Adaptive Cruise Control distance

When setting the distance between vehicles you have a choice of 3 settings 1, 2 or 3 bars. I usually follow as close (one bar) as I can. My question is does this distance (one bar) vary with speed? It seems one bar at 75mph is a bigger distance than one bar at 55mph.

 

yes

 

Yes but I'm not even going to ask why you are so close to others at 1 bar.

 

I'm not trying to be a wise guy but I wish there was a setting where you could follow even closer. At the one bar setting you constantly get people squeezing in between you and the person in front of you. I think the closest setting is still pretty safe or they'd be hammered with lawsuits.

 

I hear you. My thoughts were the brake checkers, the brake checkers that they to commit insurance fraud, etc. Yeah here in FL people are quick to get in front of you and without turn signals. People drive like a$$holes these days. Tesla drivers are becoming the worst ones here.

 

I agree with you, it's the same around here as well. I've had quite a few rental cars with the adaptive cruise as well, they are all fairly similar in that distance, of course the truck slows once someone moves in front of you so there is no real downside for them. I use the adaptive cruise on back roads and empty-ish highways. I rarely use it in denser traffic just because what you note.

 

You can always gas to get a bit closer if you see someone trying to sneak in, then back off a bit to show the weiner you aren't letting him in.

The adaptive cruise will stays on until you touch the brake.

 

Or just let the Weiner in. TWSS

 

Eh, but then you are just that guy holding everyone up behind you as everyone passes you and cuts in.

 

The set gap for adaptive cruse is based on speed, but more so the bar(s) represents stopping distance. The faster you are, the greater the gap and visa versa. That would be why no manufacturer would ever allow you to get "even closer" with a preset setting.

 

A few will get in. This reminds me of driving in California. Just an asshole collection of people / drivers out there. No common courtesy. I choose to not suffer the road rage and turn driving into a contact sport of one-upmanship. So what if someone "gets me" and slips into my safe following space. I'll just back off some more so I'm not following too closely. F@ck everyone behind me. Couldn't care less about their driving experience as it relates to me safely getting where I'm going. Same goes for when I'm towing my camper. I'm 60-65 in the right lane and could care less about the "flow of traffic" around me. I'm not the one being the problem, it's the impatient @ssholes all around that refuse to care about their own or other's safety.

 

My wife and I are snowbirds and I keep telling people I'd rather drive downtown Chicago than here in FL but to be honest it's getting bad no matter where you live.

 

Very true!

 

I'll speak to Tesla drivers...our MS drives uncomfortably close when using cruise control.

it is calibrated about 1 car length smaller than my Tundra.

I like to have the Tundra on MAX, which is about 2-3 cars...the Tesla's max is claims 7 car lengths, but is really less than 2.

 

I retired in early 2022 and live in rural northern California with mostly 2-lane country roads. I use my adaptive cruise maybe once a year just to make sure it is still working (no real need for it since I rarely get on the freeway). SO, so glad to not be commuting anymore...

Dan

 

I can't stand to use ACC except under very specific circumstances. I also hate that everyone else seems to use it all the time. I believe this is the reason there are so many examples of a long line of cars in the left lane taking FOREVER to pass a vehicle in the right lane. However, this does allow me to pass the line on the right and comfortbly get in the left before the slow car in the right lane.

 

I agree. It can be annoying at times, I really don't like how it "takes over" when it thinks I am not managing things the way it thinks I should (hits the brakes when just letting up on the accelerator will do just fine, etc.).

Dan