I just experienced a pretty dangerous situation with the new TACC in snowy conditions. I wrote the e-mail message below to the [email protected] address, in hopes that they will pass the information along to engineering. I thought I'd share the experience here too, so others may be aware of it, and be appropriately careful.
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I had a very dangerous experience tonight driving in some snow with the new TACC. Everything was working fine, even though visibility was not the best. The TACC was recognizing cars and correctly identifying when they pulled away or changed lanes, until the incident I am about to describe took place. I believe I had the maximum speed set to 50 or 55 MPH. The TACC was engaged, but did not have a target car, as the indicator was gray. I was approaching a car in my lane, and was expecting the indicator to turn blue, and for my car to slow down, and to maintain my maximum distance setting of seven. Instead the TACC never seemed to pick up the car moving more slowly in my lane, so of course I braked well before I would have rear-ended the other car.
I wanted to bring this to your attention, and also see if you wanted to pull the logs from my car, in case it will help the engineers fine tune the TACC system. I have not engaged TACC again, so the incident is my last use of TACC, and TACC was disengaged when I braked to avoid hitting the car that should have become the target car.
I am very happy with the TACC system. I just want to help make it better. If this was a situation in which visibility had become an issue, the TACC should have somehow warned me, and said it was not available, or something along those lines. But by continuing to operate, I had every reason to believe that the TACC would slow my car and not allow me to come up directly behind a car in my lane.
Please let me know what additional information, if any, you need from me.
Thanks.
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I had a very dangerous experience tonight driving in some snow with the new TACC. Everything was working fine, even though visibility was not the best. The TACC was recognizing cars and correctly identifying when they pulled away or changed lanes, until the incident I am about to describe took place. I believe I had the maximum speed set to 50 or 55 MPH. The TACC was engaged, but did not have a target car, as the indicator was gray. I was approaching a car in my lane, and was expecting the indicator to turn blue, and for my car to slow down, and to maintain my maximum distance setting of seven. Instead the TACC never seemed to pick up the car moving more slowly in my lane, so of course I braked well before I would have rear-ended the other car.
I wanted to bring this to your attention, and also see if you wanted to pull the logs from my car, in case it will help the engineers fine tune the TACC system. I have not engaged TACC again, so the incident is my last use of TACC, and TACC was disengaged when I braked to avoid hitting the car that should have become the target car.
I am very happy with the TACC system. I just want to help make it better. If this was a situation in which visibility had become an issue, the TACC should have somehow warned me, and said it was not available, or something along those lines. But by continuing to operate, I had every reason to believe that the TACC would slow my car and not allow me to come up directly behind a car in my lane.
Please let me know what additional information, if any, you need from me.
Thanks.
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