BlueCruise is going to hurt someone

[neririn]

With OTA updates reverting settings autonomously, see my previous rant, blue cruise/Cruise control is going to really hurt someone soon.

Case in point, I have speed sign recognition off. For those who aren't familiar, this is a feature that will watch for speed signs and automatically adjust cruise control accordingly. I've long since turned it OFF.

However a recent OTA update turned it on for me again. How very considerate.

Anyway, I was happily driving down 1-15 in southern Utah last night with Blue Cruise/Cruise control enabled, and speed set at 80MPH. (the posted speed limit for that particular stretch of I-15). As I was moving along at 80, BlueCruise/Skynet saw a speed sign for the frontage road next to the freeway. This particular frontage road is close to a residential area and therefore the speed limit is 25MPH. So what did my rolling coffin do? You guessed it. It slammed on the breaks in the middle of an interstate to adhere to the 'posted speed'.

Despite nearly soiling myself, I survived the incident because luckily for me, the semi truck behind me was able to swerve into the left lane and luckily for him, it was empty.

I immediately called my wife who was driving her Mach-E about 2 miles behind me also heading home to warn her that Ford was trying to kill us. The call was answered just in time to hear my wife and kids scream as her Mach-E did the exact same thing at the exact same place.

So @Ford Motor Company how do I report this seriously dangerous situation before someone dies?

This is completely irresponsible.

First you should NOT turn optional <explitive> settings back on once manually turned off. EVER.

Second, a vehicle should NEVER autonomously and that aggressively decrease speed for anything, let alone a speed limit sign.

If I am exceeding the posted limit, I get a speeding ticket. Yet if I slam on the brakes in the middle of a freeway and subsequently cause an accident that tragically kills someone, I am tried for involuntary manslaughter.

This of course is the case unless you guys log your coding mistakes as well as you write them. Either way, someone is likely going to jail.

UGH. You're killing me Ford. I love my Lightning, but you guys sure are doing your best to make me hate it.

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[Labs4Lightning]

With OTA updates reverting settings autonomously, see my previous rant, blue cruise/Cruise control is going to really hurt someone soon.

Case in point, I have speed sign recognition off. For those who aren't familiar, this is a feature that will watch for speed signs and automatically adjust cruise control accordingly. I've long since turned it OFF.

However a recent OTA update turned it on for me again. How very considerate.

Anyway, I was happily driving down 1-15 in southern Utah last night with Blue Cruise/Cruise control enabled, and speed set at 80MPH. (the posted speed limit for that particular stretch of I-15). As I was moving along at 80, BlueCruise/Skynet saw a speed sign for the frontage road next to the freeway. This particular frontage road is close to a residential area and therefore the speed limit is 25MPH. So what did my rolling coffin do? You guessed it. It slammed on the breaks in the middle of an interstate to adhere to the 'posted speed'.

Despite nearly soiling myself, I survived the incident because luckily for me, the semi truck behind me was able to swerve into the left lane and luckily for him, it was empty.

I immediately called my wife who was driving her Mach-E about 2 miles behind me also heading home to warn her that Ford was trying to kill us. The call was answered just in time to hear my wife and kids scream as her Mach-E did the exact same thing at the exact same place.

So @Ford Motor Company how do I report this seriously dangerous situation before someone dies?

This is completely irresponsible.

First you should NOT turn optional <explitive> settings back on once manually turned off. EVER.

Second, a vehicle should NEVER autonomously and that aggressively decrease speed for anything, let alone a speed limit sign.

If I am exceeding the posted limit, I get a speeding ticket. Yet if I slam on the brakes in the middle of a freeway and subsequently cause an accident that tragically kills someone, I am tried for involuntary manslaughter.

This of course is the case unless you guys log your coding mistakes as well as you write them. Either way, someone is likely going to jail.

UGH. You're killing me Ford. I love my Lightning, but you guys sure are doing your best to make me hate it.

@neririn

i’m gonna think out loud here .
Gimme a minute

rather than post your rant here.
how about writing a detailed latter to NHTSA & Ford corparate?

seems that might be more helpful.

example Tesla being investigated after 12 reports for steering problem.

gotta start somewhere, let it be you. Maybe you’ll stop some future accidents.

 

[Heliian]

Holy drama.

Just check your settings after an update. Simple.

 

[sotek2345]

I have never had Bluecruise slam on my breaks for a speed limit change. Putting on some relatively gentle regen to slow me down, sure, but nothing abrupt.

 

[hturnerfamily]

I feel your pain - last year, in May, when I drove a Tesla Model 3 cross country from Georgia to the LIGHTNING 'test drive' event in San Antonio, I had the cruise control set. The car, for the most part, does wonderfully, as you would EXPECT, with 'hands free' driving.... BUT.....

it also tried to automatically and SUDDENLY take me off interstate exits at 70+ miles per hour, jerking the car violently to the right, rather than staying in the right lane where I was happily cruising along to my destination... the system was 'not seeing' a missing right stripe, at the entrance to the interstate exit, so therefore it 'assumed' that it must follow the 'exit' versus continuing 'straight', as the LEFT stripe told it to.

'Hands Free', 'Adaptive Cruise', 'Blue Cruise' and others are not perfect.

 

[Toby57]

Holy drama.

Just check your settings after an update. Simple.

