Autopilot driving does not use ultrasound sensors

[joer00]

I had a malfunction of one my sensors and car shows warning that auto park is disabled. However AP works perfectly with the exception of the lane change which seems to be disabled too.

This surprises me and now I finally understand why the car sometimes almost hits the car in the next lane, although the dashboard clearly shows that the sensors see the car.

What confuses me the most is the fact that giving this observation, a side crash avoidance should not exist. However there are videos showing AP steering to avoid a crash. How should this work ?

 

[Cosmacelf]

I believe side crash avoidance is a separate safety system from Autopilot. I suspect that Autopilot only uses side ultrasonic sensors for lane change, and not for lane keeping,

 

[kirkbauer]

That's strange to me because I notice that if AP gets close to an obstacle to the side of it (e.g. another car or a wall) it shows yellow to the rear side of my car and then it corrects away from the obstacle.

 

[commasign]

My autopilot cars definitely move away a little to the left or right whenever a car in the adjacent lane encroaches on my lane.

 

[Todd Burch]

It uses them, but I suspect that if one or perhaps a few are disabled, they decided that should not be enough to disable the entire system.

Yesterday I did a somewhat quick lane change (quickly changed from right to left lane)--autopilot was not engaged. There were no cars around, but there was a concrete barrier adjacent to the left lane due to construction.

I suppose the car was concerned that I was approaching that wall so quickly, because it began to steer away from the barrier--or at least resist my steering wheel motion. I was surprised, as this is the first time that had happened to me in about 20k miles since AP came out. But I suppose that was the right thing to do--had I not been in control, to the sensors it could have appeared as though I was headed for the wall.

 

[kirkbauer]

Wow, that's cool. I heard about that feature but haven't experienced it. But then again I haven't been brave enough to try to make it happen