Lane keeping assist

[NLMGSAN]

Couldn't agree more, LKA is horrible. Surely they should fix it asap as in case of accident because of that, MG would then need to go to court.

Why do you think they need to go to court?
The manual clearly states you are always responsible for using lka, the manual describes situations when and where it will not work properly and you "MUST" take control, or disable it. They have given you the option to disable it in the menu. Whether the latter fits the term "immediately" may be debatable one. But the systems have been "approved".

I do not post this to disagree with your interpretation that MG is at fault in case the system fails. I do agree. But this applies to more or less all car manufacturers. Even the latest very expensive Merc got slammed for the poorly working LKA..
My point is: they all know. That is why MG uses 3 pages to explain Lane assist, and half of them are filled to cover them in case things may go wrong.
And they all do it.

 

[DaevM]

Hilariously, when I took my mg4 se lr in for the saggy warped undertray issue last week I mentioned, in passing, about using tow mode to bypass lka. The young lady from the service desk I was talking to responded with borderline awe, stating it was one of the most common complaints they heard and had no idea how to get around it... and here was I, with one sentence .
The reasoning presumably is that you wouldn't want lka throwing you around with a caravan or such on the back. Note loss of rear sensors though .
If I need them I just turn tow mode off for the manoeuvre then back on again.

 

[MAJ]

I'm in complete sympathy with Joanne the Hairdresser some forum members appear happy to simply disable LKA at start of every journey and insist that this is a satisfactory solution.
My issue is that MG state that there are occasions when LKA should not be used, but fail to provide
a safe method of disabling it while driving. (On the occasions you forget)
I will be using the Towing Mode Solution until a better solution is found.

 

[DaevM]

I'm in complete sympathy with Joanne the Hairdresser some forum members appear happy to simply disable LKA at start of every journey and insist that this is a satisfactory solution.
My issue is that MG state that there are occasions when LKA should not be used, but fail to provide
a safe method of disabling it while driving. (On the occasions you forget)
I will be using the Towing Mode Solution until a better solution is found.

To be fair, although I'm using Towing mode, I still also disable road sign recognition and fatigued driver alert at the beginning of every drive. I might as well disable LKA at that point too. I guess it's the satisfaction of knowing I'm using a workaround and should I forget, the irritating LKA will still be disabled.
There's also the need to disable/reenable Towing mode should reversing sensors be required.( No cameras)
None of it particularly acceptable.

Just spotted a guy from Bulgaria in another thread who appears to have achieved LKA off permanently. Bit of an extreme solution though

 

[NLMGSAN]

Not sure what he did but he must have done it "the Bulagarian way"..

Honestly, I do not mind having the lane assist systems activated. I use Lane Departure Assist and it works fine. If it works....

To add to the discussion: I always was under the impression that the biggest complaints came from the Emergency Lane Keeping mode (apart from the lack of a quick option to disable either mode, and keep it disabled).

From what I saw, ELK is the second mode in the Standard and the third in the higher spec MG4's.
Am I correct?

And if so, is there anyone who had a chance to compare the two ELK modes?

 

[Rolfe]

I'm in complete sympathy with Joanne the Hairdresser some forum members appear happy to simply disable LKA at start of every journey and insist that this is a satisfactory solution.
My issue is that MG state that there are occasions when LKA should not be used, but fail to provide
a safe method of disabling it while driving. (On the occasions you forget)
I will be using the Towing Mode Solution until a better solution is found.

I do sympathise with Joanne, but it's more complicated than that.

No, it's not satisfactory to have to turn the damn thing off at the start of every journey, and there should be a one-button disable option so you can use it secure in the knowledge that if it becomes a problem you can instantly get rid of it. But we are where we are. There is no such button. Given that, surely it's better to make a habit of turning it off as part of the pre-flight routine (or use the towing mode option) than get permanently bent out of shape complaining about it?

What I don't understand about Joanne's problem is that she has an SE, but reports that the LKA keeps reactivating itself while she's driving. This is the only SE known to behave like this (although there is a Trophy bug that causes it to reactivate when the central screen changes between dark and light). It doesn't make sense, and suggests a fault with her car. If there is an actual fault, I thought at one time if it could be characterised and reported it could be fixed, and would be better than rejecting the car. But I think she has actually rejected the car, so it's a bit academic.

 

[Rob875]

Over the last year LKA has remained permanently off in my SE LR, until I took it into my local MG dealer for them to recalibrate the camera after the windscreen had been replaced. I specifically asked that the software was not to be upgraded, but now LKA turns on each time the car is started.

Also, some camera activated functions are still not working.

This was my second replacement windscreen due to stone chips, both replaced by Autowindscreens via my insurer. The first time Autowindscreens did the camera recalibration without issue, the second time they said it had to be done by a main dealer.

I previously had to be stationary before I could turn off AEB, but I can now turn off AEB as well as LKA while on the move.

