Trophy owners - can you disable automatic door locking at 10 mph?

[Rolfe]

What the thread title says. Do you have some way to stop all your doors automatically locking when your speed goes over 10 mph? And if so, how do you do it?

This was discussed somewhere on another thread, and I think Trophy owners said they could do it, but if that's the case I don't think anyone said how it's done. All I can find in the manual is on page 247 where it simply says that all doors will lock at 10 mph and nothing at all about how to stop this from happening.

It's driving me absolutely nuts; I get the screaming ab-dabs every time I hear the sound of the doors locking me in. I'd really like to know if this is something only the SE owners are forced to endure, or it it's the same on the Trophy. I've never before had a car where this couldn't be disabled.

 

[Rolfe]

You seem to assume that what you said means that it is a deliberate choice. I do not see how that follows. Maybe you can name me one other car on sale that has automatic locking which can't be disabled? I'm genuinely curious. I've come across cars that don't have it, but never before a car in which the manufacturer had taken the trouble to include the feature but not allowed the driver to disable it.

For example.

In all Trophies which have had LKA disabled, it comes back on again when the central screen switches between light and dark. SE cars do not have this feature. You think it's intentional?

In all Trophy cars, when you press the right star button, the HVAC controls flash up on the screen for about two seconds then disappear, before the driver has had a chance to see if any changes have taken effect. SE cars do not do this. The HVAC screen stays there until the driver is finished adjusting temperature and fan settings, and presses the star a second time. You think this is intentional? Special feature the designers included?

Trophies and SEs have different software bugs.

ETA: I think the radio thing is a bug on both the Trophy and the SE, just a different bug. On the SE the radio always comes on when the car is activated, even if it was switched off before the car was stopped. On the Trophy it's the opposite - the radio always has to be switched on manually, even if it was on when the car was stopped. Both sets of owners are annoyed by this. Everyone wants the radio status to be remembered, and to come on if it was on before and not if it was off befire. I suspect this is what was intended, but neither set of software has got it right.

 

[PristDean]

As said, just ask your dealer.

MG4 Doors Locking When Driving Away.

Another quick question. How do I stop the car doors locking just after pulling away. It is probably something really easy but apart from using the key, can I turn this feature off?

www.mgevs.com

 

[Rolfe]

Another thread about it. I hadn't noticed.

Why would I expect the dealer to know anyway? Dealers have told people on this forum all sorts of nonsense because they didn't actually know the answer. The dealer is the first port of call but not the oracle.

 

[PristDean]

If you think its a bug which should not be, then ask. They will clarify for you

As for other cars with auto locking that can be disabled, an example... Volvo

 

[Rolfe]

Of course there are cars with automatic locking that can be disabled. These days, that's standard. I'm interested to know whether there are any cars other than the MG4 SE in which it cannot be disabled.

Seriously, this is like having LKA on all cars, but then not allowing SE owners to deactivate it. Because that's a special feature only Trophy owners should have, obviously!

 

[PristDean]

Of course there are cars with automatic locking that can be disabled. I'm interested to know whether there are any cars other than the MG4 SE in which it cannot be disabled.

Seriously, this is like having LKA on all cars, but then not allowing SE owners to deactivate it. Because that's a special feature only Trophy owners should have, obviously!

Yes there are plenty. Nissan Qashqai being one, Google search will find them for you

 

[Rolfe]

But your google search only found one in which it could...

 

[PristDean]

Do your own research Rolfe and ask your dealer. This thread is becoming tiring now

 

[Rolfe]

Neither of us knows the minds of the designers, for sure. The dealers quite possibly don't know either. I've got the information I wanted from the thread, for which I thank the several members who were being genuinely helpful. I'm now in a position to make more detailed enquiries.

 

[Macadoodle]

It is damn annoying, mostly because it's utterly pointless.
Gets on my nerves every time I stop to let a passenger in and the poor soul tugs on the door handle because I've forgotten about the auto lock yet again.
I've tinkered around with the car since delivery and managed to solve a few of the other 'idiosyncrasies' that these cars come with but this one will unfortunately only be solved with software.

