On or Off: Blind Spot Warning - Collision Warning

Qsilver7 · 10-23-2018, 09:07 AM

For those that have the Active Blind Spot, Collision Warning, and/or Lane Departure Warning...do you leave them on (active) all the time or do have any of them turned off?

During the 1st few weeks of ownership...I had all three on...but found the Lane Departure Warning annoying and not really useful for the mostly urban/city driving I'm in...it was the 1st to be turned off. Perhaps if I was on the interstate on a long trip with night driving...I'd probalby be inclined to activate this feature. :dunno:

I was about to turn off the Collision Warning because up until the 3rd week of ownership...it never came on. In fact, I thought it may not even work because in certain scenarios of trying to see if it worked...it never activated. But then one night on a two-lane dark winding road...there was a car in the on-coming lane that appeared from a distance to be pulled over on the side of the road. As I neared the car (traveling around 45 MPH), another car in the same lane as the car that was pulled over crossed over into my lane to go around it. That's when the audible fastly repeated "beep-beep-beep-beep" went off...I braked as the oncoming car quickly swerved around the car on the side of the road back into their lane.

Then the next day after the event above...I was following a car that abruptly braked to make a right turn without signalling...and sure enough...this time I got the audible alert along with the visual red warning on the instrument cluster. And since that time, another event that was similar with a car in front of me making an abrupt move caused the audible & visual alert. So, just when I thought I might be deactivating the Collision Warning...these events led me to leave it on.

In regards to the Active Blind Spot warning...that's a definite "keep activated" at all times for me.

What say the forum? Do you keep them all activated (along with the night vision if so optioned) or have you determined that some of these features can be deactivated most of the time?

{FYI: for those that didn't know, the Collision Warning icon is different from around 2014-up}

FBMWWINS · 10-23-2018, 09:40 AM

Personally the only one I turn off permanently is the LANE DEP warning. All others are permanently on in my case. I set the collision warning on medium level on both cars. On the F32 it occasionally threw a "false warning" beeping like hell but was actually not even close to an obstacle or object. I flashed whole car (all ECUs) a few weeks ago and has not happened ever since. Will keep monitoring it.

I find active blind spot very useful in heavy morning traffic on highways. For those who have it - does it also light up right mirror when overtaking and before moving back on right lane? Mine doesn't - my local BMW dealer said that is intended behavior but I'm not so sure. When I see other car makers I also see their right mirror lighting up before they go back onto the right lane and a car is in their "way".

Qsilver7 · 10-23-2018, 11:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by F06WINS

....I find active blind spot very useful in heavy morning traffic on highways. For those who have it - does it also light up right mirror when overtaking and before moving back on right lane? Mine doesn't - my local BMW dealer said that is intended behavior but I'm not so sure. When I see other car makers I also see their right mirror lighting up before they go back onto the right lane and a car is in their "way".

I'll try to pay attention next time I'm in that situation...but for now I can't remember if it does or not.

thedza · 10-23-2018, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

I'll try to pay attention next time I'm in that situation...but for now I can't remember if it does or not.

it doesn't light up when overtaking. I think the system is programmed to sense when people are approaching from behind and sneaking into your blind spot and only then triggers the warning. I have seen it light up on on other makes but not on bmw

ezmaass · 10-23-2018, 08:09 PM

I have the active safety features plus the night vision option. I keep all of them activated except the lane departure warning.

Collision Warning - I believe, even if you turn it off, it'll come back on again when the car is started. Truthfully, you should never turn this off. It'll not only warn you if there's a car you're approaching too quickly, but it'll prime the brakes to give you full force with minimal pressure. If you fail to brake, and the car is under a certain speed (somewhere around 30mph, I believe), it'll brake for you. It's useful.

Blind Spot Detection - as mentioned above, it's smarter than simply looking for a car in your blind spot. It knows if you're accelerating (over-taking) or if there's a car lingering in your blind spot or approaching it. You'll get a nice steering wheel vibration if you go to signal a lane change. Works perfectly.

Lane Departure - this one I've found less useful. It tends to have a lot of false positives... maybe just the way I drive. So I leave it disabled.

