LR4 Tow Assist - does it exist?

[machmike]

I have a question, is the zoom automatic? because i'm not getting the 20x zoom the manual states. I just get the line, which isn't aligned to my hitch at all it is off about 6 inches from center.

 

[Gmosley]

Mine automatically zooms in on the hitch when the car is within a few inches

 

[machmike]

Gmosley,

Does this happen when you have the tow assist all set up? or does it just happen by default? I'm not getting anything either way.

 

[Gmosley]

I didn't have the feature until they did the program update.

 

[LR4Dave]

For what it's worth, I also have this problem on my 2015 LR4 which came from the factory with the tow package. When setting up Tow Assist, the alignment box is also off to the left. Also, when using the hitch assist guidance line, the red ball doesn't line up with the actual tow ball - it is to the left. I previously owned a 2010 LR4 with tow Assist, and everything was dead on center. Maybe something setup/adjusted wrong from the factory?

Dave.

 

[machmike]

Gmosely,

I just set up mine again with my new radar stickers. The box is off center and that is perfectly OK. Once it goes green on the sticker it is easer to set the width of the trailer.
I get the hitch line and red dot (like I did before) but it won't zoom. So i probably have a software bug/glitch or my tongue is too high or something.

Make sure you set your Foot to millimeters correctly as it makes a difference. I wasn't paying attention and was setting entire trailer length instead of to the middle of the axle.

You don't need to drive forward and backward for it to complete setup like the videos show. That must be an older requirement.

The trailer Tow assist really just gives you a new set of lines when backing up that indicate the direction the trailer is turning in reverse, not the car from what I can tell.

 

[manoftaste]

Glad i found this thread.

Tried towing for the first time, a UHaul 4'X9' open trailer (UHaul calls is Motorcycle trailer).

Spent about an hour trying to setup the Tow Assist feature, but no luck. Followed the directions in the video and all, tried placing the three-dot sticker different places but the box never turned green. Performed the setup procedure with Goods, General, car, bot options in the list, but to no avail.

Also, I never got that prompt: "Has a trailer been connected? Yes/No?" All my electrics (turn signals, tail lights, brake lights etc) on the trailer all worked fine. The trailer came with a flat type 4-way connecter so thats what I connected to my truck.

The orange box on my MY16 is also on the left side of the screen (a smaller darker orange box within a bigger and more transparent orange box).

Really wanted this thing to work but it was getting late so decided to proceed without the setup. Moving process took a little longer than anticipated, missed the storage facility closing time, so ended up bringing the trailer home. Tried backing up the train into my narrow driveway but being a newbie, couldn't do it. Parking on my street was pretty full. Thats the time I really realized and wished that this Tow Assist feature had worked for me. Luckily a car or two pulled out clearing a large space on the curbside and I was able to semi-parallal park on the street, but took me forever of forward and reversing.

The Hitch Assist feature gives me also a yellow line with a red ball but this graphics red ball is a bit off from the actual hitch ball, and my zoom feature also does not activate when I get close to the trailer hitch.

 

[DrMorison]

I have a 2016 LR4 with the Tow Assist features, and I have never been able to get any of the towing features to work. The box NEVER turns green, even if I walk around behind the truck holding the sticker in various places. And there is no hitch ball zoom feature for some reason. It would be nice to have the features, but I'm certainly not going to pay some dealership to try and sort it out. The truck tows great and all the lights work. Good enough for me.

 

[machmike]

I pretty sure you have to have the optional "Vision" package for the tow assist to work fully. The tow assist will give you visual guides that show the trailers trajectory while backing up and turning the wheel.

There are Three elements to the towing features with the LR4.

1) Tow Package option - Includes wiring harness and program upgrade to the LR4 computer, 3 dot sticker for calibration. Recognizes the trailer is hooked up and automatically adjusts your gear duration accordingly while towing.
2) Dynamic assist - Keeps your LR4 from losing control if swerving is required while towing - This is built in. It also negates the need for a balancing hitch. In fact LR recommends you don't use one. That being said people have been using balancing hitches without issue so whatever......(lets not talk about it).
3) Vision Package - Enables the zoom to hitch (works like 1% of the time) but you can manually select the camera to show the hitch in glorious LOW resolution. It also shows trailer trajectory with yellow and red lines so you can back into planned parking location with only the use of the rear camera visualized on the center screen.

Would anyone like me to create a totally low rent video to show how everything should look when attaching, hitching, backing up and calibrating?

 

[Gmosley]

I gave up on ever expecting this to work. I have the Tow Package, hitch, stickers, vision package, etc...it just never worked as advertised. The only thing I wish I could make work is having the park assist shut off automatically when backing up with the boat.