My a$$. If ford can change ANY settings on my truck, they can immediately notify me of all changes made when I try to start that truck. If not, don't mess with it.
Having the truck see and respond to speed limit signs is not needed, was never needed, and is just another sales trinket so ev drivers can say "ain't that neat".
Enjoy it while you have it kids. This is something that can and probably will cause deaths and ford may be forced to take it away from you!.

 

[mr.Magoo]

I have never had Bluecruise slam on my breaks for a speed limit change. Putting on some relatively gentle regen to slow me down, sure, but nothing abrupt.

If mine would apply "relatively gentle regen to slow me down" I would definitely leave that feature enabled - but I didn't.

I don't know about slamming on the brakes, that would seem highly suspect as the truck is not aware of the road conditions and it could cause it to spin out - but - it's definitely more abrupt when you get these false positives. Going from 70 to 50 is generally not an issue, it's when the truck tells itself that it goes from 70+ to 25/35. I have a stretch where it happens almost every time to the point where I turned it off as it is/was unsafe, but now I'm thinking I'll do some testing / logging for the hell of it.

I think Ford could have done a better implementation, if you're going 70-80mph what are the odds that it just switched to 25-35mph. Have anyone ever encountered such a situation in real life ?
Around here there's at least one intermediate step, exception might be offramps, but even then the change doesn't occur until you're off, the offramp.

 

[Maquis]

Speed sign recognition / settings being changed by OTAs, do not make this a BlueCruise problem.

 

[Peddyr]

'Hands Free', 'Adaptive Cruise', 'Blue Cruise' and others are not perfect.

^^^ This should be everyone's mindset when using Blue Cruise. I use it, but I don't trust it enough to put my life in it's hands. Every time I receive an OTA update, I always check my settings. We shouldn't have to, but its become a habit now.

 

[sotek2345]

If mine would apply "relatively gentle regen to slow me down" I would definitely leave that feature enabled - but I didn't.

I don't know about slamming on the brakes, that would seem highly suspect as the truck is not aware of the road conditions and it could cause it to spin out - but - it's definitely more abrupt when you get these false positives. Going from 70 to 50 is generally not an issue, it's when the truck tells itself that it goes from 70+ to 25/35. I have a stretch where it happens almost every time to the point where I turned it off as it is/was unsafe, but now I'm thinking I'll do some testing / logging for the hell of it.

I think Ford could have done a better implementation, if you're going 70-80mph what are the odds that it just switched to 25-35mph. Have anyone ever encountered such a situation in real life ?
Around here there's at least one intermediate step, exception might be offramps, but even then the change doesn't occur until you're off, the offramp.

Not quite as extreme, but I have seen local towns go from 55 to 25 for no reason except a speed trap.

 

[TheBigBezo]

I've had this happen to me plenty of times. It's a shortcoming, but please, and this goes to everyone, always always be prepared to assume control of your vehicle. The moment I feel it regening after it falsely sees a 45 I hit the gas and reset the speed, typically within 3mph. You should never be in a position where the truck slows you down enough that folks behind you have to swerve (that means they were too close). Always be aware of the automation status of the car and when it stops working for you disconnect it and drive manually.

I love blue cruise but I always have my foot near the gas and hand near the wheel.

 

[MRButtler]

https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/e5164c3d-e85a-4394-ba99-41a08d96c668

 

[Heliian]

so ev drivers can say "ain't that neat".

What about the ice variants with bluecruise? Ain't that neat!

Bluecruise works great for me, the reduction in workload helps reduce fatigue which far outweighs your concern about "sudden" braking as it's not really a problem for the over 75000 other people that use it.

 

[Tundra]

New technology can be hit or miss, until perfected.

I had a family member get an early Tesla Model S. They loved using the "self driving feature," it scared the crap out of me. Whenever there was an interstate exit, and you were driving in the right lane it would have no idea what to do, and it would swerve (not fun at 70 miles an hour!). It also did not know what to do with construction zones, or messy highways where the lanes are messed up (the manual warned not to use it in these areas, my family member did anyways). I found it easier not to use it as I if I am on a 1 hour drive, it would glitch 2-4 times in that hour, so I would have to be consistently vigilant, vs just being able to drive. I have never been in an accident, so me driving felt less risky. Years later this works better, but early on it was sketchy and dangerous.

Around 2007 or so Toyota put some version of radar cruise control on some of their nicer vehicles. It worked, most of the time, however if the vehicle in front of you was a semi or a larger truck, it would miss it; until you got fairly close, then it would slam on the brakes (good luck to whoever was following behind you!). I took a recent model Rav4 on a road trip, and the radar stuff was great and useful, no weird braking. The technology has come a long way.

Give it time.

Personally, I am not super interested in these extra options, unless they truly work well, if they pose a safety concern, or if it is unpredictable, hard pass. Not worth the money or concern.

Driving is about being able to successfully predict what other drivers are going to do. Most accidents can be avoided by being vigilant, and I am leery of anything that makes my own vehicle unpredictable, as the driver if I do not know what it is going to do how will the drivers around me?

 

[neririn]

What about the ice variants with bluecruise? Ain't that neat!

Bluecruise works great for me, the reduction in workload helps reduce fatigue which far outweighs your concern about "sudden" braking as it's not really a problem for the over 75000 other people that use it.

Until it is...

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