Heads Up Display - remains on. Clearly not an active safety system but ensures eyes remain on the road.

Night Vision - remains on... in fact, I don't believe it can be turned off. Pressing the button will bring up the night vision camera display on the infotainment, but even when the display isn't showing, the system is still active. This adds person AND animal detection, and it works like a charm. I've had it activate a few times. Once for a deer, and a few other times for people wandering near / into the road at night. Just like collision warning, it'll beep, prime the brakes, and brake if you don't. It's a real peace of mind feature to be honest. The system can see what you might not. Great use of a few thousand bucks.

All in all, I really like BMW's active safety features. I'm a pretty safe driver (I like to think), but the few times these things actually intervene you realize just how valuable they are to you!

Qsilver7 · 10-23-2018, 08:31 PM

Thanks for the feedback and comments above.

Is there anyone out there reading this that has the Lane Departure option and love it/like it and wouldn't drive without it on? If so...chime in and give a comment or two on why you like it and how it is beneficial to you.

So far...it appears to be on the list of..."meh...it-ain't-all-that".

board57796 · 10-23-2018, 09:06 PM

Regarding the blind spot monitor logic in this car, sounds like I’m in the minority but I HATE it. Probably my least favorite thing on the car, honestly. I’m so used to every other car I’ve driven showing a light as I overtake a vehicle, even briefly. I just thought the system on this car was broken. I definitely miss the “comfort” of seeing the light come on as I overtook then turn off as I made it safely past, as if to say “ok, you’re good now!” The fact that it “knows” I’m overtaking and doesn’t light up as I overtake drives me crazy, and I might as well turn the system off because of it.

ezmaass · 10-23-2018, 10:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by board57796

Regarding the blind spot monitor logic in this car, sounds like I’m in the minority but I HATE it. Probably my least favorite thing on the car, honestly. I’m so used to every other car I’ve driven showing a light as I overtake a vehicle, even briefly. I just thought the system on this car was broken. I definitely miss the “comfort” of seeing the light come on as I overtook then turn off as I made it safely past, as if to say “ok, you’re good now!” The fact that it “knows” I’m overtaking and doesn’t light up as I overtake drives me crazy, and I might as well turn the system off because of it.

I get what you're saying, but to be fair, I also think BMW's logic is sound. If you're over-taking a car, you know it's there. The car is appearing in the rear quarter from the front, not the back... so logically you'll have seen it. Now, if you fail to over-take it, and you slow down, allowing the car to linger in your blind spot, the light will come on. Likewise, if a car approaches you from the rear and enters your blind spot, the light will come on.

It's a logical way to think about your blind spot, and BMW being very German, likes logic.

They could have gone for a very "simple" approach - just so long as something is in the rear quarter, light it up. But, I believe the more sophisticated approach they're taking is to reduce the annoyance and interference of the system. I haven't tried it, but I'm pretty certain that if you were overtaking a car (light not on, but car was now in your rear quarter), and you put your blinker on, it would still warn you at that point.

It may help you to think about the light in the mirror as just an early warning system, but the REAL warning comes at the point where you show intent to change lanes by flipping on your blinker. And there, at the end of the day, the important thing is - the car will always warn you if there's someone in your blind spot IF you're putting on your blinker and aren't traveling at a speed to clear the object. And for that reason, I'd keep the system turned on.

JamieTailor · 10-23-2018, 10:29 PM

I keep them all on personally.

I do a lot of motorway driving and they have all seemed quite useful

Blindspot - i find myself using this a lot. I would check the mirror to see if it's clear then check the triangle light for reassurance when merging/overtaking.

Collision warning - this actually saved me behind once whilst driving a couple times in slower moving motorway traffic. I was once driving around 20mph the car Infront braked sharp the red warning light came up and beeped and before I could get my foot into the break pedal the car was already coming to a stop. It was a bit exaggerated in terms of it didn't need to break as hard as it did but either way im glad it stopped.

Lane departure - I do actually like to leave this on when in traveling back at night on the non light part of the motorway it gives a subtle reminder/vibration when nearing the lanes.

All in all combined with the HUD it think it's worth leaving them all on.

