I came across two features in the Kia Carnival: Highway Driving Assist 2 and Navigation-Based Smart Cruise Control with Stop & Go. Isn’t this just like the Adaptive Cruise Control that many other cars, like Honda, have? Has anyone tried it out? What are your thoughts on it?
I have a 25 hybrid SXP. There’s a button on the steering wheel that activates the ‘self-drive feature.’ If the highway you’re on is pre-mapped, the indicator light turns green and the car will self-drive. You need to touch the steering wheel every 30 seconds or so.
The self-driving feature adjusts the speed to the set limit, slows down, and brakes automatically if the car in front stops. It will also keep you centered even around curves in the road.
You can tap the lane change indicator lightly, and the car will automatically shift lanes. It uses sensors to check if the lane is clear. The indicator on the dashboard will flash, and the car will move into the new lane, then center itself and continue in self-drive mode.
I’d say it’s a pretty smart system. I’ve only used it on highways, not side streets, but it gives a pretty hands-free experience as long as you keep tapping the wheel every now and then.
@valentinholes
That’s a great explanation. I believe these features are also available on the SX model.
fabian said:
@valentinholes
That’s a great explanation. I believe these features are also available on the SX model.
Best explanation I’ve seen. It’s better and smarter than adaptive cruise, but not quite full autopilot. I also noticed that in stop-and-go traffic, it doesn’t bug you about ‘holding the steering wheel’ like usual. I was in a terrible traffic jam once, and it didn’t ask me to ‘hold the steering wheel’ at all during the 40-minute, 6-mile crawl.
fabian said:
@valentinholes
That’s a great explanation. I believe these features are also available on the SX model.
All these features come with the EX model and above.
@valentinholes
Great explanation. I have the SXP too, and the digital blind-spot turn signals are really helpful, as is the digital rear-view camera. But the HUD is definitely my favorite feature.
You should try driving around the city with the cruise control on. Once you do, you’ll never want to go back. It’s so smooth. I set it to 4 car lengths, and it’s like a dream to drive.
The lane change assist took me a few tries to get the hang of, but you’re right – you have to gently push it and then let the system guide you just a little to make the lane change.
I have a 25 SX with Highway Drive Assist 2 and Adaptive Cruise Control with Navigation. I’ve driven over 12,000 miles, and while it’s not fully self-driving, it does manage the road for you. It’s more than just lane correction. It’ll slow down if necessary, lane change for you, and come to a full stop in traffic, then start again when the traffic moves.
We do a lot of road trips, and I don’t feel as tired after 10 hours on the road like I used to.
It’s definitely not autopilot. The highway driving assist feature helps with lane correction if you start drifting out of your lane, but I don’t use the cruise control myself, so I can’t explain that part.
@Yoon
For the cruise control, you can choose between four distances for how the car checks the space in front of you. If a car is within that distance, your car will slow down to match its speed until either they speed up or you change lanes. I really like it.
@NiroNavigator
Yeah, that’s the Adaptive Cruise Control that’s available in most new cars now.
@Yoon
Got it, thanks. I was wondering because someone exaggerated how it drives like an Autopilot. But when I read about it, it seems like it’s just more like Adaptive Cruise Control.
fabian said:
@Yoon
Got it, thanks. I was wondering because someone exaggerated how it drives like an Autopilot. But when I read about it, it seems like it’s just more like Adaptive Cruise Control.
Autopilot isn’t even meant to be hands-free, to be fair. It’s just Tesla’s version of adaptive cruise, but now it uses cameras, so it’s a bit more capable.
I’m not sure what ‘stop & go’ means exactly, but I think it has to do with how the car alerts me if the stopped traffic in front of me starts moving and I don’t react in time. For example, when you’re stopped at a light and the other cars start moving but you don’t accelerate, the car alerts you.
@Livia
That, and it’ll stop itself and then keep going without any prompts for a while.
The highway driving assist works well on well-marked highways, especially interstates and controlled-access highways. It works decently on normal roads too, as long as the curves aren’t too sharp.
I have a Tesla and a Carnival, and they’re not even close. The Kia has a slightly better cruise control, but the FSD on Tesla is not comparable.
Brynn said:
I have a Tesla and a Carnival, and they’re not even close. The Kia has a slightly better cruise control, but the FSD on Tesla is not comparable.
Thanks, that’s helpful .
Brynn said:
I have a Tesla and a Carnival, and they’re not even close. The Kia has a slightly better cruise control, but the FSD on Tesla is not comparable.
Thanks, that’s helpful!
No problem .
Here’s a video that explains the ‘Navigation-Based Smart Cruise Control’: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yqHIYBWaxC0
It’s basically like most smart cruise control – stopping and starting based on the cars in front. The ‘Navigation-Based’ part means it will also slow down depending on the situation, like when entering a speed-limited zone, a curve, or an exit ramp.
@eug
That’s for speed, but the SX model will also steer for you.