Speed range of the dynamic radar cruise control?

It only works above 25 MPH. It will hit the brakes as hard as it can, until the speed drops to 25MPH, then the DRCC cancels, the car basically wheels on with no go pedal or brake pedal (assuming your feet are off both). It is useful for me on congested highways, I set the DRCC to the speed limit, then let it do its thing pacing the traffic up and down.

It will beep at you before it cancels. Even with full DRCC brake access, you are advised to hit the brakes if an emergency occurs, you still own the last 25MPH.

I don't know why this is the case but all my Toyota's CCs only work above 25MPH.

 

I works that way because the CC integrated circuits have it programmed in that way, and it's programmed in that way so the car can't "take off" by accident (child trips cruise, for example). It is also done that way so if you loose consciousness and go off the road the cruise will cancel when the car is slowed by grass, mud, water, or whatever. Not a very good situation, but at least the car won't cause a fire by trying to go when it really can't.

 

I've heard it said about normal cruise control (not just DRCC) that it's intended to prevent you from using it in city traffic, when you probably shouldn't be using it.

 

I use it all the time in city traffic. It's great. I don't get caught by photo radar, the car slows when the traffic slows, even more than I would. But I suppose you're right. Some tight a$$ed govt. moron probably wanted it that way.

 

Please read the DRCC section in your owners manual there is a lot of good information there. One think to keep in mind is that the DRCC does not see cars that have stopped already, if you rely on it so stop you then you will get to see and feel the PCS at work. Mine disengages at 23 MPH.


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dustoff003 posted "One think to keep in mind is that the DRCC does not see cars that have stopped already"

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I'm not sure what you mean by that. It will detect a stopped car or truck and apply brakes. In fact, Pearl S will detect vehicles in the next lane from time to time, and apply dynamic braking. Particularly on curves.​

When the DRCC applies brakes it gets my attention better than a light or buzzer. So it accomplishes the task of keeping me safe.​

I have PCS turned off. I DON'T need the car stopping in traffic for no reason (turned it off after a few postings on this forum about that and after reading the warning in the owners manual)! We already have moron drivers who do that here, don't need an electronic one as well. ​

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Finally, a warning for those moving from GII Prius. In the GII (Pearl), I would drop the set speed of the cruise control without cancelling when approaching a speed change. The car would coast down to the new set speed. The GIII surprised me (and the PU truck following me) when I did this on my first drive, by applying the brakes. Good thing that PU driver was awake! ​

Now I cancel, coast down, and re-engage the cruise.​

 

David,

I mean just what I wrote the DRCC will not see cars that have stopped.

What is a "Pearl S"?

Please see attached photo from my owners manual, bullet three.




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That's a "may not detect", not a "will not detect". At the very least, PCS will detect a stopped car. Whether or not DRCC will or not (and whether it will do it in time, especially at high speed) is a different - but related - question. You can check out the PCS ones on Youtube, like when somebody set up some cardboard boxes and drove into them to get an idea of what the car would do. Maybe you should try the same but with DRCC on and off, and see if the reaction is different than just PCS alone.

 

PCS would not stop the car for no reason and it's pure silliness to turn if off because a couple of members with defective ATP have trouble with it whereas the rest of us have never encountered such a problem. Also, some of the "warnings" are just there from lawyers trying to cover Toyota's nice person and do not necessarily reflect real-world situation or experience.

 

I know may not and will not from experience if the traffic has stopped ahead of you on the freeway the DRCC in my car will not see then immobile vehicles ahead. I don't think the PCS will react in time to prevent a collision it will more than likely slow down the car and do what it does to lessen the impact.

In my daily travels I go over a bridge and around 75% of the time the PCS detects the expansion joint as a threat and try's to stop the car. I know that it is going to happen and I try to slow down and be ready for it.

 

At least the manual warns against that and it's stopping for a reason. Fortunately for me there are not too many bridges in Southern California. However, the manual also warns against adjacent wall/structure yet I go through curved tunnels in nearly 100% of my daily travels and they've never triggered either DRCC or PCS to slow down.

