are OK but I still use my mirrors and don't rely on them.

Backup up camera is awesome. I've never backed into anything before but it is nice for backing into parking spaces. To me it's more of a conveinance feature than a safety feature.

I think with all these new safety features it varies by manufacturer as to how well it is executed.

All this stuff can be turned off if wanted. The lane departure correction has to be turned on since it will steer the car. I've tested it out and it works but if it does it three times in a row then a bunch of alarms go off. Could be great for those long drives.

But none of the safety devices are a substitute for good driving habits. I view them like seat belts. Put it on and hope it never gets used but if it does then I'm happy it's there.

[Brian Elfert]

Backup cameras will be standard in all new cars as of the 2018 model year. Many new cars already have them. My parents bought a used 2014 car recently and an absolute requirement for them was to have a backup camera built-in.

[glenn bradley]

Technology is great if used intelligently. Our friend just called last night after being rear-ended by a guy. His defense was that his proximity alarm didn't go off until after he had hit her (what does this possibly have to do with operating a motor vehicle)??? He expected the automatic braking to take care of this and was quite confused as to how this could have happened. She is a little banged up but, otherwise OK. It is great that we are making cars more intelligent and safer. I just don't like the trade off that seems to be developing in the operator's ability/responsibility.

[Wade Lippman]

I appreciate everyone's help. I will get the BSM and rear camera, but pass on the lane departure and automatic braking. They would raise the price from $25k to $30k, and they sound like more trouble than they are worth.

[Jim Becker]

Blind spot has saved my bacon quite a few times on I-95 between here and DC. The forward collision warning has also provided benefits, although not as frequently. And Adaptive Cruise Control is the bee's knees...I'd never buy a vehicle without it at this point. My wife's next new car will also have it. I don't have them/like them to avoid the responsibility of being behind the wheel. Rather, I like them because they can react faster than I humanly can when the "other idiots" on the road do stupid things.

That said, the tech does come with some risk for repairs post-warranty, so if you're someone who keeps a vehicle for a long time beyond the normal warranty, it may be worth considering a manufacturer extended service contract (avoid third party if you can) if you load up on the goodies. In the past, I never would have said that, but for my current vehicle that has a lot of both electronic tech and an air suspension system, the ESC has paid for itself already since I do a ton of miles and ran out of warranty in about half the time most folks do.

[Wade Lippman]

I never use cruise control; I pay less attention to the road if I have it on. Adaptive Cruise Control would probably put me right to sleep.

I got a 6 year extended warranty on my current car. 5 years in, I haven't had any service on it. I am giving it to my son; hopefully he will have equally good luck with it.

[Matt Meiser]

My mom just bought the 2016 Escape Titanium my dad had been looking at for her. I have a 2012 Escape Limited model which was top of the line that year. The changes in technology are amazing! Hers has the active park assist which will parallel park itself. There's no key, just need to have the fob on you and the doors unlock when you put your hand in the handle and the tailgate opens by swinking your foot under the bumper. To start it you just step on the brake and press a button. There's a whole host of other improvements as well.

Drives REALLY nice too. I drove it about 40 minutes each way late last week to go deal with some banking matters with her. Makes me want to trade mine.

[Randy Rose]

Not a fan of any of the electronic nanny devices.:p

[Roger Feeley]

Technology is great if used intelligently. Our friend just called last night after being rear-ended by a guy. His defense was that his proximity alarm didn't go off until after he had hit her (what does this possibly have to do with operating a motor vehicle)??? He expected the automatic braking to take care of this and was quite confused as to how this could have happened. She is a little banged up but, otherwise OK. It is great that we are making cars more intelligent and safer. I just don't like the trade off that seems to be developing in the operator's ability/responsibility.

Not to turn this conversation off onto a Sawstop rant but that guys defense would by like you purposely running your fingers into a Sawstop blade and expecting the safety system to work. I ALWAYS act as if safety systems aren't even there. They exist to back my up in case my own vigilance fails.

Someday, the SS safety system is going to fail because all systems fail for one reason or another. To my knowledge, there has never been an amputation with a SS system in place but the day will come and that's a risk I'm willing to assume. Or maybe I'm wrong. I believe that Otis is very proud that no elevator has ever fallen with a properly maintained Otis brake in place.