Safety feature or danger?

[ashmtl]

Looks like we are drifting away from the main point. ABS, driving slower and other points are not relevant here. Yes, one must go slow, keep a proper distance, and be responsible driver. Also, one must put the turning signal when changing the lanes or turning and stop at amber light. How many people do this in the city traffic conditions?
Don't get me wrong, I am not advertising bad habits. I am explaining situations that are real and happen to almost everyone. I did teach motorcycle riding, car and semi-truck driving, and most of my students became good drivers. But there are situations in real life were things happen out of normally planned scenarios. I would like to have a choice to set the collision avoidance system permanently into alarm mode in winter because of "My Habits Of Driving". The same as I do not want to have the driver seat heater on with climate control in winter time. I want to have a choice to setup my preferences the way I need them, not the way someone have decided, even that was a result of years of research and statistic data.

 

[ashmtl]

Yes, this may be true...
However if you do encounter this, then it is likely so slippery that you will be unable to maneuver even if you release the brake,

You still can maneuver if your wheels are turning. I always use winter tires in winter. And not the cheep ones. I do not like studded tires though.

 

[ashmtl]

Yes, this may be true...
However if you do encounter this, then it is likely so slippery that you will be unable to maneuver even if you release the brake,

Do not agree with that. Even in the most slippery condition the winter tires will give a little room for turning, if you do not turn them over ~30 degrees of course. Also depends on front, rear (my preference) or all wheel drive vehicle. In my situation it was very slippery with slash over the ice, but somehow I was lucky to avoid the collision when if I had the Honda Clarity I would kiss the rear bumper for sure, without a bif damage as the speed was under 30 km/h. Maybe the 43 years of driving in different conditions gave me some experience to be able to do things without much time to think about it. I am not saying I am the best driver around, I do make mistakes, and not just one or two, we all do them. The experience decides how you get out of it. It took me years to get used to ABS because when I started to drive the best cars had 2L engines and 3 speed manual transmission on the steering column. In my lifetime I had 2 minor and 1 major (total loss, dosed off) responsible accidents and 4 times was rear ended under the stop sign and red light, and once on the highway. And I do not count the near death encounters that I was able (read lucky) to get out of.

 

[Landshark]

Looks like we are drifting away from the main point. ABS, driving slower and other points are not relevant here. Yes, one must go slow, keep a proper distance, and be responsible driver. Also, one must put the turning signal when changing the lanes or turning and stop at amber light. How many people do this in the city traffic conditions?

It’s your topic. I will say that discussing ABS seems relevant when discussing CMBS.

Here in the States, we’re taught to stop for red lights. Amber, or yellow as we refer to them, indicates to a driver that the light will be turning red in a matter of seconds. Each driver uses their own discretion to determine whether to stop or proceed through the intersection when they see a light turn yellow.

As far as using turn signals, it is not uncommon in angry, urban areas, to avoid the use of turn signals in certain situations. Frequently, the sight of a turn signal encourages other drivers to deny the signaling driver the opportunity to change lanes. We call it “lane guarding”.

Modern cars have a ridiculous amount of features and settings. Even with all those options, there will likely be some setting that a driver will find inconvenient.

Since you’ve had 3 close calls in one month, it may be worthwhile for you to re-examine your driving habits and abilities.

 

[MrFixit]

Modern cars have a ridiculous amount of features and settings. Even with all those options, there will likely be some setting that a driver will find inconvenient.

This is absolutely true... There are some features that have been deemed so important that drivers are not given the opportunity to turn them off. CMBS is one example. RDM has not reached quite this same level and you can turn it off (albeit with the 'nuicense' that it always defaults to on).

An extreme example is of course airbags. There is never an option to turn off the airbags even though there may be some people who would if given the chance. There used to be an option to disable the passenger airbag (to cover cases with small children in that seat, etc.) but I'm not sure that option ever exists any more.

Edit - Sorry, it is CMBS that can be turned off (temporarily). RDM can be turned off persistantly. I can't keep all of the nuances straight myself !!!

 

[ashmtl]

It’s your topic. I will say that discussing ABS seems relevant when discussing CMBS.

Here in the States, we’re taught to ...

Since you’ve had 3 close calls in one month, it may be worthwhile for you to re-examine your driving habits and abilities.

Yes, the same is here in Canada, except it is required to stop under amber light if you saw that well in advance, instead of ramming the accelerator to fly through. And I always do re-examine my driving habits, that is why it didn't happen again after that month and I always learn off my mistakes. But I do not exclude that it might happen again. So far I had only speeding tickets, nothing else ;-). Touch the wood.

 

[ashmtl]

This is absolutely true... There are some features that have been deemed so important that drivers are not given the opportunity to turn them off. CMBS is one example. RDM has not reached quite this same level and you can turn it off (albeit with the 'nuicense' that it always defaults to on).

An extreme example is of course airbags. There is never an option to turn off the airbags even though there may be some people who would if given the chance. There used to be an option to disable the passengar airbag (to cover cases with small children in that seat, etc.) but I'm not sure that option ever exists any more.

I think the passenger airbag sets off if a very small weight (don't know exact numbers) is present on the passenger seat. I agree that it shouldn't be a choice of a driver to turn it off.

 

[Dan Albrich]

I think some automation features make you less tired -- adaptive cruise control to me is a great feature when I'm stuck in traffic that slows, then speeds up repeatedly (and when not in bad weather). I get to my destination feeling less tired from the drive. I do think it unfortunate that collision mitigation has to be turned off each time you start the car for those who do not want it.

