WDB
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Post by WDB on Nov 2, 2017 11:22:33 GMT
I expect the excuse for this particular element of the current cartoon-car trend in design is "reversing cameras". I have not found them useful on my Leaf. In fact, I'd rather turn them off. I've nudged the car against items in my garage a couple of times, which I blame on the complacency which the camera encourages. No damage yet, but it's bound to happen. I was pleased to find one on what's now my CLS; especially since it's an option that the prettier blue car I failed to buy didn't have. Now I have it, though, I'm less convinced. At the end of my test drive in the blue car, I parked at the kerb in front of some MOT parking bays. As I was about to follow the salesman inside, a mechanic appeared, wanting to move one of the MOT cars. Rather than faff about, I moved out of his way and smoothly reversed into the space he'd vacated. Easy.  Now, with the camera, it seems to take me more moves to execute the same, simple manoeuvre - and I still end up skew-whiff. Granted, this is often on our drive, where there are low bushes to one side and the E220 to the other, and the extra width of the CLS over the 325 makes it matter more how MrsB1 has abandoned, sorry, parked the other car. But I might try turning off the camera next time in, and relying on my tried-and-tested mirrors-sensors-and-eyes method instead. It is quite nice to see exactly where the back bumper is stopping, though. And, funnily, I don't remember this problem with the camera in the similarly-sized BMW 540i I parked neatly on the dealer's busy forecourt. |
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Post by Hofmeister on Nov 2, 2017 11:47:38 GMT
First came across one in the Nissan primera. Didn't find it much use then, then had a hired Juke, where it was brilliant. The BMW one seems at first glance to be good, with it's bending guide lines to move you into place, But I always ended up parked on the skew. At night, in the rain, it was a nasty horrible orange splodge. The reversing sensors are good, the mirrors are good enough,so the camera wasn't specified in the new wagon
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2017 11:58:39 GMT
Are those bars on your ground floor windows? Blimey, I thought I lived in a dodgy town.
The Leaf camera does the orange/green guide lines thing too. On the Juke, I would expect a camera may well be helpful seeing as they is about 0% glass on the bodywork and it's all unnecessary height and bulges.
I make the score 3-0 to no cameras so far.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Nov 2, 2017 11:59:21 GMT
BMW's reversing beepers are very good; I always found it very easy to interpret the pitch and frequency of the 325's beeps. The MB Parktronic system relies on lights until you get very close, which aren't so intuitive.
Perhaps cameras are designed more for the kind of driver that reverses out of a space rather than into it.
In the Fun still to come column, my car also has Active Park Assist, which claims to be able to identify and park in a suitable parallel space, with me working only the pedals. I seldom need to do this anyway, and my attempts to provoke it in the quiet roads near my house have yet to work. (Although it certainly provoked MrsB1, who was in the passenger seat the first time.)
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Nov 2, 2017 12:03:09 GMT
Are those bars on your ground floor windows? Blimey, I thought I lived in a dodgy town. Not my house, not my town, not my car. People in my town can read what's put in front of them. 😈 |
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Nov 2, 2017 16:51:50 GMT
My car has a reversing camera which has 4 different modes of operation.
1. Reversing into a parking space (the default)
2. Parallel parking
3. Reversing up to a trailer/caravan hitch
4. Reversing out of a parking space
The first mode does the usual orange/green lines to help you steer. The second recognises cars/objects and overlays an orange block over them and is meant to help you guide the car in - not tried it. I think it shows you where it thinks you'll end up. As I say not tried it.
Option 3 shows a different view and so you could see down to the tow bar and see some of the bumper - it's not as wide an angle for sure and it's a bird's eye sort of view looking down.
Finally the last option shows a wide angle (about 180 degree) view behind so you can see cars approaching that you could not easily spot from the driver seat (especially if the car/van either side has no windows to look through or they are tinted). Combines with radar in the rear bumper on my car to warn you of cars approaching and will stop the car if you don't slow or stop yourself.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2017 17:16:10 GMT
Espadrille's old Juke had an excellent reversing camera. The Toyota Corolla we rented recently was even better.