 

[NLMGSAN]

To add to the discussion: I always was under the impression that the biggest complaints came from the Emergency Lane Keeping mode (apart from the lack of a quick option to disable either mode, and keep it disabled).

From what I saw, ELK is the second mode in the Standard and the third in the higher spec MG4's.
Am I correct?

And if so, is there anyone who had a chance to compare the two ELK modes?

Never mind my question. I found the answers with the help of Jerry Pan.

The standard has Alert and Lane Departure Assist (LDA). Other versions have the additional ELK. In the standard LDA is default, in other versions it is ELK. Those drivers who do not change mode therefore will judge Lane Assist systems based on different modes.

Both ELK and LDA will try to keep you in your lane using steering corrections. What are the differences between LDA and ELK?
1. In addition to lane markers, ELK also responds to kerbs
2. ELK also responds if a car driving in the opposite direction approaches you while your car drifts towards the lane markers
-ELK uses force more sharply
In general, ELK responds more often and occasionally more rigorously compared to LDA.
-LDA may not use more than 50N of force.

The interesting thing is that (after lots of reading) EU law and subsequent mandatory NCAP testing procedures only apply to mandatory Alert and LDA modes. Not to ELK!

 

[Martinonline]

I am having a discussion with Koops in another thread about lane lines changing to Red; I had never seen that. Koops has an SE LR whereas I have Trophy. Siteguru pointed out the option difference. I have now selected Lane Departure Assist to see if I see the Red lane lines and detect any difference to the steering wheel tug.

 

[DaevM]

Never mind my question. I found the answers with the help of Jerry Pan.

The standard has Alert and Lane Departure Assist (LDA). Other versions have the additional ELK. In the standard LDA IS default, other version ELK. Those who do not change modes therefore will judge Lane Assist systems based on different modes.

What are the differences between LDA and ELK?:
1. ELK also responds to kerbs
2. ELK also responds if a car driving in the opposite direction approaches you while your car drifts towards the lane markers
-ELK uses force more sharply
In general, ELK responds more often and occasionally more rigorously compared to LDA.

The interesting thing is that (after lots of reading) EU law and subsequent mandatory NCAP testing procedures only apply to Alert and LDA mode. Not to ELK!

SE LR here. Have never seen ELK or LDA.
See pic : -

 

[NLMGSAN]

SE LR here. Have never seen ELK or LDA.
See pic : -

Dave, activate Lane Assist and you will see two modes and three levels of sensitivity.

 

[DaevM]

Dave, activate Lane Assist and you will see two modes an three levels of sensitivity.

Ah, sorry - been so long since I've had it active, forgot about the sub-levels. Will have a look when next in the car.

 

[NLMGSAN]

I am having a discussion with Koops in another thread about lane lines changing to Red; I had never seen that. Koops has an SE LR whereas I have Trophy. Siteguru pointed out the option difference. I have now selected Lane Departure Assist to see if I see the Red lane lines and detect any difference to the steering wheel tug.

Never saw red lines on my ER . Only yellow, white and green.

 

[siteguru]

Never saw red lines on my ER . Only yellow, white and green.

The lines being mentioned are the ones on the left side of the driver display where "your car and other vehicles" are shown. i.e. below the icon showing whether LKA is available/active.

 

[NLMGSAN]

The lines being mentioned are the ones on the left side of the driver display where "your car and other vehicles" are shown. i.e. below the icon showing whether LKA is available/active.

Ok. Those are never red as well. They are either grey (not active, e.g. under 60 kmh) or white.

 

[JanB]

I'm the same and turn it off every time I get in the car.

I hate having to do this every single time

 

[Rolfe]

Since I got the car I have been very careful not to hate doing it. I can't change it. Of course I will be very pleased if the situation changes, and we can either set it to stay off (not likely) or we get a one-press button to turn it off.

But the way things are, I have to turn it off. I can either hate doing this, every single time, or I can just do it as routine, maybe with a rueful smile. I think the latter is better for my mental health, and for my attitude to my car.

 

[shinyrobot]

I'm a poor facsimile of a man, and I'd love to be able to permanently disable both LKA and front collision assist.
I almost never remember to turn LKA off (as 5 days a week I don't drive over 40mph), and find myself stumbling through menus whilst driving down country lanes. (not a safe option)

 

[JanB]

They've tried to tone LKA down on the latest software upgrade. I've got history with this, but yeah, it's less vile. If you want it gone, sticker over camera works perfect.

I also went for the sticker solution. I found if you cover only a small section of the camera, the Adaptive Cruise Control will still work - otherwise it will be deactivated. (yes, I know ACC is using the Radar, but still it will sometimes be switched off after camera is covered).
Did you find the perfect shape of the sticker?

 

[Ian MG4 Trophy]

I turned mine off the day I bought it and its never turned itself back on - software is up to date too.
so lucky I suppose.