Radar Cruise Braking down slight hills

[T_E]

My 2012 Equus is going to the dealer's Tuesday for the map upgrade (we'll see if that fixes the street first malady) but today, when driving in some mildly hilly country with the cruise set at 60mph I noticed that it seems to be braking when picking up a few mph going down slight hills.

The dashboard's car icon is flashing its brake lights when I hit 63 mph going downhill to slow the car back to 60. BAD NEWS! There's no traffic around, and the car would slow up going uphill, so it is unnecessary.

My Chrysler 300 SRT8 downshifted, but didn't brake.....my Lexus LS cars didn't do this at all.

Is this normal operation for the Equus / Genesis?

If so, it's a waste of brake lining....

Any comments appreciated.....before I buzz at the dealer.

 

[Ruissimo]

I personally love the feature. If I set my cruise on 65, I want it to stay on 65 at all times, until I change it to something else. I don't have the Equus, but the smart cruise works the same on my R Spec. I use it at least twice a week and I'm glad it's there; there's a stretch in Sandy Hook (yes, that one) that is a downhill, and more often than not, there are always cops waiting for someone to go more than 5 mph over the speed limit (which is 30mph, in the middle of nowhere). Having the car stay at the constant 35 is perfect.

Smart Cruise is my second-favorite feature of these cars (after the Lexicon, of course).

 

[EXBMWGUY]

My 2012 Equus is going to the dealer's Tuesday for the map upgrade (we'll see if that fixes the street first malady) but today, when driving in some mildly hilly country with the cruise set at 60mph I noticed that it seems to be braking when picking up a few mph going down slight hills.

The dashboard's car icon is flashing its brake lights when I hit 63 mph going downhill to slow the car back to 60. BAD NEWS! There's no traffic around, and the car would slow up going uphill, so it is unnecessary.

My Chrysler 300 SRT8 downshifted, but didn't brake.....my Lexus LS cars didn't do this at all.

Is this normal operation for the Equus / Genesis?

If so, it's a waste of brake lining....

Any comments appreciated.....before I buzz at the dealer.

It's designed to be totally anal, and should be, IMHO. I use cruise multiple times every day, usually in the same locations for the same reasons.

 

[jnc2000]

The shiftlogic control will allow both shifting and breaking - depending on the grade of the slope.

 

[vasy]

My 2012 Equus is going to the dealer's Tuesday for the map upgrade (we'll see if that fixes the street first malady) but today, when driving in some mildly hilly country with the cruise set at 60mph I noticed that it seems to be braking when picking up a few mph going down slight hills.

The dashboard's car icon is flashing its brake lights when I hit 63 mph going downhill to slow the car back to 60. BAD NEWS! There's no traffic around, and the car would slow up going uphill, so it is unnecessary.

My Chrysler 300 SRT8 downshifted, but didn't brake.....my Lexus LS cars didn't do this at all.

Is this normal operation for the Equus / Genesis?

If so, it's a waste of brake lining....

Any comments appreciated.....before I buzz at the dealer.

T_E, didn't mean to hijack the thread but I hope you don't mind commenting on the noise level of the 2 cars you have (LS and Equus). Both are very quiet cars and I've heard complaints about wind noise at highway speeds for both cars (for LS, it's 2007-2012 LS460). You're one of the few who have experience with both cars and I'd really appreciate your opinion. Which car do you feel quieter at speed over 70 mph?

 

[T_E]

Up to now, I get 70-80k on my brakes....looks like this is going to be cut down significantly on this car if I continue to use cruise per usual.

Sure wish it could be temporarily disabled. I'm told the Lexus LS allows disabling, although I haven't verified that.

On the particular country road, there are a lot of hills and valleys, but almost no traffic. NO problem if car goes up to 63-64 and down to 60....

Also noticed that cruise set at 60 goes above (ok with me on hills) but also down to about 58 mph when climbing hills.

The car is great, but this is feature is not completely refined.

 

[Ruissimo]

Seems to me like a little more use of the "cancel" and "reset" buttons might be in order.

I've grown used to both of them when traffic is a bit heavier than optimal on the freeway. In this case, if you get on a big downhill, hit cancel. When you fall below the speed you set going up, press reset - after a while, this has become second-nature for me. Again, in different applications, but it applies here.

I know it's not an automatic solution.

 

[T_E]

I guess I'm stuck not using cruise on hilly roads, using the switch on / switch off method, or just engage it, wear out the brakes faster, and look to the guy following me like I'm driving with one foot next to the brake. (i.e. Buick driver hitting the brakes all the time)

I owned to older LS series Lexuses, so my take is invalid here. Quieter than the LS400 or LS430, though, in my opinion.

 

[jake the snake]

Seems to me like a little more use of the "cancel" and "reset" buttons might be in order.

I've grown used to both of them when traffic is a bit heavier than optimal on the freeway. In this case, if you get on a big downhill, hit cancel. When you fall below the speed you set going up, press reset - after a while, this has become second-nature for me. Again, in different applications, but it applies here.

I know it's not an automatic solution.

What he says