 

Yeah I know of the warning in the manual that is why I am not to concerned. I just got back from a 9 month deployment and I had forgotten that the PCS activates there and was going a little fast, the car tried to stop hard it flew my Mc D's take out bag from the passenger seat into the floorboard, luckily there was nobody behind me.

 

First, I think the warning about DRCC not stopping the car if there is a stopped car on the road has more to do with "stopping it in time", rather than not detecting the stopped car. It WILL detect most objects in the road. In fact, in Pearl S' case, it detects objects that are not even in the road. I was told DRCC and cruise in general only uses dynamic braking, so it's not powerful enough to fully avoid an accident. And it cuts out once the car is slowed to a reduced speed. So it would NOT stop the car from hitting another stopped car.

BTW, see my sig at bottom for what Pearl S and Pearl is.

Based on my experience with that, the warning in the manual, and others experiences with PCS, and based on the reality that I am actually fully aware of my surroundings, and have never needed PCS in my past 50 years of driving, I came to the conclusion PCS is a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. Don't need it, don't want it! It is flawed, dangerous even! It's a gimmick, or bling thing. Just watch the ad on TV for the Mitsubishi SUV. Touting the bling but not the reality of it's gas guzzling tenancies. Thankyou Toyota for letting me shut it off!

DRCC is probably a "could do without" as well, but I use cruise in the city, to help avoid "speed drift". DRCC works better in that use than standard cruise. We have A LOT of photo radar here. It hasn't been brought up yet, but to avoid photo radar tickets you have to spend an inordinate amount of time watching your speedometer. That is time you are NOT watching the other idiots on the road! NOT GOOD! So I use cruise to "watch the speedometer" while I watch (and avoid) the other idiots.

I'll steal a certain comedians line here:
"Ever noticed that anybody going slower than you is an idiot, and anybody going faster is crazy?"

 

It also uses engine braking, if your battery is "full".

 

David I cannot see your signature line when ?, I rarely use the standard PC PriusChat interface.

I don't know what you mean by dynamic braking, maybe like shifting into "B". The DRCC will apply the actual brakes.


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I had an interesting conversation last fall with the general manager of the local Lexus dealer's body shop. Toyota has been offering PCS on its Lexus branded vehicles beginning with the 2004 model year. I asked the GM if he had noticed any impact (pun intended) on damage severity on Lexus vehicles equipped with PCS. His response what that the difference in damage between vehicles with and without PCS has been very noticeable, that fewer PCS equipped Lexus vehicles were being brought in with front end damage and that those that were had less damage than Lexus vehicles without PCS. I asked him if PCS was hurting his business and he said he had enough business from damage caused by cell phone users to more than make up for the business he was losing to PCS.

If the Ford driver who rear ended my Lexus had a PCS-like system on his vehicle, maybe its sudden braking might have drawn his attention away from the texting he was doing on his phone and maybe my car would not have spent a month in that body shop.

I absolutely love PCS ... never had a malfunction ... will never buy another vehicle without it. DRCC is great too - makes long distance driving less stressful and more pleasant ... hardly ever have to cancel the cruise control and use the resume feature. I also like DRCC for in-town driving and like being able to select the most appropriate of the three following distances with the button on the steering wheel.

 

Pearl S is a Seaglass Pearl 2012 Canadian "Technology Package" standard "hatchback" Prius. Pearl is a 2007 Driftwood Pearl Canadian Package II Prius.
Dynamic Braking means using regenerative braking. So no "friction" braking. It appears that it will also use engine braking, which makes sense, as it does that when the battery is "full" even when not in cruise.

As for "Offline's" comments, I agree, if I did what is termed here as "distracted driving". But I don't. I don't answer the cell phone (it will take a message automatically), I don't answer the Amateur radio, I don't listen to MP3s, I don't listen to broadcast radio or sat radio. When I'm driving, that's all I'm doing. I'm old, I can't "multitask", and I'm experienced enough to KNOW that it isn't possible.