Dreamszalone

Hi,

Today after a long time I used distronic cruise and to my surprise I was not able to increase the distance to feet, the max it went was around 150 - 175 not sure if that is the max it goes, and I had to be atleast 60MPH to set the distance to feet I remember using it last time and it worked fine, or may be I am missing something and not able to set the distance. And the 2nd most scary thing was occasionally it did not slowed the car down and I could hear the Collision assist beeping and then I applied the brakes, is this normal? or I am just going crazy.

Thanks

PeterUbers

I had the same issue on two 2014 e550's

It's a flawed system and I nearly killed myself a couple times when it did not "see" the stopped vehicle ahead... I couldn't figure out the logic

Did NOT get distro on my current Benz as I don't trust it

43221B

It clearly states in the manual:

"Distronic Plus brakes your vehicle with up to 40% of the maximum braking force. If this braking force is insufficient, Distronic Plus warns you visually and audibly. There is risk of an accident. In such cases, apply the brakes yourself and try to take evasive actions." It also says, "Distronic Plus does not react to: people or animals, STATIONARY OBSTACLES ON THE ROAD, e.g. STOPPED OR PARKED VEHICLES, oncoming and crossing traffic."

So in other words, you still have to pay attention. It isn't a self driving car. Dreamzalone, you need to turn the end of your cruise control stick to adjust following distance. If that isn't working, you need to get it serviced.

Personally, I wouldn't think of using this type of equipment before reading the section of the owner's manual that explains how to use it (a couple times).

Dreamszalone

Ya I figured the braking part, infact I saw few videos on youtube about distornic plus and in one video the guy was giving demo about S600 and at the very end of the video car did not stop ( ) and it gave Collision assist warning, whereas it did had enough distance and view to stop the car.

Anyway about the distance control kn0b I did try adjusting the distance but it did not work I turned the kn0b in both the directions to see if increase or decreases the distance but it didn't do much it was just decreasing not increasing the distance and the max it did go was 100ft and I am very embarrass to take it to the dealer because my car has been in already 2 times in less than a month thats so Any idea why the distance knob is not working is it the knob or the software?

PeterUbers

Sometimes it WOULD detect a stationary car at an approaching stop and Slow the car and appropriately stop and in an exact scenario another time would not at all slow down

This flies in the face of the documentation and I sat with techs who acknowledged the flaw and advised me not to use it. Not ready for prime time

cyclrder

I use distronic all the time... In stop and go traffic to 80mph runs down the hwy.

90% of the time it works great.... Would it stop the car if I came upon a parked car on the road while I'm going 60? No... It doesn't have that kind of capability... You gotta keep your eyes open to an emergency situation like that.

43221B

Your following distance is determined by your speed and your cruise stalk setting. You can not choose a specific following distance. The computer constantly adjusts your following distance as the speed of the vehicle you are following changes. This is a purposeful design so that as the car in front of you increases it's speed, your following distance increases. You can only tell the car, by your turning of the cruise stalk, that you want to increase or decrease following distance relative to current speed. If you were required to set the specific following distance, you would constantly be turning the cruise stalk.

I would really start by reading your manual. It clearly explains how the system works and what it's limitations are. It's limitations are extremely important for you to know.

I've used Distronic for thousands of miles and it has worked as advertised. I think it adds a huge element of safety to the vehicle, particularly on long trips because it helps you maintain a safe following distance at all times and helps to immediately slow your vehicle at the same rate as the vehicle in front of you. One thing that catches all of us off guard is when the driver in front of us lifts off the accelerator because they are thinking about slowing. When they do this, you can easily lose a car length or more of following distance before they apply their brakes. With Distronic, I can feel my GL immediately slowing down when the driver in front of me lifts off the throttle. When I do see brake lights, I haven't lost any following distance. It is a great system and I don't think I will buy another vehicle that we use for long distance travel without it.

43221B

Well, I'm not sure what documentation you are referring to but if you go check out the owner's manual, it will clearly explain to you what the system's limitations are. It doesn't stop for stopped traffic. The radar has a range (i.e. it only sees so far ahead) and the manual clearly states that the car only applies 40% of the brakes. So exactly how could it stop for all stopped vehicles? How this would be a "flaw" in the system is beyond me.

By the way, if in some cases, your car with Distronic did stop for stopped traffic, it was because your speed was low enough that your car could stop with only 40% or less of brake application. The bottom line though is you are not supposed to use the system to detect stopped traffic.

JimBarnhart

perhaps I'm stating the obvious, but turning the stalk while distronic is on and there's no car in front of you will not give a perceivable change. I'm going from memory, but I'm not even sure twisting the stalks shows anything in the center console unless there's a vehicle detected in front of you. But it did make an adjustment next time it finds a vehicle in front.

I find distronic plus very effective. It keeps me from getting too close the car in front of me, it helps me follow when I'm traveling with someone and keep me from tailgating. I have engaged it and taken my vehicle all the way to a stop in traffic. I will admit my foot is a nanometer away from the brake but it worked. It's not perfect, but I like it.

mist68

Distronic plus on our GL550 works extremely well. Aside from getting better fuel mileage, it is interesting to drive the car from White Plains, NY into Manhattan without touching the brakes. Realize that isn't the intention for Distronic, but it brings the future just a little closer.

