BluetecKING

On my lexus one of the packages was for it to park itself. It was 2k and I have never used it. I was wondering if the driver assistance package was just fancy tech stuff that I will never actually use. So it makes me beg the question is it worth it? On my 2013 Ml the blindspot assist is helpful but im not so sure that the "active" blind spot assist is worth it. I drive on the fdr every day and the collision assist never works. So again is it worth it?

MTrauman

Cannot live without Driver Assistance Package. The distronic plus cruise control feature makes the car driving experience wonderful. My last roundtrip of 2000 miles between Fl and PA was stress free in areas along the way with heavy traffic since for most of the 2000 miles I did not touch the gas pedal or the brake. AWESOME! For me it also works excellent in stop and go traffic on a daily basis. My system works great. I would not own my '14 S550 4matic without the drivers assistance package. Worth every penny!

PaulE550

You kind of answered your own question yourself with your experience with the Lexus self-parking option. Spending $2,000 for something you've used once isn't a value proposition. Unless you're going to be taking long highway trips on a regular basis with your new MB, you're not likely to get much value out of driver assist package. At least not when you look at the cost of the option relative to how often you use it. You're certainly not going to use it much riding around town or on short highway trips. So you have to ask yourself do you plan to do the type of driving, on a regular basis, that makes the option worthwhile.

Streamliner

Absolutely agree 100%! The DA Pkg. Is one of, if not "THE" reason I stay with MB. The Distronic system is magnificent and I use it all the time. Think of it as another set of eyes that are watching the road for you. In stop & go traffic, it can take a huge portion of the stress out of your drive. How much is that worth? I would not even consider a new MB without it. I do agree on the parking assist. I never used it on my LS460L, nor do I use it on my S.

BluetecKING

I only ask because i saw this video https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=10205669679276962
and does distronic work on narrow highways(fdr drive)? (Especially to those that live in the NYC Tri-state)

UrBusted

Without a doubt, even if it cost 150% of what it does now, I will get it. It is just so effective. I was driving on the highway, and wanted to get home to my kids at night. Being tired, I nearly had a collision with another driver which would have totalled my car but the Distronic Plus saved me.

PaulE550

You'll notice in all the MB videos that the car is being driven on a highway with nice orderly flowing traffic. No one is zig-zagging in and out of traffic in front of you. No one is driving erratically around you. Not a lot of stop and go traffic being shown. Does any of that sound like your typical drive on the FDR? It doesn't sound like that to me. The FDR is frequently more of an obstacle course in trying to avoid other drivers, most of whom shouldn't be on the road to begin with, than the leisurely drive presented in the MB demo videos.

I watched the Facebook video and if that guy had been on a more congested roadway, he would have likely been in an accident multiple times in his six and a half minute video. Hopefully, that is not how the system typically works on standard roads with twists and turns. That would be scary.

I too would be curious to hear feedback from people who have the driving assistance package in and around NYC to hear how it performs in typical city driving conditions. NYC driving is a whole lot different than hopping on I-95 and driving south to Florida. Once you get out of this tri-state area, people tend to drive more intelligently.

syswei

I have a car on order with driver assist, but after looking at the video in this very sad post I don't think I'll be able to trust it to work, and so may not use it. The video is here, and shows driver assist repeatedly trying to take the S550 into the wrong lane...e.g., oncoming traffic.

MTrauman

My car does not work like the video. I know how my car works and I trust it. But remember, these are not complete autonomous driving cars. We must still be in control since we are the drivers--the car is not the driver. That video does not fairly represent the system (IMHO). The DA is not perfect but sometimes I think people expect too much out of technology--like they think it should to be autonomous when it is not. This is exactly why MB and other manufacturers are concerned about autonomous driving since some people blindly trust an "automated" system.


A healthy realistic expectation of the DA is required. If one has a realistic expectation, the drivers assistance package is worth the money (IMHO).

LovinMercedes

Mine does work like the video. I don't know if the system can be trusted to keep the car in the lane for extended periods of time. I am not passing judgement as to whether this works as expected or not, because I am not sure how it is supposed to work. It is called "Steering Assist" so I can't imagine it was intended to work all the time. I am only saying, mine performs like the video.

That being said, I would never buy this car without the DA package. Everything else works just fine. I am only talking about the Steering Assist.

BKWard

Question, why do you want to drive the car without your hands on the wheels? Once again, its Distronic Plus, with steering assist. Been pointed out by me and others the key word is Assist. If you want a car that drives itself I suggest respectfully, that you go buy one. Oh wait.....there is no car on the market that drives itself. Please tell us exactly what your expectation was with regards to the Distronic Plus, what did you expect it to do? Drive you 30 miles home while you read the paper? Worked on your email, wrote the next great American novel.

It works exactly as I expected it would. On an interstate with moderate traffic I can follow another vehicle for no more than three minutes before I have to touch the wheel again. The car forces you to touch the wheel again. It's is not designed to drive with your hands off the wheel for no more than a short period, then it cuts off and has you put your hands on the wheel.

The NTHSB says a level 4 vehicle can drive itself without any input from the driver except the address destination.....no level 4 systems exist for sale...Google may have gotten further than others, but it's not approved for sale yet.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j...87611401,d.cWc

I'd call a S550 a "Level 2" vehicle in that, to quote the NTHSB report "Level 2 - Combined Function Automation: This level involves automation of at least two primary control functions designed to work in unison to relieve the driver of control of those functions. Vehicles at this level of automation can utilize shared authority when the driver cedes active primary control in certain limited driving situations. The driver is still responsible for monitoring the roadway and safe operation and is expected to be available for control at all times and on short notice. The system can relinquish control with no advance warning and the driver must be ready to control the vehicle safely. An example of combined functions enabling a Level 2 system is adaptive cruise control in combination with lane centering. The major distinction between level 1 and level 2 is that, at level 2 in the specific operating conditions for which the system is designed, an automated operating mode is enabled such that the driver is disengaged from physically operating the vehicle by having his or her hands off the steering wheel AND foot off pedal at the same time."

