[clarence]

Does this include collision warning on HUD/instrument cluster?
Also how quickly does the windows & sunroof close when the car is about to crash?

[DrivenByE30]

Originally Posted by clarence

Does this include collision warning on HUD/instrument cluster?
Also how quickly does the windows & sunroof close when the car is about to crash?

" ATTENTION!! YOU ARE ABOUT TO CRASH !!! "

" BRACE FOR YOU LIFE "


type of message ?? this is new... this sounds like a MB feature...

[clarence]

There's a warning symbol displayed. For US market I can see the button on cars with LDW.

[Rdx]

Originally Posted by DrivenByE30

" ATTENTION!! YOU ARE ABOUT TO CRASH !!! "

" BRACE FOR YOU LIFE "


type of message ?? this is new... this sounds like a MB feature...

It alarms and brakes for you if no reaction is given (on the 5 serie).

[svache]

Originally Posted by DrivenByE30

" ATTENTION!! YOU ARE ABOUT TO CRASH !!! "

" BRACE FOR YOU LIFE "


type of message ?? this is new... this sounds like a MB feature...

"BRACE BRACE BRACE"

I guess the walkways to the nearest emergency exit will be lighted and oxygen masks will come done

[Feanor]

Looking at the description the BMW US website, it doesn't make much sense:

"If a crash was unavoidable, the system applies the vehicle’s brakes automatically and brings it to a standstill, without the driver needing to act. This reduces – or in an ideal case completely rules out– the probability of secondary of follow-on collisions and their consequences."

So if a crash was unavoidable, it avoids it? Eh??

And what do they mean by secondary follow-on collisions? Don't those usually involve people going into the back of you etc, which Active Protection obviously isn't going to be able to prevent?

[svache]

Originally Posted by Feanor

So if a crash was unavoidable, it avoids it? Eh??

I think it will work every trick possible in order to make the crash less big/better survivable

Originally Posted by Feanor

And what do they mean by secondary follow-on collisions? Don't those usually involve people going into the back of you etc, which Active Protection obviously isn't going to be able to prevent?

You got me there.. if it applies full brakes, it would only increase the risk if you ask me

[Robin_NL]

Originally Posted by Feanor

So if a crash was unavoidable, it avoids it? Eh??

[Raspartan]

Originally Posted by Feanor

And what do they mean by secondary follow-on collisions? Don't those usually involve people going into the back of you etc, which Active Protection obviously isn't going to be able to prevent?

I think they mean collisions where you hit something and then continue on to impact something else. In those situations the automatic braking would stop you before the second impact, or at least lessen the force.

[Rdx]

Mm Active Protection doesn't warn you at all. It prepares you for an accident with "forward-looking vision" (LOL, translation) by belt tensioners and closing your windows.

Collision warning is (in our country) another option. It warns you for collisions (big red car in your instrument cluster) and brakes for you if you do not act on time. When warning it prepares the brakes for emergency-stop-braking (nop, I can't translate that properly).

But I don't know if collision warning and active protection is in the same package.

[Feanor]

Originally Posted by Raspartan

I think they mean collisions where you hit something and then continue on to impact something else. In those situations the automatic braking would stop you before the second impact, or at least lessen the force.

Meh, I can't imagine that happening very often - usually, I'd have thought, the car would be out of control after the first impact anyway and brakes might not do much to help.

I guess it only has to save one life to be worth it but I'm unconvinced whether the cost is worth the reduced risk. Cars these days are already incredibly safe.

[shoptb]

Originally Posted by Feanor

"If a crash was unavoidable, the system applies the vehicle’s brakes automatically and brings it to a standstill, without the driver needing to act. This reduces – or in an ideal case completely rules out– the probability of secondary of follow-on collisions and their consequences."

I'm with you guys, this is completely nonsensical. If your vehicle slams on the brakes to avoid an "unavoidable" collision (oxymoron), chances are that this will totally increase the possibility of the vehicle behind you slamming into your rear-end. Unless, of course, this is an imaginary BMW world where all of the vehicles are networked and sensing each other's decisions.

They probably should have said, "If a crash was highly likely, the system applies the vehicle's brakes automatically, without the driver needing to act. Seat belts are automatically tensioned, and windows are rolled up, to protect the environment from your flying body parts. BMW Assist will also be automatically notified that you will be needing a new rear bumper and neck brace when the vehicle behind you slams into your a$$".

[Raspartan]

I seem to remember reading somewhere that the braking would not be sufficient to avoid a collision anyway, unlike the Benz version of this feature.

[Raspartan]

Originally Posted by Feanor

Meh, I can't imagine that happening very often - usually, I'd have thought, the car would be out of control after the first impact anyway and brakes might not do much to help.

