Controlling set speed and following distance

[daniel]

Is there a way on the Model 3 to change the cruise control set speed, or the TACC following distance, without using the touch screen? I find that to use the screen I have to momentarily take my attention away from the road. On my Prius, I can increase or decrease my c/c speed by pressing up or down on the c/c stalk without taking my attention away from the road.

On the Model 3, the speed requires me to look away from the road so I can tap the + or -, and the TACC follow distance is buried under menus. These operations should be available on the stalks or the steering-wheel controls. Maybe they are and I don't know about it?

 

[Asterix187]

On the MS you can rotate the TACC stalk END to set the distance. Never seen a M3 so don’t know if it’s the same.

 

[dhrivnak]

Is there a way on the Model 3 to change the cruise control set speed, or the TACC following distance, without using the touch screen? I find that to use the screen I have to momentarily take my attention away from the road. On my Prius, I can increase or decrease my c/c speed by pressing up or down on the c/c stalk without taking my attention away from the road.

On the Model 3, the speed requires me to look away from the road so I can tap the + or -, and the TACC follow distance is buried under menus. These operations should be available on the stalks or the steering-wheel controls. Maybe they are and I don't know about it?

I am told no. So HOPEFULLY there will be an update soon!!!

 

[gregincal]

Nope. No way except the touch screen.

 

[daniel]

Nope. No way except the touch screen.

IMO that's a safety issue. It's important to be able to control both those things, and to be able to do so without diverting your attention from the road. Maybe they could (as someone suggested in another thread) implement a voice-activated control.

Hmmm. Pressing the right-hand steering-wheel button while driving tells the car to listen for a voice command. The left-hand scroll wheel sets the volume. What happens of you press the left button, or scroll the left wheel? The buttons also have left/right. One way or another they could have those buttons control set speed and follow distance.

 

[roblab]

Better not use TACC if it takes too much attention from the road. Reaching for that touch screen could cause an accident.

I wonder if the manual tells how to use those steering wheel buttons. I guess I'll go look if I can't figure it out.

 

[daniel]

Better not use TACC if it takes too much attention from the road. Reaching for that touch screen could cause an accident.

I wonder if the manual tells how to use those steering wheel buttons. I guess I'll go look if I can't figure it out.

Yes, it does. But they seem to be under-utilized. When driving, the right button actuates voice command mode but up/down/left/right don't seem to do anything on the right button unless you tell the touch screen to adjust the mirrors or the steering wheel position.

 

[gregincal]

I don't find it to be a huge deal. I never adjust following distance. I suppose it might be nice sometimes, but I don't find it necessary.

As for speed adjustment I don't find it to be too distracting, and by definition I don't need to worry about slamming into the back of another car while doing it. Generally the only reason I ever adjust speed is that traffic is clear and I want to speed up over the speed limit. No more distracting than changing the radio station or the climate control temperature (on any car).

 

[woof]

For cruise set speed, there is a work around that doesn't require touching the screen or taking eyes from the road: turn cruise off (press up on right stalk, or press button on right stalk, or press brake), speed up/down to desired set point, turn cruise on again (press down on right stalk).

I'd really like to be able to press "down" again to change the set point to current speed. That'd at least work for speeding up above current setpoint.

 

[daniel]

For cruise set speed, there is a work around that doesn't require touching the screen or taking eyes from the road: turn cruise off (press up on right stalk, or press button on right stalk, or press brake), speed up/down to desired set point, turn cruise on again (press down on right stalk).

I'd really like to be able to press "down" again to change the set point to current speed. That'd at least work for speeding up above current setpoint.

Nope. Doesn't work: If I have Offset set to 4 mph (my choice on arterial roads in town) and I want to change to Offset 1 mph (for residential streets) engaging TACC at a slower speed causes it to speed back up to the detected speed limit plus the offset.

I could disable Offset, but most of the time it's really nice to be able to engage TACC and have it come up to my set speed. Just that I want a different offset for different streets. It would be nice if: a quick press down while TACC is engaged would decrease the set speed by 1 mph and a quick press up increased it by 1 mph (as in other cars).

Also, shutting off Offset and just engaging TACC when I'm going my desired speed does not always work, because often I don't catch it at the right speed. Then I have to disengage and re-engage after getting the car to the right speed. Or look over to find the very small + and - buttons on the screen. This is just a really klunky system, caused by Tesla's insistence on moving too many functions to the screen, thus making control more difficult because there are functions for which the touch screen is just not appropriate.

It's a great car that would benefit by a few more physical controls for functions that need to be available by touch alone. Or by voice command, which would still not be as good as one finger up or down on the stalk, but would be much better than how it is now.

 

[Az_Rael]

speed up/down to desired set point, turn cruise on again (press down on right stalk).