The NHTSB says a level 2 car "The system can relinquish control with no advance warning and the driver must be ready to control the vehicle safely. An example of combined functions enabling a Level 2 system is adaptive cruise control in combination with lane centering. The major distinction between level 1 and level 2 is that, at level 2 in the specific operating conditions for which the system is designed, an automated operating mode is enabled such that the driver is disengaged from physically operating the vehicle by having his or her hands off the steering wheel AND foot off pedal at the same time." But, the system can give up control with no advance warning. This is new technology.....why not just buy something else and then in a few years come back or buy another car. I suspect this is going to improve by leaps and bounds quickly.

Read the whole NHTSB report.....this technology has a way to go. For me.....I'm happy with my Distronic Plus with Steering Assist. It's pretty much what I expected.

Now, everytime I get around another s550 I wonder if this is the guy with his hands off the wheel, am I going to have to give all s550's a wide berth because people think they bought a self driving car...which is not available for sale in this country or any other.

LovinMercedes

Mine does work as described in Level 2, but not for 3 minutes.

AppleFan1

I am intrigued by this paragraph of yours. You can follow another vehicle on the interstate for 3 minutes without your hand on the steering wheel? Really? Are you sure about that? The distronic plus allows the car to drive itself for only about 12-14 seconds without touching the steering wheel. So, I'm very curious where you come up with 3 minutes.

By the way, I love the driver assistance package/distronic plus on my 2014 S550. I use it all the time and it is a tremendous aid in driving.

LovinMercedes

I can not drive my car on the interstate for 3 minutes. I am closer to your 12-14 seconds, except maybe on a straight and flat road.

clkcadet

I drive to and from NYC every day. The DA package is an excellent package, and IMHO a bargain. Forget the automatic parking, I never use that either but I use the other items daily!

Distronic plus is easily worth its weight in gold!

LovinMercedes

That was my attitude about the automatic parking. I was never going to use it. Then I started using it, first a little, but now, all the time. It works flawlessly.

Give it a chance, it makes parking very easy.

BKWard

I'm busted......Guilty as charged.. Three minutes is a gross exaggeration.

AppleFan1

I definitely need to try the automatic parking. I've been very reluctant to try it since I'm not sure how to go about it. From all accounts, it is very easy to use. I just need to try this when there is not much traffic behind me and I won't be nervous.

PeterUbers

Pure idiocy to let the distronic do 100% of the driving and thinking for you ... Get your hands back on the wheel and drive your car lol

As many mentioned it's an "assist"

Most don't seem to understand this. I found it to be a safety hazard and caused me to have an inappropriate sense of trust in a technology that is only an assist yet I was tempted to let it do more. Wrong answer... Deleted this option from my next Benz order and couldn't be happier 100% in control 100% of the time

islandbeef

Gimmicks, man.

Learn to drive and keep your eyes on the road, not on your phone.

hyperion667

hear hear!!!!!!!!!

Streamliner

OK, I'm going to try it.
I guess one of the main reasons I haven't used it, is because I am so paranoid about parking much of anywhere where someone can park in front of me. There are so many crazies driving around in lifted pick-ups and SUV's, that I worry that one of them is going to back into my car. I'll many times park blocks away from my destination to find an end spot, where there is a drive way or other "no parking" area in front of me. And, don't we all just LOVE those characters with their extended trailer hitches sticking out two feet behind their vehicles at about the height of our grill?

Streamliner

I believe that Distronic and other devices found in the Driver's Assistance Pkg. have come a long way from being "gimmicks." I don't think that anyone who is a decent driver will ever allow themselves to rely 100% on these ASSISTANCE devices, but when used with caution and oversight, they are simply amazing. It is certainly possible for even the very best drivers to get momentarily distracted through no fault of their own. In such an instance, one of these "gimmicks" just might help to avoid an accident. Frankly, in these days when so many drive like idiots, I'll take all the help I can get.

If George's car had Collision Avoidance when Kramer was driving it, when he was dumbstruck by the sight of Sue Ellen Mishkey walking down the street in only her bra, he would not have crashed.

drsaab

They Hyundai genesis is supposed to have a very good system but in this video it also fails like the S class



Which is not what the Official Hyundai commercial demonstrated here.



So I am not sure what level the S550 can steer on its own. Per advertising I would think it should make those curves and follow the road which is well marked.

The Tesla Autopilot system should be able to do these curved moves... It looks like 1-2 mos for this feature to be sent to the cars in software 6.2 or 6.3 so I can report back then since I have one.

"With Autopilot activated, Model S automatically follows the road, steering around curves and varying its speed to match the flow of traffic."

The other car that should have more Autonomous features is the 2017 Audi A8 as posted here.

"Was set for a late 2016 reveal

British media is reporting Audi has decided to postpone the launch of its next-gen A8 flagship model because they want to work more on the autonomous driving technology.
Ingolstadt's range-topping model was supposed to come out towards the end of 2016 but apparently it has been postponed by approximately 12 months as Audi is perfecting the electronic architecture for supporting the semi-autonomous driving technology which has already been confirmed. Autocar says this is only one of the reasons which caused the delay, but more details are not available at this point"

Rocketman

The MB system is designed to follow a vehicle in front of it not the road! i think the Genesis system is designed the same way. That's why it works in their commercial but not when on an open road with no vehicle in front. So really you have to have faith in the vehicle ahead to stay on the road. I still am very impressed with the MB system and use it when it is appropriate.