Surround Camera System - Non off road uses

[gmag24]

Guys,

So I elected for the vision assist package. I'm just wondering what value you guys have found in the surround camera feature in more urban/suburban settings. I love the front and back cameras, no doubt, but just wanted to see the practical uses for the surround. I guess really beyond parking, there obviously can't be much?

 

[umbertob]

Near-zero value for me beyond their off road usefulness (if I had a trailer hooked up I may be singing a different tune.) The side, under-mirror cameras show you exactly how far your front wheels and side panels are from hard to spot obstacles, so I guess they will help if you are a bit, uh, curbside parking challenged (you can still scrape the rear wheels though, since those are just outside of their field of vision.) They can be truly invaluable off road, however.

The two front cameras are a bit of a waste IMHO. They should have mounted them on the respective corners of the front bumper to offer a useful view of street / sidewalk traffic when exiting an alley, for example. In their current position, partially recessed on the trim above the license plate, they both show pretty much the same fairly narrow view. A single camera in the middle of the bumper would have done the same job with less complexity.

The rear camera, thanks to its superimposed "dynamic" steering lines that bend according to your steering angle, is by far the most useful feature of the surround camera system for non off-road use as it predicts very accurately where your car or trailer are headed when backing up.

 

[gmag24]

Umberto,

Thanks for the reply! Yeah, that's pretty much what I figured. At least I got the Xenon lights out of it. I find more value in that then the side cameras.

If I recall correct, from an earlier post, you too are from LA. Cheers!

 

[NASdiesel]

I find it useful for curbside parking in the city. Use it all the time to make sure I don't park too far off or too close to the curbs which can be tall granite pieces that eats wheels and lower door fascia.

 

[umbertob]

The two front cameras are a bit of a waste IMHO. They should have mounted them on the respective corners of the front bumper to offer a useful view of street / sidewalk traffic when exiting an alley, for example.

Well, it looks like they did just that on the upcoming 2014... Those dots on the corner of the bumper look like the relocated front cameras. Much better position.

 

[spizzi]

Yeah, that's pretty much what I figured. At least I got the Xenon lights out of it. I find more value in that then the side cameras.

This is the only reason why I would have elected for the Vision Assist had I gone with a non-LUX HSE.

 

[Lone Star landy]

Parking and reversing.