Do you like the Brake Assist feature? (1 Viewer)

[BloggerL]

I do not.

The other day I was I was changing into the lane to my right on the highway, when the traffic in that lane suddenly slowed, requiring me to brake and abort the lane change. Brake Assist activated, and the result was an unexpected amount of braking for the force I applied to the break pedal. This made me slow down much more than I wanted with traffic cued behind me. This did not enhance safety but detracted from it by making my braking more dramatic for the drivers behind me.

I've had a couple other instances like this. I'm not convinced that whatever tiny fraction of a second this feature saves me in other scenarios is worth the tradeoffs in scenarios like the one above.

Of course, there are situations I can imagine where the feature is useful, such as if the driver is distracted and fails to notice someone slamming the breaks in front of them. So I'm curious what others think.

 

[Mixelplix]

I fell the exact same way. The difference in brake rate is far too dramatic, and the engagement threshold is too low.

 

[liv2bike]

We had a rental a few weeks ago. The vehicle did this once. It was a dramatic application of the brakes. Scared the crap out of all of us. Our seatbelts even locked up. Glad our 200 does not have this. Can this be disabled somehow? Or is the logic built in to the trucks software with no way to toggle it off?

 

[Madtiger]

I am on the opposite end…being rear-ended is better than rear-ending someone…because that would possibly mean airbag deployment AND it is automatically YOUR fault (Vs. being rear-ended). I think that it works. Safety belt tightening is a great feature that i hope that i never need.

 

[MikeVpdx503]

I live in an area with many photo red light cameras. If a light turns yellow, quick application of the breaks is often required to avoid a $265 ticket. Several times I have had this system engage with merely a quick application to the breaks (nothing in front of me such as another vehicle). I don’t have any issue with the seatbelts retracting for safety, but the tires screech whenever it engages, which I have not experienced with other vehicle ABS.

 

[Sandroad]

I suspect it may help new drivers or distracted drivers brake quickly and hard enough to avoid collisions. In fact, I think driver assist functions are manufacturers response to distracted driving generally. So, for me brake assist is a mixed bag; good to have for all those drivers behind me with their eyes glued to a text, but I strongly prefer to modulate my own braking.

 

[04UZJ100]

Brake assist is not new technology. It interprets the time between throttle and brake inputs anticipating the need to increase braking force.