2013 LS460 Back from Florida Trip
02-26-13, 12:43 PM
#1
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
2013 LS460 Back from Florida Trip
Hi Folks,
Back from our coastal tour of Florida (Brunswick GA to Orange Park to Cocoa Beach to Miami Beach to Key West to Marco Island to Venice to High Springs (Gainesville) to Santa Rosa Beach (Pensacola)). Whew! 2,600 miles, 11 days, wife and I are still speaking, and we never had a bad meal the whole time. The 'gators are in plentiful supply, but the tourists seemed a bit scarce to me. Drove the beach at Daytona and did most of the standard tourist stuff (i.e. dinner on South Beach), while managing to avoid Disney, Busch Gardens, and the like...
At any rate, all the sand has been blown out of the car, all the salt magically removed, and everything spiffed up. I thought I'd post some pics, so here goes. BTW, the car goes in for tinting on Friday and I'll post a few "after" pics this weekend (weather permitting).
Car is stock 2013 LS460 SWB RWD in Nebula Gray with Light Gray interior. Options are everything except Ultra Lux which kills trunk space (and we needed ALL of it on the trip).
Back from our coastal tour of Florida (Brunswick GA to Orange Park to Cocoa Beach to Miami Beach to Key West to Marco Island to Venice to High Springs (Gainesville) to Santa Rosa Beach (Pensacola)). Whew! 2,600 miles, 11 days, wife and I are still speaking, and we never had a bad meal the whole time. The 'gators are in plentiful supply, but the tourists seemed a bit scarce to me. Drove the beach at Daytona and did most of the standard tourist stuff (i.e. dinner on South Beach), while managing to avoid Disney, Busch Gardens, and the like...
At any rate, all the sand has been blown out of the car, all the salt magically removed, and everything spiffed up. I thought I'd post some pics, so here goes. BTW, the car goes in for tinting on Friday and I'll post a few "after" pics this weekend (weather permitting).
Car is stock 2013 LS460 SWB RWD in Nebula Gray with Light Gray interior. Options are everything except Ultra Lux which kills trunk space (and we needed ALL of it on the trip).
Last edited by williakz; 02-26-13 at 12:50 PM.
02-26-13, 01:17 PM
#3
Have the mods delete the other thread and just post all your pics in one thread. With that being said sounds like a great trip! Im too much of a wuss to drive my LS more than 300 miles on a single given day... Did that radar detector work at all lol?
02-26-13, 01:27 PM
#4
Moderator
Nice pics, agreed that the threads need to be merged into one. I am tired of looking at my radar detector even though it has saved my azz a million times. I think i need to invest in the concealed mount laser shifter type setup..very clean and I hear they offer great results.
02-26-13, 02:01 PM
#5
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
Sorry about the double posts, didn't know merge was doable.
On radar detection, there is a HUGE problem that has me stuck. The sh*#-headed Germans (esp VW Group) are producing their collision avoidance systems on the same K-band frequencies American police use (European cops use different freqs). As more and more vehicles come equipped (soon to be ALL if feds have their way) with Blind Spot monitors, parking sensors, radar cruise, and collision avoidance, the airwaves are getting very crowded out there. It's getting to the point where a driver (like me) no longer automatically reacts to K-band alerts due to heavy falsing caused by Audis, Porsches, VW's, BMWs, etc. Problem is the hordes of county police still using K-band radar guns. Turn K-band off to kill falses and you're a sitting duck for the local sheriff.
I was thinking of a built-in system, but with things headed where they are, I no longer have the confidence to spend thousands on countermeasures. And if I can't protect myself against radar, there's no sense in going for any laser countermeasures. It's one big giant mess due to the arrogance of those German engineers. I hate them for that! In the meantime, I have a super sensitive Beltronics RX-65, refurbed by the factory and available on fleabay for under $200. Super quick response with great long-range and off-axis sensitivity to all radar bands (great for catching instant-on scatter coming off other cars). And so I watch and wait...
On radar detection, there is a HUGE problem that has me stuck. The sh*#-headed Germans (esp VW Group) are producing their collision avoidance systems on the same K-band frequencies American police use (European cops use different freqs). As more and more vehicles come equipped (soon to be ALL if feds have their way) with Blind Spot monitors, parking sensors, radar cruise, and collision avoidance, the airwaves are getting very crowded out there. It's getting to the point where a driver (like me) no longer automatically reacts to K-band alerts due to heavy falsing caused by Audis, Porsches, VW's, BMWs, etc. Problem is the hordes of county police still using K-band radar guns. Turn K-band off to kill falses and you're a sitting duck for the local sheriff.