Actually it sort of happened to me, but you could be right about the frequency of it occurring.

I was sitting at an intersection at a red light. The perpendicular lanes were green, but then turned amber. At that point a car came flying down the road and tried to make the amber, just as a truck started making a left turn. The car slammed on the brakes, swerved to avoid but slammed into the truck's side at an angle. He bounced off and careened into the front of my car, stopped at the red. It was all over in about 3 seconds.

From the sound of his tires I could tell he tried braking during the avoidance, but not after the first impact. Probably too stunned, or something. Some kind of automated braking might have helped in this situation, although I suppose I don't know whether the BMW braking would have intervened in this particular scenario.

[shoptb]

Originally Posted by Raspartan

Actually it sort of happened to me, but you could be right about the frequency of it occurring.

I was sitting at an intersection at a red light. The perpendicular lanes were green, but then turned amber. At that point a car came flying down the road and tried to make the amber, just as a truck started making a left turn. The car slammed on the brakes, swerved to avoid but slammed into the truck's side at an angle. He bounced off and careened into the front of my car, stopped at the red. It was all over in about 3 seconds.

From the sound of his tires I could tell he tried braking during the avoidance, but not after the first impact. Probably too stunned, or something. Some kind of automated braking might have helped in this situation, although I suppose I don't know whether the BMW braking would have intervened in this particular scenario.

In this scenario, as I understand it from your description, I don't think that the BMW system would have helped very much at all. I think the BMW system is most effective for vehicles/objects that it has been tracking for a little time (a vehicle in front of it that has slowed down). Since this particular situation involved the car accelerating to beat the yellow light, and the truck only coming into its line-of-sight at the last moment, I don't think that the BMW system would have known to apply the brakes any sooner. Since the system doesn't affect the steering angle, an impact would have probably been unavoidable.

[Raspartan]

Originally Posted by shoptb

In this scenario, as I understand it from your description, I don't think that the BMW system would have helped very much at all. I think the BMW system is most effective for vehicles/objects that it has been tracking for a little time (a vehicle in front of it that has slowed down). Since this particular situation involved the car accelerating to beat the yellow light, and the truck only coming into its line-of-sight at the last moment, I don't think that the BMW system would have known to apply the brakes any sooner. Since the system doesn't affect the steering angle, an impact would have probably been unavoidable.

Well yes, the primary impact was likely unavoidable. But I wonder whether his momentum would have been slowed if he'd had automatic braking after he bounced off and drove into me. Again though, I'm not sure that it would have activated at all. It all depends on whether the primary impact would have registered with the on-board computer.

On a related note, where is that SecureFoam system for the passengers that I saw in Demolition Man?

Now that's active protection!

[TurboT]

Originally Posted by Feanor

Looking at the description the BMW US website, it doesn't make much sense:

"If a crash was unavoidable, the system applies the vehicle’s brakes automatically and brings it to a standstill, without the driver needing to act. This reduces – or in an ideal case completely rules out– the probability of secondary of follow-on collisions and their consequences."

So if a crash was unavoidable, it avoids it? Eh??

I'm too wondering the same sentence as they say "crash WAS unavoidable", so in this case crash already happened and after that then the car will slow down automatically to stop. Hmm. what's the point to have car breaking after crash why not before ???

[F30Driver]

Originally Posted by TurboT

I'm too wondering the same sentence as they say "crash WAS unavoidable", so in this case crash already happened and after that then the car will slow down automatically to stop. Hmm. what's the point to have car breaking after crash why not before ???

Probably giving too much control to the car.

I wouldnt mind if the car applied the brakes after an impact to ensure the vehicle came to and stayed at a stop. But as for the car autonomously braking for me =\ That's just ultimately losing control of your most important function of the car. Regardless how good computers are becoming; my windscreen wipers have went haywire twice already with the car suffering with the FEM faults like many others. Having auto brake on cruise is bad enough and usually I will just disengage cruise to slow down manually - especially on motorways which have a reduced limit.

Chances are the car wouldn't spot 'pop up' threats any quicker than you. It is a computer after all and you have a brain - so there is no advantage to be had against deer etc. And if you're worried about rear ending stationary traffic then you need to respect that you're driving what can be a killing machine and pay more bloody attention to the road.

[jwickers]

If you have an impact strong enough to deploy airbags, the driver is then probably not able to steer / brake his car, so auto braking at this point makes sense.

See plenty of accident where after a car after impacting the side / front of another at a cross road, will then just randomly bounce into other traffic / tree / building / side walk etc ...

As for collision prevention, you have that in Volvo or Infinity already. Not sure if that work the same in the 3, although you could try, preferably using something soft and at low speed.