But I find automation in general to be useful. I use GPS navigation frequently, but do not turn just because the computer says to do so. I overlay my own human intelligence and selectively follow GPS where it makes sense to me. i.e. don't "turn left" into a wall or a lake. All automation features need to be used in a similar way, where your knowledge and control supercede them.

 

[Landshark]

Yes, the same is here in Canada, except it is required to stop under amber light if you saw that well in advance, instead of ramming the accelerator to fly through.

A requirement with conditions, isn’t really a requirement. It is vague, open to interpretation and will result in drivers making individual decisions on whether or not to stop.

My understanding in the US, is that if a vehicle is “in” the intersection when the light turns red, the vehicle can legally continue through the intersection. What constitutes “in” may vary. Where there are crosswalks, marked or not, the vehicle is considered to have entered the intersection if the front of the vehicle has entered the crosswalk. People will push a law to the limit, so this behavior should be expected.

Additionally, when you start a post with “Do not agree with that.” No one knows what you do not agree with.

 

[Landshark]

I think the passenger airbag sets off if a very small weight (don't know exact numbers) is present on the passenger seat. I agree that it shouldn't be a choice of a driver to turn it off.

I slowly added scuba weights to the passenger seat. It took 100lbs before the “fasten passenger seat belt” alert showed on the display.

My 1999 GMC truck has a passenger air bag “on/off” switch on the dash. It requires the ignition key to change the selection. I very much like that feature. There is no point in all the front air bags going off if only one person is in the car.

 

[MrFixit]

Interesting test....
The manual states this:


The sensor is likely sensitive to the position of the weight to some extent. It would be interesting to know exactly where it is and what it looks like.

 

[ashmtl]

A requirement with conditions, isn’t really a requirement. It is vague, open to interpretation and will result in drivers making individual decisions on whether or not to stop.

My understanding in the US, is that if a vehicle is “in” the intersection when the light turns red, the vehicle can legally continue through the intersection. What constitutes “in” may vary. Where there are crosswalks, marked or not, the vehicle is considered to have entered the intersection if the front of the vehicle has entered the crosswalk. People will push a law to the limit, so this behavior should be expected.

Additionally, when you start a post with “Do not agree with that.” No one knows what you do not agree with.

Do not agree part was about the last line of the post I was replying to (it was quoted). I think it was obvious.
Here in Canada there are two marks: the stop line, or if it is absent, the nearest edge of intersecting street, if I remember correctly.
And for the interpretation: yes, there can be many, but it is usually the police officer's interpretation that prevails. During the truck driving instruction it is a common rule to pay attention (if possible) for the green light on time. If it was there for a long time, you slow down. Again, it depends on your gut feeling too. My first driving instructor always said to pay attention to the crossing street traffic to make sure no one is going through, even if you have the green light. Prevented a few dangerous encounters.

 

[Landshark]

Do not agree part was about the last line of the post I was replying to (it was quoted). I think it was obvious.

No quote appeared on my screen. You’ve made your point as far as I’m concerned, so I’ll be relieving myself from this conversation.

 

[ashmtl]

No quote appeared on my screen. You’ve made your point as far as I’m concerned, so I’ll be relieving myself from this conversation.

I thank you and everyone for participation. Those discussions are very helpful and we look at ourselves from a different prospective. We also learn a lot.
Merry Christmas to all.

 

[West1]

I’ve owned a BMW i3 and the clarity is .25 - 1 second delayed in observing and reacting. So I can understand what the OP is not happy about.

 

[Frankwell]

No quote appeared on my screen. You’ve made your point as far as I’m concerned, so I’ll be relieving myself from this conversation.

Probably because he was quoting MrFixit, assuming that you still have MrFixit set to Ignore. When you set another member to Ignore then not only are their messages blocked but you also won't see quotes containing their messages.

I am assuming that you have MrFixit set to Ignore based on what you said to him a few months ago:

Did you read post #191? That’s the planet on which I live. It is also a planet where I can choose to ignore your arrogance.

I grant you full permission to read and respond to any of my past or future posts. Do not expect any further responses.

I apologize if I misunderstood your message to MrFixit.

https://www.insideevsforum.com/comm...y-extension-on-pg-10.6302/page-10#post-135401

 

[d99]

I had a big surprise when the front car stopped and I changed my lane to the right and my vehicle (2020 Clarity) hit the brakes in emergency. I heard the warning beep of collision prevention system when I was almost in the right lane and it was all clear in front of me. I was lucky the vehicle behind me had a good distance to stop too. I had to get out and apologize for my car's behaviour, but the other vehicle's driver looked at me like I was saying crazy things.
After that incident I set the collision safety distance to the minimum possible. I think the Honda should work on it's system to eliminate the lag and set the correction fast when the radar gets an "all clear" reading. Imagine if there would be ice on the road and the vehicle decides to hit the brakes? I would lose control completely, because stepping on the gas pedal changes nothing. Maybe I should keep this feature off in winters.

I know exactly what you are talking about because the identical scenario also happened to me. My car stalled and took what seemed like an eternity to restart. The system is extremely dangerous when following closely at high speeds in very heavy traffic. I disable it whenever I remember -- even the minimum distance doesn't help much. And for those of you who say a driver should allow a few car lengths in front, that just doesn't work in our region's heavy traffic. Other cars will cut in to occupy the space.