I was thinking of a built-in system, but with things headed where they are, I no longer have the confidence to spend thousands on countermeasures. And if I can't protect myself against radar, there's no sense in going for any laser countermeasures. It's one big giant mess due to the arrogance of those German engineers. I hate them for that! In the meantime, I have a super sensitive Beltronics RX-65, refurbed by the factory and available on fleabay for under $200. Super quick response with great long-range and off-axis sensitivity to all radar bands (great for catching instant-on scatter coming off other cars). And so I watch and wait...
Last edited by williakz; 02-26-13 at 02:11 PM.
02-26-13, 02:01 PM
#6
I merged the threads. Nice pics williakz. Glad to hear you had a great time. Nothing like Lexus reliability. I know some folks with new cars they would never take on a long trip without testing it out for a few months.
As to "wife and I are still speaking", well there's always a glitch after every trip!
As to "wife and I are still speaking", well there's always a glitch after every trip!
02-26-13, 02:04 PM
#7
nice... congratz on the LS. i almost pulled the trigger on the exact same car, color combo and all but decided to wait. i'll go with the SP/Flaxen in a few months. i know the trip was a blast.
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02-26-13, 02:36 PM
#8
nice. was your dynamic radar cruise helpful? I use that all the time on my 04 LS.
02-26-13, 03:39 PM
#9
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
Yes (and no). DRCC definitely has a learning curve associated with it. It works best in the simplest situations and becomes progressively less useful as traffic density - and complexity - increases.
First, the system is quite a bit sloppier in speed regulation mode than I'm used to. My previous LS with "standard" cruise regulated speed to +/- just a few mph. DRCC is happy to let me go 5 to 7 mph over the set speed. That's a bit much if your set peed is already over the posted speed limit (PSL). That said, the system is quite responsive in distance regulation mode, braking almost exactly at the same time I would (so you don't feel panic that the system is sleeping) and applying the brakes firmly but not abruptly. Note that this version of DRCC will brake the car from whatever the set speed is all the way down to a full stop (say for the one red light in a small town along a two-lane highway). When this occurs, you must goose the accelerator just a tad to get DRCC back in action once the light turns green.
The system really fails in moderate to heavy freeway traffic because the separation distance between me and the car ahead is just too large. It encourages cars behind me to pass me on the right and jump into the two-to-three car length space in front of me. When they do, DRCC slows down to maintain its minimum separation and the next guy pulls the same routine and so on and so on. The way to get around this is to override DRCC's gap by closing it manually until conditions become slightly less congested. I should note that if Lexus shortened DRCC's "gap," the system would have to operate much quicker and braking and acceleration would necessarily become somewhat more noticeable, possibly to the point of annoyance.
You must always "tend" the system. If not, you can find yourself in some dicey situations. For example, you're on a 65mph PSL four-lane highway that slows to 55mph then 45mph then 40mph as it passes through a small town with several traffic lights (all green). Your set speed is 73mph and you're in distance regulation mode with the guy in front of you going at exactly the PSL at all times. Eventually you find yourself going 40mph behind him when he decides to move out of your lane so he can pull into the Burger Doodle. If you haven't been paying attention, you'll find yourself doing the PSL (40mph) with a 73mph set speed and an open road ahead. The car will take off like a banshee and you'll be the one screaming! Therefore, I always make sure I'm lowering (and raising) my set speeds as the PSLs go down (and up) even when I'm in distance regulation mode. So, no surprises. Note that this same effect can occur when you change lanes causing the mode to go from distance to speed regulation. You think you're just making an easy lane change out from behind a slowpoke, but the car sees open road and rapidly accelerates to reach its set speed. It is disconcerting to say the least. DRCC demands your attention! Probably it becomes second nature after a while, but I don't have the knack quite yet.
One great feature of Lexus's DRCC implementation is that immediately after actuating it, you can push the wand forward and it will switch into "normal" cruise mode (speed regulation only) so you (or someone leery of DRCC) can still function with a familiar cruise control system.
Addendum: Had several days of rain during the Florida trip. DRCC is very iffy during even moderate rain. It tends to cut out (auto-disengages) when visibility deteriorates. I'm not sure exactly what it "sees" using the camera under the rear-view mirror, but mist thrown up by car tires seems to kill it every time. Don't know about fog.
