Under the influence of adaptive cruise control

[shadonoz]

No but you stated you wanted it to be closer right (uhm)

Sorry if I've confused you, X! Don't want to to wear a hole in your head scratching it! Communication is often difficult.

I did not state that I wanted to be able to tailgate. My definition of tailgating is following too close to be able to stop if the vehicle in front of me makes a panic stop... period. That must necessarily take into account the car's capability [stopping distance], the driver's capabilities [reaction time], road and weather conditions [situational awareness], and some room for error. The sum of those things will vary for every situation.

I stated that I thought MRCC's minimum headway was too short for my liking. Then I stated that my anecdotal observation is that the minimum headway is NOT what is stated in the OM [which corresponds to the numbers in MRCC.pdf]. Somehow, I had thought that 2 bars was the lowest I could set mine. Wrong! So now I need to go out and experiment on the highway to see if that one bar suits me better.

Tailgating is something I never do. It's dangerous. But my definition of tailgating as far different than my wife's... and apparently yours, too. She is correct... she needs more time than me. I don't know about you. To each their own.

Of course, MRCC is supposed to take all of that into account when invoking emergency braking. If you're relying on MRCC to stop your vehicle, it doesn't matter what your following distance is, it's going to apply the brakes just before it calculated that it will be too late to stop without a collision. Ideally, it will never have to do that. But the one time you look down at 70 mph to see where the heat is directed, or you have a medical emergency [for instance] and the car in front slams on the brakes, better hope it works right. I don't ever rely on it, but I'm glad it can supposedly stop the car just in case.

By all means maintain whatever you feel is a safe following distance. You can use MRCC or standard CC or no CC. I personally love MRCC and use it as often as possible... my wife hates ANY kind of CC. She thinks it keeps her from controlling the car. I gave up that discussion long ago. Each to their own!

 

[shadonoz]

I did check out the pdf. Something like having your lights on or windshield wipers running could tell the system to back off a bit more but I didn’t see anything like that there. It’s a thought though.

If I'm reading it right, the block diagram [specifically] shows that it takes ALL inputs into account.

 

[Xeler8ing]

Fair enough

 

[Puyapim]

I found this on Mazda’s website. In fact they specify that rain, snow or fog may cause the system to become unavailable.

http://www.mazda.com/en/innovation/technology/safety/active_safety/mrcc/

 

[Puyapim]

With that stated in my post above, if the weather conditions are so poor, I do not use cc at all. Just like when the freeways are congested.

 

[Xeler8ing]

I found this on Mazda’s website. In fact they specify that rain, snow or fog may cause the system to become unavailable.

http://www.mazda.com/en/innovation/technology/safety/active_safety/mrcc/

Which makes sense as it is probably not advanced enough for all conditions

 

[shadonoz]

I found this on Mazdas website. In fact they specify that rain, snow or fog may cause the system to become unavailable.

http://www.mazda.com/en/innovation/technology/safety/active_safety/mrcc/

Of course. It's in the OM, too. But you'll get a message when it's "unavailable".
The danger would be if it just doesn't work right with no warning.

As always, common sense is the key. And [to get back to those Tesla drivers] PAY ATTENTION!

There's a sign when you're leaving the driveway of our local Natl. Guard armory:
"You're about to enter the most dangerous place in the world, the American highway."

 

[shadonoz]

Which makes sense as it is probably not advanced enough for all conditions

And to get back to those Tesla drivers again, obviously NONE of them are!

 

[Xeler8ing]

(lol)

 

[Puyapim]

Of course. It's in the OM, too. But you'll get a message when it's "unavailable".
The danger would be if it just doesn't work right with no warning.

As always, common sense is the key. And [to get back to those Tesla drivers] PAY ATTENTION!

There's a sign when you're leaving the driveway of our local Natl. Guard armory:
"You're about to enter the most dangerous place in the world, the American highway."

That’s a great sign.

In the first few days after I bought this CX5 which is my first vehicle with adaptive cruise, I got the malfunction warning about the safety braking system. Checking the OM, the first thing to check was the windshield. It looked fairly clean but after a thorough cleaning I haven’t had that message since. That also tells me the system is very sensitive. So i use it as a convenience and not as a crutch.

This is just my opinion but the two second rule you mentioned would be too little for me. We all have our own ways of driving. My MRCC is set to medium ( 3 bars). Age is playing a big part as well. Being over 60, my reflexes are not as good as they once were I’ll admit.

 

[shadonoz]

my reflexes are not as good as they once were Ill admit.

Me, too. Plus hearing, eyesight, balance... you name it.
Aging is highly overrated... until you consider the alternative!
It's one reason I decided I HAD to have a new car with all the current safety features [which started becoming affordable in the past couple of years]... and then this beautiful new CX-5 came into my life....

 

[Puyapim]

Me, too. Plus hearing, eyesight, balance... you name it.
Aging is highly overrated... until you consider the alternative!
It's one reason I decided I HAD to have a new car with all the current safety features [which started becoming affordable in the past couple of years]... and then this beautiful new CX-5 came into my life....

I agree completely. My belief is that the first time these systems save my rear they just paid for themselves multiple times. We also get a bit of a discount from our insurance as well.

 

[Xeler8ing]

Kind of like a safety blanket