 

[Rolfe]

It's that, but I find it more than that. The sound of the door locks engaging really upsets me to the point of claustrophobia. This got worse when I discovered that the MG4 had been subject to a recall because the car was locking people inside (which for all I know could have been a malfunction of this system). At first I tried unlocking the doors as soon as I heard the clunk, but that made it worse - I just got the jolt of "Oh my God I'm trapped!" again, as soon as I dropped below 10 mph and then above it again.

It's completely pointless and I think it's an oversight.

We know the SE has bugs the Trophy doesn't have. And vice versa of course. The knee-jerk assumption that it's all part of a carefully considered plan seems to me to be entirely unwarranted.

 

[Eber]

It's not a bug, it's simply omitting certain functions from cheaper models to urge people to buy the more expensive ones. This has been going on forever. All Volkswagen oder Audi models are equipped for cruise control functionality since the nineties, but it's only enabled if you pay for it.

It's rather probable though that the dealership can disable this feature for you permanently. I would ask them.

And again, it's not locking you in. It's locking others out. You can open the doors from the inside all the time.

 

[CarlMG4]

On the Trophy it's the opposite - the radio always has to be switched on manually, even if it was on when the car was stopped. Both sets of owners are annoyed by this. Everyone wants the radio status to be remembered, and to come on if it was on before and not if it was off befire. I suspect this is what was intended, but neither set of software has got it right.

Just FYI on my Trophy R24, the radio/usb music does start as soon as the drivers door is opened and driver sits down - as long as you didn't pause it before leaving the car last. So it does remember this.

The fact it doesn't remember on the SE though, is still a bug I'd say.

 

[Rolfe]

It's not a bug, it's simply omitting certain functions from cheaper models to urge people to buy the more expensive ones. This has been going on forever. All Volkswagen oder Audi models are equipped for cruise control functionality since the nineties, but it's only enabled if you pay for it.

It's rather probable though that the dealership can disable this feature for you permanently. I would ask them.

And again, it's not locking you in. It's locking others out. You can open the doors from the inside all the time.

You don't know that. There is nothing in the manual to indicate that this is a feature intended to be available on the Trophy and not the SE. There's nothing in the advertising. "Not tempted by the heated leather seats or the satnav or the spoilers or even the wireless phone charging pad? Well this will really seal the deal for you - you can stop the doors automatically locking! NOW will you pay us five grand more? Surely!"

I know what it's doing. I know I can open the doors any time I like. It doesn't stop the claustrophobia reaction. Which probably dates back to my driving lessons, when my teacher impressed on me always to drive with the doors open so that rescue wouldn't be impeded in the event of a crash. And yes, I know that's supposed to happen automatically in modern cars in the event of a crash, but knowing that doesn't help either. I hear that clunk, and I have an instant "I'm trapped!" panic reaction.

I'll be very happy if the dealer can fix this but I'm concerned it needs a software update.

 

[Ian Key]

I think you'll stand more chance with cognitive therapy to help with your phobia than getting MG to rewrite the software.

 

[Rolfe]

Just FYI on my Trophy R24, the radio/usb music does start as soon as the drivers door is opened and driver sits down - as long as you didn't pause it before leaving the car last. So it does remember this.

The fact it doesn't remember on the SE though, is still a bug I'd say.

That's interesting, I wonder if it's something that's been fixed on the Trophy, because I remember other owners saying it bugged them that it didn't remember it was supposed to be on.

In fact the SE remembers if you don't lock the car. The other day I popped into the shop for a moment without locking the car (and had someone tell me "you left your lights on!" when I got back, because the DRLs are so bright!) and the radio, which I had paused, remained paused. It just forgets if you locj the car and it shuts down.

I think the folders thing in the USB music system is a bug too. These are things (like the door locking not being able to be disabled) that are so trivial and cost-free to implement that no designer in his right mind is going to deliberately choose to piss off SE owners by omitting them.