First, the system is quite a bit sloppier in speed regulation mode than I'm used to. My previous LS with "standard" cruise regulated speed to +/- just a few mph. DRCC is happy to let me go 5 to 7 mph over the set speed. That's a bit much if your set peed is already over the posted speed limit (PSL). That said, the system is quite responsive in distance regulation mode, braking almost exactly at the same time I would (so you don't feel panic that the system is sleeping) and applying the brakes firmly but not abruptly. Note that this version of DRCC will brake the car from whatever the set speed is all the way down to a full stop (say for the one red light in a small town along a two-lane highway). When this occurs, you must goose the accelerator just a tad to get DRCC back in action once the light turns green.
The system really fails in moderate to heavy freeway traffic because the separation distance between me and the car ahead is just too large. It encourages cars behind me to pass me on the right and jump into the two-to-three car length space in front of me. When they do, DRCC slows down to maintain its minimum separation and the next guy pulls the same routine and so on and so on. The way to get around this is to override DRCC's gap by closing it manually until conditions become slightly less congested. I should note that if Lexus shortened DRCC's "gap," the system would have to operate much quicker and braking and acceleration would necessarily become somewhat more noticeable, possibly to the point of annoyance.
You must always "tend" the system. If not, you can find yourself in some dicey situations. For example, you're on a 65mph PSL four-lane highway that slows to 55mph then 45mph then 40mph as it passes through a small town with several traffic lights (all green). Your set speed is 73mph and you're in distance regulation mode with the guy in front of you going at exactly the PSL at all times. Eventually you find yourself going 40mph behind him when he decides to move out of your lane so he can pull into the Burger Doodle. If you haven't been paying attention, you'll find yourself doing the PSL (40mph) with a 73mph set speed and an open road ahead. The car will take off like a banshee and you'll be the one screaming! Therefore, I always make sure I'm lowering (and raising) my set speeds as the PSLs go down (and up) even when I'm in distance regulation mode. So, no surprises. Note that this same effect can occur when you change lanes causing the mode to go from distance to speed regulation. You think you're just making an easy lane change out from behind a slowpoke, but the car sees open road and rapidly accelerates to reach its set speed. It is disconcerting to say the least. DRCC demands your attention! Probably it becomes second nature after a while, but I don't have the knack quite yet.
One great feature of Lexus's DRCC implementation is that immediately after actuating it, you can push the wand forward and it will switch into "normal" cruise mode (speed regulation only) so you (or someone leery of DRCC) can still function with a familiar cruise control system.
Addendum: Had several days of rain during the Florida trip. DRCC is very iffy during even moderate rain. It tends to cut out (auto-disengages) when visibility deteriorates. I'm not sure exactly what it "sees" using the camera under the rear-view mirror, but mist thrown up by car tires seems to kill it every time. Don't know about fog.
Last edited by williakz; 02-26-13 at 06:22 PM. Reason: Added Addendum
02-27-13, 10:37 AM
#11
There is no camera for standard PCS behind the rear view mirror. That's the adaptive headlight camera. Only A-PCS uses a stereo camera mounted behind rear view mirror.
02-27-13, 03:04 PM
#12
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Addendum: Had several days of rain during the Florida trip. DRCC is very iffy during even moderate rain. It tends to cut out (auto-disengages) when visibility deteriorates. I'm not sure exactly what it "sees" using the camera under the rear-view mirror, but mist thrown up by car tires seems to kill it every time. Don't know about fog.
Not sure if it looks at the quality of the radar signal in addition to wiper speed when deciding whether to disengage. The way to check would be to briefly turn the wipers off or slow them down manually after the radar cruise disengages in heavy rain and see if you can re-engage.
02-27-13, 05:58 PM
#13
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
02-27-13, 07:14 PM
#14
Wiiiakz, I don't know if you noticed, but if you hold the CC stalk up or down it will move the set speed in increments of 5 mph. I do this to take it down from a high speed setting to a much lower speed, as in your example in post #9.
02-27-13, 08:12 PM
#15
Lexus Test Driver
Thread Starter
Yup! This is exactly how I "tend" the set speed (PSL + 5mph usually) to prevent ugly surprises when the mode shifts. One funny DRCC incident during the trip: I was in distance regulation going through a small town (to see how slow to stop and restart operated). After umpteen instances of perfect automatic braking for stopped cars, I almost ran a red light. The light ahead of me (no car ahead) changed from green to yellow to red and I kept waiting for the DRCC to brake me to a stop. I had to slam on the brakes when I realized it only stops for stopped vehicles, NOT red lights dangling 15 ft up in the air!