On my wife's E550, when in Distronic and on a highway with lines, the green steering wheel pops up and the car will steer itself for 10-15 seconds.

JoeMa

I also use Distronic Plus all of the time but I am readily aware of what's happening in front of me and ready to take over if needed. I wouldn't buy another MB without it.


But the above recommendations to carefully read your owner's manual (several times) so you fully understand how the system works is excellent advise.

Dreamszalone

I agree with you on this, but I remember turning that stalk\kn0b use to change the distance to 250-300ft and lower as soon as I turn on the cruise, I used it yesterday too and it was doing its job the only thing is I am not able to set the distance, and it stops the car in the traffic with right distance such as usual traffic with few feet behind, whereas I believe if I set the distance to 100 ft for eg it should stop the car with 100ft gap and not as per the Radar's wish, I will read the manual today in detail and see if I am missing anythig.

43221B

No, it will never stop with a 100 ft gap. You are misinterpreting how the system works. The gap between you and the car in front of you decreases as the car in front of you slows down, just like if you were braking yourself. A thorough read of the manual will clear things up for you.

The system is designed to stop your vehicle when following another vehicle. It is NOT designed to stop for a stopped vehicle you have NOT been following.

Don't confuse Distronic with Pre-Safe Brake. Pre-Safe Brake is part of the Driver Assistance Package that you have to purchase to get Distronic. Pre-Safe Brake detects "an impending collision with a vehicle ahead." It applies 100% braking force but it is not designed to avoid a collision. It is simply designed to reduce the severity of impact.

ttoE550

Part of the problem might be that, I believe, the manual refers to setting the distance and in the US the display indicates feet. But reading the manual you'll find that what it calls varying the distance is actually varying the time between you and the car in front. The online manual says this can be adjusted from 1 to 2 seconds. So the actual distance will vary with speed, as many have already noted. Also, I believe the distance (time) increases on declines and decreases on inclines, as the braking is correspondingly worse/better.

I wish it would allow 3 seconds. I feel like I'm up someone's *ss when we are the only cars when it's set at 2 seconds.

jtse

One of the most important feature of Distronic Plus is that not only does it tries to not hit the car in the front of you, but it also gives the CAR BEHIND YOU AS MUCH ROOM to brake so that you don't get rear ended by not hitting the car in front of you up to the closest the system is programmed to. In theory that works great, but to a driver who is caught up at the moment, all he/she sees is, oh CRAP, I am going to hit the car in front of me, when it could be the car giving the car behind you a chance to brake without using 100% of braking power. You have to trust your benz in order to let that happen.

Given said that, our cars are Radar based, with some cameras doing assistance. I feel that the ABS brake and full braking power is activated almost 100% of time when distronic needs to brake because I FEEL IT. It feels very mechanical and not human like. I was test driving a Subaru with their eyesight system, and the braking on that cannot be distinguished whether a human or computer is braking. So I think MBZ needs to tweak their algorithms to make it less apparent to passengers that the Distronic is braking.

Critter

Personally I use my eyes to control the functions needed to drive, brakes, signals, and be aware of stopped cars in front. Really it works.
Here in Canada a safe travelling distance is quickly filled by three or four cars jumping lanes in front of you. Drive to Arrive!! Alive

43221B

I agree. The max following distance at slower speeds isn't quite far enough for me either. That would be my only complaint. When I'm following someone going 45 and there isn't room to pass I don't like to be riding their bumper. At freeway speeds the range from the closest following distance to furthest is set up well.

The last thing I will say on this post is that if you have Distronic, don't listen to what any of us have to say about the system. As we keep repeating, you have to read your manual to understand how the system operates. If you are interested in purchasing a GL with Distronic, go to the owners section of mbusa.com and pull up an owners manual. I wouldn't trust a salesperson's or tech's information on how Distronic works. It is a relatively complex system and you need to know exactly how it operates.

Germancar1

I'm surprised this happened sooner. People don't read anything about their cars and then blame the car when they think something is not working right. Classic case as to why a lot of MB tech doesn't even come to the U.S. or when it does it is severely limited as to what it can do.

M

ttoE550

I took my car in for service a while back, and the SA had my COMAND Updated per a campaign. I think that maybe the following distances were increased at low speeds. I lost the "up the butt" mode and the max distance seems quite a bit back. It's perfect now, I think.

mist68

We have Distronic + on Gl550 and E550. It works very well but interestingly as compared to your experience, when we are doing 65-75, the shortest distance allows for cars to cut in front-not a big deal, but worrying.

Great feature-0wouldn't be without it-especially on GL where it marginally improves gas mileage

Shellbmb

This is one of my semi-complaints about the system. If you are traveling in the left lane and using distronic, you will have people constantly cutting in front of you due to the gap. And some get pissed since they think you are driving slow in the left lane even if its set at 95. But still a very cool system and I'm enjoying it.