This doesn’t work if you want your set speed lower than the speed limit. One of my biggest pet peeves in slow moving traffic. I hate having my set speed at 70 when traffic is going 30, it causes too much trouble when gaps open up and the car tries to speed up to 70 each time. So, I have to set the speed, then click the tiny button on the screen a bunch of times. Very annoying.

 

[ölbrenner]

The recent Engadget model 3 review, hints that Tesla is actively working on CC/following distance on the right steering wheel orb (and as an added bonus, more wiper stalk functionality).

 

[daniel]

The recent Engadget model 3 review, hints that Tesla is actively working on CC/following distance on the right steering wheel orb (and as an added bonus, more wiper stalk functionality).

This is wonderful news. Thanks for posting.

 

[gregincal]

This doesn’t work if you want your set speed lower than the speed limit. One of my biggest pet peeves in slow moving traffic. I hate having my set speed at 70 when traffic is going 30, it causes too much trouble when gaps open up and the car tries to speed up to 70 each time. So, I have to set the speed, then click the tiny button on the screen a bunch of times. Very annoying.

I don't have any problem with the above scenario. I like to move ahead if there is a gap. Generally the gap isn't that large that the car won't see a car ahead before it speeds up too much (and if there aren't any cars ahead I would image you do want to speed up to 70). I definitely never set the speed artificially low.

 

[Az_Rael]

I don't have any problem with the above scenario. I like to move ahead if there is a gap. Generally the gap isn't that large that the car won't see a car ahead before it speeds up too much (and if there aren't any cars ahead I would image you do want to speed up to 70). I definitely never set the speed artificially low.

Yeah, it is probably a driver style. If a large gap opens in traffic, but I still see brake lights and stopped traffic ahead, I don't like to speed up a lot when I know the car will be hitting the brakes hard because it got going too fast. I prefer to ease the transitions to minimize the slinky effect. Once traffic opens up fully, then I normally up the cruise in 5mph increments until traffic is going at speed.

The other time I set below the speed limit is if my lane is clear and the lane next to me is stopped. I don't like to be travelling 70 next to slow or stopped cars. Wish TACC or AP took that into account automatically.

Overall, I use the follow distance of 7 and never change that - I tend to be very conservative. Getting cruise speeds on the wheel will give everyone options.

 

[N5329K]

Or make a small 4-ring Audi icon on the autopilot page. Touch the icon and the following distance is immediately reduced to the sub-meter range. European Model 3's will flash their lights. US-market Model 3's will do all the above, plus tap the horn until the target...er...car ahead moves over.
One icon will do the trick.
Robin

 

[woof]

This doesn’t work if you want your set speed lower than the speed limit.

I haven't tried it...but can the speed limit offset be set to a large negative value? And if so, would that help? Can't drive right now to try it (big storm).

 

[daniel]

I haven't tried it...but can the speed limit offset be set to a large negative value? And if so, would that help? Can't drive right now to try it (big storm).

You can set the offset positive or negative. The problem is that depending on conditions, I want to change it on the fly. That's what you cannot do without using the screen and taking your eyes off the road.

I looked for a way to use TACC without a set speed. That is, just set the speed each time from the pedal and then engage. But I could not find anything other than Absolute or Relative. I could not find Off (don't ever increase from the speed at which I engage TACC.)

 

[T34ME]

Is there a way on the Model 3 to change the cruise control set speed, or the TACC following distance, without using the touch screen? I find that to use the screen I have to momentarily take my attention away from the road. On my Prius, I can increase or decrease my c/c speed by pressing up or down on the c/c stalk without taking my attention away from the road.

On the Model 3, the speed requires me to look away from the road so I can tap the + or -, and the TACC follow distance is buried under menus. These operations should be available on the stalks or the steering-wheel controls. Maybe they are and I don't know about it?

We have a Prius too with TACC. It only works above 35mph, so only on higher speed roads, not around town. Consequently we set the following distance and forget it. We will do the same on the model 3. We won't use Tesla TACC for around town traffic, that will come with FSD.

With regards to set speed, the model 3 is superior to the Prius. On the Prius we have to constantly fiddle with the set speed, tapping up or down for changing speed limits. With the model 3, we will set our speed to read the local speed limit and forget it.

I don't see a problem for us.

 

[gregincal]

I can never figure out why looking over your shoulder when changing lanes is supposed to be this super safe conservative driver thing to do, but glancing down to press a button on the screen is somehow super dangerous. At least when you glance at the screen you can still see the road in your peripheral vision. Even looking in your side mirrors takes your eyes way more off the road than looking at the screen does. I just don't see it as a problem, especially when I have TACC on, since the greatest danger of taking your eyes off the road is having the person in front of you suddenly brake, which isn't a problem here (but I've almost gotten in to accidents in other cars when that happens just as I'm checking to change lanes).