I think you'll stand more chance with cognitive therapy to help with your phobia than getting MG to rewrite the software.

We'll see. They've fixed other bugs.

 

[CarlMG4]

That's interesting, I wonder if it's something that's been fixed on the Trophy, because I remember other owners saying it bugged them that it didn't remember it was supposed to be on.

In fact the SE remembers if you don't lock the car. The other day I popped into the shop for a moment without locking the car (and had someone tell me "you left your lights on!" when I got back, because the DRLs are so bright!) and the radio, which I had paused, remained paused. It just forgets if you locj the car and it shuts down.

I think the folders thing in the USB music system is a bug too. These are things (like the door locking not being able to be disabled) that are so trivial and cost-free to implement that no designer in his right mind is going to deliberately choose to piss off SE owners by omitting them.

Not being able to turn the Auto-lock off I'd say is definitely a bug in the SE, as you say - why have the feature at all - if it's down to cost it would be cheaper without it.

The lack of memory function (folder playlists) and usability for the USB music source, is a bug across all specs, but more annoying for the SE owners who can't even access individual folders independently.

I would hazard a guess this could be easily fixed by a software patch. The dealer should actually be able to turn off the Auto-lock altogether with their software, so fingers crossed they can remedy that easily for you

 

[Eber]

You don't know that. There is nothing in the manual to indicate that this is a feature intended to be available on the Trophy and not the SE.

Well. Then we might have different concepts of "bugs". To me, a "bug" is a non-intentional malfunction. The omission of the auto-lock disable option is clearly intentional. As is the reduction of options to configure the buttons on the steering wheel. As is the omission of the weather forecast. The SE just has a simplified user interface, that's all.

 

[Rolfe]

Well. Then we might have different concepts of "bugs". To me, a "bug" is a non-intentional malfunction. The omission of the auto-lock disable option is clearly intentional. As is the reduction of options to configure the buttons on the steering wheel. As is the omission of the weather forecast. The SE just has a simplified user interface, that's all.

I don't think it's intentional. There's a fair bit that's not intentional about the software on these cars. Intentional variations are documented in the manual - like the electric wing mirror folding, for example, which is annoying but clearly designed that way. Not a syllable about this one.

Not being able to turn the Auto-lock off I'd say is definitely a bug in the SE, as you say - why have the feature at all - if it's down to cost it would be cheaper without it.

The lack of memory function (folder playlists) and usability for the USB music source, is a bug across all specs, but more annoying for the SE owners who can't even access individual folders independently.

I would hazard a guess this could be easily fixed by a software patch. The dealer should actually be able to turn off the Auto-lock altogether with their software, so fingers crossed they can remedy that easily for you

The only guess I can hazard about that first paragraph is that it might be something else that's required for that NCAP(?) safety certification, like the LKA. So this would be equivalent to equipping all cars with the LKA but telling SE owners too bad, you can't switch it off.

I agree the USB thing isn't perfect in the Trophy either, but in that spec you only have to number the track names within the folders and you're done. With the SE you have to prefix every track name with what is in effect the directory path you'd put them in if you had the chance! Although I have to say that once it's done, it works pretty well. (I've had a couple of odd incidents where the USB player has skipped back to the start of the stick for no readily apparent reason, but most of the time it keeps my place perfectly even when the car has been switched off, and even when I've spent days listening to the radio instead.)

I hope you're right about the dealer being able to turn off the auto-lock, because it's the one thing out of all the annoyances that I would actually kill for.

 

[fshuk1]

I do not know about psychology but from a safety point of view absolutely lock your car when driving. There has been many occasions of theft of laptops/bags from the passenger seat when stopped at lights . I also remember a woman being hijacked at the lights in north London (but now I am more skeptical of urban legends). All in all though lock your cars when driving.

I know some bright spark will now say but if you are in an accident and your car is on fire about to explode like a Hollywood movie etc etc you cannot get out fast enough. Well I would say the probability of that happening is a lot, lot less than a road rage when the guy opens your door and punches you in the face. You decide on your probabilities.