GEN 2 Is the NEW tech package worth it?

[wjn]

My personal opinion is that people get more sloppy as a driver the more gadgets they start to rely on.

Exactly that last few words is where it is going wrong. All these gadgets are drivers assistants, not drivers replacements.

I really like the cruise control and use it almost everytime, except for driving slow around town. I do not need to watch on the speedometer to keep and maintain my speed, the cruise control does this, and I can pay more attention for other drivers / situations. And yes, I hate it too the (looks like) majority of drivers cannot keep there speed constant, variating 10mph or so.

And I want to have the adaptive cruise control, because I can switch this on and off (thanks Ford). Over here (Netherlands) on a lot of secundairy roads overtaking is forbidden. And instead of irritating myself for drivers who do not keep speed limits, but drive 5-10mph below them, I just switch on ACC and let the car do the distance keeping. (The Tesla is a little bit nicer, auto-pilot keeps it between the lines too.) Saves my nerves and I have more attention for other situations (on the road). Secondly for long distances abroad I can really use the ACC, as there is lesser traffic on the road and for occasional traffic jams it will be nice.

For me the tech package is worth it, and I ordered it.

 

[realjones88]

Not picking on you but you said you love the radar-cruise-control feature then describe exactly why it sucks.!

I get what you are saying, but I meant more along the lines of it has its limitations. The beltways that surround a lot of major cities, not that great if speeds are constantly going from 70 to 40 because of random backups. Light traffic it works great. Loved it in the country as it would brake when big rigs pull out to pass (which I despise anyway) then accelerate when they pull back over. Do you have adaptive cruise on your truck?

 

[BangBang]

Exactly that last few words is where it is going wrong. All these gadgets are drivers assistants, not drivers replacements.


And I want to have the adaptive cruise control, because I can switch this on and off (thanks Ford). Over here (Netherlands) on a lot of secundairy roads overtaking is forbidden. And instead of irritating myself for drivers who do not keep speed limits, but drive 5-10mph below them, I just switch on ACC and let the car do the distance keeping. (The Tesla is a little bit nicer, auto-pilot keeps it between the lines too.) Saves my nerves and I have more attention for other situations (on the road). Secondly for long distances abroad I can really use the ACC, as there is lesser traffic on the road and for occasional traffic jams it will be nice.

For me the tech package is worth it, and I ordered it.

This is about the only valid reason I can see for needing ACC

 

[2thfixr]

Adaptive cruise is great but you need to learn the system and you can't rely on it. Extending function to full stop is a huge upgrade. I had a 2015 Escalade with adaptive cruise without full stop. Traded it in for a 2018 Escalade with updated adaptive cruise that goes to full stop. Much nicer in traffic and added benefit is the old system required at least 20 mph to engage adaptive cruise. Tough in traffic, I had to drive slow to open up a gap and mash the throttle to get enough speed to engage. With full stop adaptive cruise I can engage from a standstill.

The ultimate version of adaptive cruise is in my wife's 2018 S560. Full autonomous driving under 20mph so no steering or pedals in traffic. Keeps you perfectly centered in the lane doesn't just intervene when you drift out like lane keeping assist. Activate your turn signals and it finds a gap and changes lanes for you. Above 20 mph it does all of that but requires at least 1 hand on the wheel every 90 seconds or it shuts off. IMO grab all the tech you can, makes driving easier and safer.

 

[Edbert]

I get what you are saying, but I meant more along the lines of it has its limitations. The beltways that surround a lot of major cities, not that great if speeds are constantly going from 70 to 40 because of random backups. Light traffic it works great. Loved it in the country as it would brake when big rigs pull out to pass (which I despise anyway) then accelerate when they pull back over. Do you have adaptive cruise on your truck?

There was no such option on my Rubicon, if you mean my Raptor (do not have it yet) then no I declined to add the tech package. However my wife drives a Mazda CX-9 signature-something with the 4cyl turbo and AWD which does have it. Based upon driving her minivan/SUV/thing I am a huge "non-fan" of it. I know you can adjust the sensitivity, but it does allow the driver to disable entirely. That has to be done each time you start the engine, disable traction control, disable lane-keep-assist, disable radar-cruise, disable audible-chime for lane-departure-warning, etc. I'm not sure but I get in and push like 6 buttons before putting it in gear. Then I have to adjust the HUD to be so low I cannot see it. The HUD isn't an issue for short trips, annoying but doesn't cause a headache like it does on a road trip.

I think I'm in tech overload sometimes.

I find that in trucks and Jeeps (any vehicle with the aero of a cinderblock) that I can avoid climbing up the tailpipe (too much, heh) of the person in the left lane who cannot modulate his throttle.

I would like the auto-braking feature for collision avoidance to be honest though. While having the neanderthal opinions of an old man who likes to be in 100% control that is the exception. I do not want the thing applying the brakes to keep me 120 feet behind someone who is 1 MPH slower than I am, if it gets too close then I can hit -1/+1 to maintain appropriate distance. However, in an emergency there's just no way I or any human will be able to apply the brakes as quickly. I'm also on the record of liking the rain sensing wipers, at least the ones in my 335i worked fantastic. Don't mind the blindspot warning things, or a visual indicator that you're changing lanes without a signal, but don't ever want it to move the wheel.

So two out of the six components? I just didn't want to spend $1,900 on a bunch of options that I would not use. That they may fail or make future mods harder was only a secondary concern for me, yet still worth thinking about.

 

[2thfixr]

Why would you disable traction control?

 

[Edbert]

Why would you disable traction control?

Simple answer = Based on years of driving with it on.

The only time I noticed it activate was when I was intentionally heavy on the pedal. I just don't want the deprecation of power or application of brake (not sure which system the Raptor uses) when I push the pedal too much for the computer's opinion of what is appropriate.

Thinking about it more...on the wife's car with fulltime AWD the whole thing seems superflous. Guess it became habit more than anything else based on many years driving in performance oriented RWD cars, even with manuals. Maybe it translated to a habit of pushing all the buttons in the Mazda to turn off all the gizmos when I get in. Are you a psychotherapist?

NOTE: around here everyone stays home if there's any ice, I would probably think differently if I ever intended to drive in it.

 

[brettmess24]

Interesting I can’t stand adaptive cruise in any vehicle...


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