It's what we pay extra for at the end of the day

board57796 · 10-23-2018, 10:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ezmaass

I get what you're saying, but to be fair, I also think BMW's logic is sound. If you're over-taking a car, you know it's there. The car is appearing in the rear quarter from the front, not the back... so logically you'll have seen it. Now, if you fail to over-take it, and you slow down, allowing the car to linger in your blind spot, the light will come on. Likewise, if a car approaches you from the rear and enters your blind spot, the light will come on.

It's a logical way to think about your blind spot, and BMW being very German, likes logic.

They could have gone for a very "simple" approach - just so long as something is in the rear quarter, light it up. But, I believe the more sophisticated approach they're taking is to reduce the annoyance and interference of the system. I haven't tried it, but I'm pretty certain that if you were overtaking a car (light not on, but car was now in your rear quarter), and you put your blinker on, it would still warn you at that point.

It may help you to think about the light in the mirror as just an early warning system, but the REAL warning comes at the point where you show intent to change lanes by flipping on your blinker. And there, at the end of the day, the important thing is - the car will always warn you if there's someone in your blind spot IF you're putting on your blinker and aren't traveling at a speed to clear the object. And for that reason, I'd keep the system turned on.

I’m sure you’re right on all your valid points, but I just can’t get used to it and it drives me crazy haha.

Also BMW must have forgotten to take their logic pills when they designed the water pump on my E38 750iL to have just one of its six bolts BARELY hidden behind the main pully, therefore requiring removal of a 350lb/ft torqued bolt LOL.

FBMWWINS · 10-24-2018, 01:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thedza

it doesn't light up when overtaking. I think the system is programmed to sense when people are approaching from behind and sneaking into your blind spot and only then triggers the warning. I have seen it light up on on other makes but not on bmw

This confirms what I also observed. If you are driving parallel to another vehicle say in a traffic situation and the other vehicle (positioned on right lane) slowly approaches you for overtaking then it will light up also the passenger side mirror.
Whereas with other cars right after overtaking and BEFORE moving back in onto right lane mirror will also warn which in my opinion makes absolute sense!

FBMWWINS · 10-24-2018, 01:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by board57796

Regarding the blind spot monitor logic in this car, sounds like I’m in the minority but I HATE it. Probably my least favorite thing on the car, honestly. I’m so used to every other car I’ve driven showing a light as I overtake a vehicle, even briefly. I just thought the system on this car was broken. I definitely miss the “comfort” of seeing the light come on as I overtook then turn off as I made it safely past, as if to say “ok, you’re good now!” The fact that it “knows” I’m overtaking and doesn’t light up as I overtake drives me crazy, and I might as well turn the system off because of it.

Absolutely agree and that is what I have been stating in my comments too. It would have made perfect sense if BMW was aligned to the other car makers. I work in software and to me it feels like part of functionality of the program was left out.......

Qsilver7 · 10-24-2018, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamieTailor

Lane departure - I do actually like to leave this on when in traveling back at night on the non light part of the motorway it gives a subtle reminder/vibration when nearing the lanes.

...this is a scenario I could see (me) actually using this feature...especially if slightly tired and pushing thru to get home.

ezmaass · 10-24-2018, 07:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qsilver7

...this is a scenario I could see (me) actually using this feature...especially if slightly tired and pushing thru to get home.

Yes, I find that all of these features seem to become much more valuable at night. If it's raining at night and everything is much harder to see, and I happen to be less than alert/tired, I also like turning on the auto cruise control (assuming it's appropriate traffic). Knowing that the car is keeping a safe distance from vehicles in front using both camera and radar is comforting - it sees that driver who didn't turn his lights on ahead of you! I suppose the lane departure warning might also be useful in this situation, too.

I have noticed, however, that if it rains TOO hard, the ACC will deactivate. I'm not sure about lane departure (as I keep it disabled). But anything camera-based seems to cut-out with a certain level of precipitation.

mberbic · 10-24-2018, 07:20 PM

I have the features on both my wife's car as well as my daily and deactivate the Lane Departure warning on both. As far as the forward collision, I've only had it come on when driving aggressively and shooting for closing gaps. Because of this, when I bought my M6 I decided to get one without these features as it saved me some money and I figured it was less electronics to go wrong.

