EP101

My 2013 GS 350 has Intuitive Parking Assist and Blind Spot Monitor. My understanding is that the same hardware used for those features is also used for Rear Cross-Trafic Alert in later model years.
I was wondering if Lexus will provide this feature as a add-on trough a software update for the 2013 model year. Does anyone have any information available on this topic?
Thanks.

hziemba

That would be great, but I'm not holding my breath.
Lexus updates to firmware are very rare, and when they come, it's fixing something...NOT new functionality. In their "defense", I don't know of any car maker who does better...this is NOT a PC or iPhone.

tompass

Perhaps a 3rd party may at some point offer such an option.

EP101

This is not an iPhone indeed. However, an iPhone is $700.00, this vehicle is $80,000.00. Big difference, don't you think? The software updates for the iPhone are free, however I am not expecting to get any Lexus updates (cross traffic alerts or anything else) for free..
When I decided to buy a Lexus was not just because I was looking for a reliable vehicle, I was hoping to get the after-sale costumer support. Probably I was wrong. If this will be the case, at the end of the lease, I will consider a different brand that will give me the opportunity of driving one of the most advance vehicle and not necessary the most reliable..., since the lease term is not longer than the warranty period....
Unfortunately Lexus Marketing Team have a different view on this topic. Too bad...few more years to cope with Lexus...

Allen K

iTrader: (4)

Again, no automaker outside of possibly Tesla will provide you with added functionality like you are asking for so it's not a Lexus issue it's an auto industry issue.

jkeller

That's because we have all grown up with newer model cars having newer features(hardware). Now cars are loaded with technology(software). 20 years ago it was too difficult to add power seats, sunroofs, etc to cars(hardware) after you bought them. Today operating systems are easily updated(software). The real difference is people have yet to demand it from automakers.

SNiiP3R

iTrader: (3)

Exactly. Plus, we also should not pay for something we already paid for. All software updates and map updates should be free, we should only pay for labor. Its like Apple or Google will start charging customers everytime there is an iOS or an Android update.

praetor

There was a time when Apple charged for their IOS update. Microsoft use to charge also for bug fixes they called "upgrades." The dark age of computing. Competition has put an end to that.

Afrosheen

Apple still charges for the annual updates to MacOSX. I know they didn't with Mavericks, but prior to that there was an upgrade tax.

jkeller

Apple hasn't charged for for an OSX upgrade since snow leopard 2009. And OSX Yosemite release next week is also a free upgrade. And all Apple iOS upgrades since the first iPhone 2007 have been free.

EP101

The main issue here is not about to pay or not to pay for a new function. It is exactly what was mentioned before in this thread:this is not a hardware add-on, it is a simple software update which is an extremely easy and inexpensive fix: few more lines of code added to the existing software, nothing complicated.
The only problem here is how we can convince Lexus to become more consumer orientated. What if more and more Lexus owners will request those software updates that will bring our current vehicles in line with the current technology? Software updates that will give us functions like Cross-traffic alert, CarPlay and Siri Eyers Free, the automatic reply-to-message function (which is currently blocked out for iPhone's users), and the list can go on....
Until more Lexus users will start complaining about this nonsense, nobody from Lexus will take actions. Unfortunately in today markets proactive companies are very rare, or probably almost nonexistent.
So speak-up, Lexus enthusiasts, speak-up. And maybe one day will not pay again $60,000 or $80,000 for a new, however already outdated vehicle...

praetor

The IOS upgrades for iPhones were free as they are subscription based devices. I do recall Apple charging for IOS updates for iPod touch a long long time ago. It was like $10 I think. And they tried to charge iPad users as well.

StlGasMan

Apple never charged for iOS updates.

praetor

Sure they did. It was a $10 fee for iPod touch and some iPad users. iPhone users never saw the fee as iPhones were a subscription base device and subsidized by the carriers.

I only remember this as I owned an iPod touch for a short time and thought the $10 upgrade fee was ridiculous. Been an Android user since then.

http://appleinsider.com/articles/09/...o_3_0_software