The E350 has lights and beeps which are fine and don't start going bananas until you are fairly close to the item you might hit behind. However as expected the Evoque is dire. A screen with some form of plan view with moving panels and beeps which leave you yards away from the item to be hit; so far you could park another car behind it.
My old S-Max had beeps only, but seemed to be very intuitive, with different pitches for front and rear sensors.
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Nov 2, 2017 17:32:24 GMT
Mine has the standard VW group sensors which beep and show how close each part of the car is to objects. The closer you get the colour of the lines change and the beep tone changes. I went for park assist not because I wanted the car to part itself but it has the extra two sensors on the sides of the car so it also detects objects alongside the car.
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WDB
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Post by WDB on Nov 2, 2017 17:42:33 GMT
Have you got it to park itself yet, Rob? I've done the preliminaries with mine - trundle past the space with indicator flashing - and seen the little arrow appear next to the blue P icon, but the 'stop messing about' protests from the passenger seat before I saw the 'Activate Park Assist?' prompt.
Apparently newer MBs than mine can do perpendicular as well as parallel, but none of the post-2015 cars I looked at had APA at all. Not a feature I'd have gone looking for but I hope I can have some fun with it - if only once per first-time passenger.
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Nov 2, 2017 18:01:42 GMT
Yes I have tried it a couple of times. Actually works well. My wife was alarmed when I tried outside the house with the steering turning quickly on its own.  I only need to indicate if the parking space is on the driver side... and a couple of times I've tried and it stops because I think I drove too far forward. I have once tried it to park in a car park with perpendicular parking (think it will do driving in front and reverse in). Reversing in I'd have done it in one manoeuvre.. but it wanted to reverse a bit, then go forwards to straighten up a bit and then reverse again. Also tried out active lane assist which is sort of okay. Combine with active cruise control and also used in traffic to follow cars as they move and stop again. Obviously it's not what a Tesla is capable of or the new Audi A8. All in all... liking the Superb a lot. I didn't want a bigger car but it's good. Nobody sat in the back yet! And that was the main reason for getting the bigger car |
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Nov 2, 2017 18:05:18 GMT
And I went for park assist because I wanted front sensors and it was only a few hundred more for park assist On a £30k+ car that's nothing. Car as standard only had rear parking sensors. Next week my old A3 saloon is up for auction... I wonder what it will sell for and if the £6k+ of options part from leather make any difference. |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Nov 2, 2017 20:45:20 GMT
There's something I realy like about the A3 saloon. It looks smart, professional and as if it has been hewn from somethig solid. Its the sort of car I could imagine a retired director would buy to keep for a longer time. No idea what it's like inside or to drive. Presumably fairly Audi-like?
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Rob
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Post by Rob on Nov 2, 2017 21:17:09 GMT
When I got the A3, it was more Audi TT inside than A4 with the current design language. TFT screen would rise out of the dash (which was lower so to speak), nice air vents. A really good car. Someone next Tuesday no doubt will get a 3 year old A3 saloon that was over £31k new for a about £16k at a guess. www.autocar.co.uk/sites/autocar.co.uk/files/styles/gallery_slide/public/audi-a3-dashboard.jpg?itok=mqo2Rd4xAlthough it's another MQB based car and an Audi A3 at that, few panels were shared with the A3 5-door hatchback. In fact I think it was a wider car. I'd have been happy to have had that car for a lot longer apart from (a) it was on a 3 year lease and (b) wanted a car with more legroom in the rear. Bonus is the boot is HUGE. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 3, 2017 11:19:44 GMT
Hmm, something to look at to replace the Merc when the family decide we no longer need to travel all together.
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Post by dixinormus on Nov 5, 2017 2:28:56 GMT
I agree that the A3 sedan is a cracker. But although I would love one, I can't stomach the price compared with the Honda Civic sedan 1.5 turbo... (Hint: approx half the price!) All the talk of the DQ200 7-speed DSG box being a ticking time bomb is starting to get to me too  Aside, I just spent 2 days in a rental Nissan Pulsar. Comfortable, and so cheap for a Golf/Focus class car. And so economical: a 1.8 petrol and CVT gearbox gave me almost 50 mpg! |
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I only need to indicate if the parking space is on the driver side... and a couple of times I've tried and it stops because I think I drove too far forward. 