10-23-2018, 09:07 AM	#1
Qsilver7 Major General 4533 Rep 7,584 Posts Drives: F06 650ix GC / F15 X5 50i Join Date: Oct 2016 Location: Indiana, USA iTrader: (0)	On or Off: Blind Spot Warning - Collision Warning - Lane Departure Warning For those that have the Active Blind Spot, Collision Warning, and/or Lane Departure Warning...do you leave them on (active) all the time or do have any of them turned off? During the 1st few weeks of ownership...I had all three on...but found the Lane Departure Warning annoying and not really useful for the mostly urban/city driving I'm in...it was the 1st to be turned off. Perhaps if I was on the interstate on a long trip with night driving...I'd probalby be inclined to activate this feature. :dunno: I was about to turn off the Collision Warning because up until the 3rd week of ownership...it never came on. In fact, I thought it may not even work because in certain scenarios of trying to see if it worked...it never activated. But then one night on a two-lane dark winding road...there was a car in the on-coming lane that appeared from a distance to be pulled over on the side of the road. As I neared the car (traveling around 45 MPH), another car in the same lane as the car that was pulled over crossed over into my lane to go around it. That's when the audible fastly repeated "beep-beep-beep-beep" went off...I braked as the oncoming car quickly swerved around the car on the side of the road back into their lane. Then the next day after the event above...I was following a car that abruptly braked to make a right turn without signalling...and sure enough...this time I got the audible alert along with the visual red warning on the instrument cluster. And since that time, another event that was similar with a car in front of me making an abrupt move caused the audible & visual alert. So, just when I thought I might be deactivating the Collision Warning...these events led me to leave it on. In regards to the Active Blind Spot warning...that's a definite "keep activated" at all times for me. What say the forum? Do you keep them all activated (along with the night vision if so optioned) or have you determined that some of these features can be deactivated most of the time? {FYI: for those that didn't know, the Collision Warning icon is different from around 2014-up} __________________ 2015 F06 650ix Gran Coupe`(Moonstone/Cohiba Brown)\| 2014 F15 X5 50i MSport (Space Gray/Mocha) Become a BMW CCA member! Click HERE to join and feel free to use my BMW CCA member #191509 as a referral.
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10-23-2018, 09:40 AM	#2
FBMWWINS Captain 606 Rep 909 Posts Drives: M8C Coupé & M240i Coupé Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Europe iTrader: (0)	Personally the only one I turn off permanently is the LANE DEP warning. All others are permanently on in my case. I set the collision warning on medium level on both cars. On the F32 it occasionally threw a "false warning" beeping like hell but was actually not even close to an obstacle or object. I flashed whole car (all ECUs) a few weeks ago and has not happened ever since. Will keep monitoring it. I find active blind spot very useful in heavy morning traffic on highways. For those who have it - does it also light up right mirror when overtaking and before moving back on right lane? Mine doesn't - my local BMW dealer said that is intended behavior but I'm not so sure. When I see other car makers I also see their right mirror lighting up before they go back onto the right lane and a car is in their "way".
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10-23-2018, 08:09 PM	#5
ezmaass Lieutenant Colonel 373 Rep 1,698 Posts Drives: '17 650xi GC / '15 Audi R8 V10 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: CT iTrader: (0)	I have the active safety features plus the night vision option. I keep all of them activated except the lane departure warning. Collision Warning - I believe, even if you turn it off, it'll come back on again when the car is started. Truthfully, you should never turn this off. It'll not only warn you if there's a car you're approaching too quickly, but it'll prime the brakes to give you full force with minimal pressure. If you fail to brake, and the car is under a certain speed (somewhere around 30mph, I believe), it'll brake for you. It's useful. Blind Spot Detection - as mentioned above, it's smarter than simply looking for a car in your blind spot. It knows if you're accelerating (over-taking) or if there's a car lingering in your blind spot or approaching it. You'll get a nice steering wheel vibration if you go to signal a lane change. Works perfectly. Lane Departure - this one I've found less useful. It tends to have a lot of false positives... maybe