Lane Keeping Assist

[SpeedTwin]

DId you order the manual trans?

I did. My build week is 11/15. I got to drive a manual badlands this past Saturday at a drive event. That confirmed that I made the right choice. It idled up a rock climb in crawler gear, no throttle multiple times. Very impressed. Transmission throw and feel was good, clutch was light.

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[Paul Gagnon]

Exactly. And if you want or need to change lanes without signalling, I don’t want to fight with the vehicle.

I like that it fights you when you change lanes without signalling. It reminds people that they are being assholes.

 

[RhodeIslandRed]

I did. My build week is 11/15. I got to drive a manual badlands this past Saturday at a drive event. That confirmed that I made the right choice. It idled up a rock climb in crawler gear, no throttle multiple times. Very impressed. Transmission throw and feel was good, clutch was light.

You are gonna love it. My Bronco is replacing a couple of heavy-input vehicles and I was a little worried about all the electronics and automation. I can happily say that if you got the manual, you still get to drive. It is a very satisfying vehicle to operate.

The over-road manners are so good with this thing that I think some people forget what the real purpose is. And I get that not everyone can have different vehicles for different purposes. But I think Ford hit the sweet spot for driver experience vs. modern amenities.

 

[Julz670]

My wife's new Kona has lane keep and there are times I really like having it and times I hate it. Nice to have it on a long drive where there are more chances of getting distracted for a second. If I happen to drift toward the shoulder or center line while I reach back for some flaming hot cheetos, it keeps the vehicle within those lines even if I don't notice that I'm drifting a little.

That said, when driving in busy areas, I often feel like I'm fighting against the lane keep. For example: If a semi truck is wiggling in the wind a little or drifting over the line into my lane while going around a bend, I try to ride the opposite line or even partially over the line while I pass the semi, giving us both some room if something happens. With lane keep it is constantly trying to throw me back into my lane which isn't the safest area to be at that moment.

 

[Shinoko]

If I order a Bronco with the Standard Package (and not the Mid or Luxury package), it will *not* have lane keeping assist, right? I hate the lane departure warnings on my Passport and I am very interested in ordering a vehicle without these electronic nanny's.

You have to enable the lane assist. Unless it is on, there is no beeping or indication you are drifting out. I agree that is annoying my Subaru did that even with the lane keep off.

The ACC is worth the Lux upgrade, though. It reduces fatigue on long road trips and increases safety, it is not in the least bit annoying and is a really nice feature. I've driven it 8+ hours in one stretch and felt considerably less fatigued on the road than I otherwise would have. The lane assist is there if you want it, but is otherwise silent and unless you turn it on.

 

[nc-hiker]

You have to enable the lane assist. Unless it is on, there is no beeping or indication you are drifting out. I agree that is annoying my Subaru did that even with the lane keep off.

The ACC is worth the Lux upgrade, though. It reduces fatigue on long road trips and increases safety, it is not in the least bit annoying and is a really nice feature. I've driven it 8+ hours in one stretch and felt considerably less fatigued on the road than I otherwise would have. The lane assist is there if you want it, but is otherwise silent and unless you turn it on.

So the lane assist isn't enabled by default when you turn the vehicle on? Most new vehicles these days enable everything by default and you must disable them each time you turn the vehicle on.

 

[WuNgUn]

Exactly. And if you want or need to change lanes without signalling, I don’t want to fight with the vehicle.

"Need" to change lanes without signalling..?? Is your other car a BMW?? WTF

 

[Shinoko]

So the lane assist isn't enabled by default when you turn the vehicle on? Most new vehicles these days enable everything by default and you must disable them each time you turn the vehicle on.

no, you have to enable it each time you turn the car on/off, it is not automatic.

This feature works very well and does enhance safety in some cars, just not the Bronco

 

[Colt Bronco]

I turned mine off after the first day. I'd rather have the extra real estate on the screen especially since the tach is hard enough to read as it is (7MT).

 

[Daktari]

you have to turn it on with a button on the steering wheel. I thought mine was broken and put it on the warranty list until someone told me about the button and that it's not on by default. So handy to have on long drives IMO, but easy to completely disable.
Yes, I should have read the manual, eventually I will, LOL. 500+ pages, half of them warnings for stupid people, don't have time for that right now.

 

[Elwood]

You won't want BlueCruise then.

I would pay extra for this vs. dumber, less effective lane keep systems that bounce you off the edges of the lane instead of actually steering and keeping you centered in the lane.

 

[nc-hiker]

I like that it fights you when you change lanes without signalling. It reminds people that they are being assholes.

We all like it when people adhere to laws and best practices, but in my experience these electronic systems are poorly executed and will do surprisingly dumb things. Your mileage may vary, of course.

 

[nc-hiker]

I would pay extra for this vs. dumber, less effective lane keep systems that bounce you off the edges of the lane instead of actually steering and keeping you centered in the lane.

Yeah, I have a Honda Passport that has both, but it's garbage. The lane centering feature regularly drives itself out of the lane and then the lane departure warning toggles on and shakes the steering wheel and flashes a signal in the dash. It's...so stupid. If you know you're outside of the lane, why did you drive me there? What junior ass engineering team built this trash? Honestly...I prefer nothing over this hot garbage.

 

[Shinoko]

I've had cars where it worked and it was a nice feature to have. Sadly, it works with the finesse of a jackhammer on the Bronco and is not worth using given its lack of predictability.

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