just the way I drive. So I leave it disabled. Heads Up Display - remains on. Clearly not an active safety system but ensures eyes remain on the road. Night Vision - remains on... in fact, I don't believe it can be turned off. Pressing the button will bring up the night vision camera display on the infotainment, but even when the display isn't showing, the system is still active. This adds person AND animal detection, and it works like a charm. I've had it activate a few times. Once for a deer, and a few other times for people wandering near / into the road at night. Just like collision warning, it'll beep, prime the brakes, and brake if you don't. It's a real peace of mind feature to be honest. The system can see what you might not. Great use of a few thousand bucks. All in all, I really like BMW's active safety features. I'm a pretty safe driver (I like to think), but the few times these things actually intervene you realize just how valuable they are to you! __________________ 2017 BMW 650xi Gran Coupe \| MSport \| Exec Package \| Driver Assist Plus \| ACC Stop & Go \| Adaptive Drive \| B&O \| Night Vision \| Cold Weather \| Active Seats 2015 Audi R8 V10 \| Brilliant Red on Black \| S-Tronic \| Carbon Sideblades \| Carbon Trim \| Full Leather \| Sport Exhaust \| Illuminated Doorsills \| I-Pod \| Contrast Stitching Previous: '14 550xi, '07 335i, '01 325i
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10-23-2018, 08:31 PM	#6
Qsilver7 Major General 4533 Rep 7,584 Posts Drives: F06 650ix GC / F15 X5 50i Join Date: Oct 2016 Location: Indiana, USA iTrader: (0)	Thanks for the feedback and comments above. Is there anyone out there reading this that has the Lane Departure option and love it/like it and wouldn't drive without it on? If so...chime in and give a comment or two on why you like it and how it is beneficial to you. So far...it appears to be on the list of..."meh...it-ain't-all-that". __________________ 2015 F06 650ix Gran Coupe`(Moonstone/Cohiba Brown)\| 2014 F15 X5 50i MSport (Space Gray/Mocha) Become a BMW CCA member! Click HERE to join and feel free to use my BMW CCA member #191509 as a referral.
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10-23-2018, 09:06 PM	#7
board57796 Second Lieutenant 176 Rep 226 Posts Drives: 2015 650i Gran Coupe Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Denver iTrader: (0)	Regarding the blind spot monitor logic in this car, sounds like I’m in the minority but I HATE it. Probably my least favorite thing on the car, honestly. I’m so used to every other car I’ve driven showing a light as I overtake a vehicle, even briefly. I just thought the system on this car was broken. I definitely miss the “comfort” of seeing the light come on as I overtook then turn off as I made it safely past, as if to say “ok, you’re good now!” The fact that it “knows” I’m overtaking and doesn’t light up as I overtake drives me crazy, and I might as well turn the system off because of it.
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10-23-2018, 10:29 PM	#9
JamieTailor Enlisted Member 16 Rep 48 Posts Drives: BMW 640D GC Join Date: Aug 2018 Location: Wokingham iTrader: (0)	I keep them all on personally. I do a lot of motorway driving and they have all seemed quite useful Blindspot - i find myself using this a lot. I would check the mirror to see if it's clear then check the triangle light for reassurance when merging/overtaking. Collision warning - this actually saved me behind once whilst driving a couple times in slower moving motorway traffic. I was once driving around 20mph the car Infront braked sharp the red warning light came up and beeped and before I could get my foot into the break pedal the car was already coming to a stop. It was a bit exaggerated in terms of it didn't need to break as hard as it did but either way im glad it stopped. Lane departure - I do actually like to leave this on when in traveling back at night on the non light part of the motorway it gives a subtle reminder/vibration when nearing the lanes. All in all combined with the HUD it think it's worth leaving them all on. It's what we pay extra for at the end of the day
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10-24-2018, 07:20 PM	#15
mberbic IG: @M6erbic 36 Rep 140 Posts Drives: F12 M6 Join Date: May 2018 Location: Houston, Tx iTrader: (0)	I have the features on both my wife's car as well as my daily and deactivate the Lane Departure warning on both. As far as the forward collision, I've only had it come on when driving aggressively and shooting for closing gaps. Because of this, when I bought my M6 I decided to get one without these features as it saved me some money and I figured it was less electronics to go wrong.
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