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HOME MENU OPTIONS PHONE DISPLAY ROUTE DESTINATION INFORMATION SETTINGS |
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ACTIVE BUTTONS: Driver Assistance Warnings and Dynamic Assistance Settings. 1) Regarding the list order, I recommend reversing the first two items because it seems more likely that drivers will want to silence or adjust the warnings systems more often than they'll want to change the settings for the intervention systems. 2) The 'Intelligent Brake Assist (IBA)' on/off button is hidden below and to the left of the steering wheel. Infiniti has purposely made this difficult to see and reach because Infiniti doesn't want the driver to turn off IBA. But since this is yet one more safety system that constantly beeps at the driver (just as LDW, FCW, and BSW do), many drivers may prefer to turn it off more easily. To that end, I recommend adding an on/off preference to the Safety Settings menueither as a redundant function, or to completely replace the hidden button in 2013 models. And if Intiniti feels so strongly about keeping this system on, then I suggest having an alert pop up upon the driver de-selecting 'ON', warning him/her that turning off IBA is not recommended, and giving the reasons why. 3) While the current U.S. 2012 M does not have Daytime Running Lights, the Canadian 2012 M does (because Canada Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108 mandates it). I don't understand why Infiniti has not simply made DRLs standard on all North American models. Nor does it make any sense to me why Infiniti wouldn't want to give its customers the option of including such a feature due to the prevalence of DRLs on many American cars. I strongly recommend that Infiniti add Daytime Running Lights to the 2013 M sold in the U.S., and add an on/off preference for such to the Safety Settings menu. The current procedure for turning off DRLs on a so-equipped M as described on page 2-37 of the manual is bizarre, requiring the driver to apply the parking brake before starting the car to disable DRLs until the engine is turned off/on again. In my opinion, a simple on/off setting as shown above is a much better solution. Note one can force the M to always run with full headlights on by setting the Fog Light Switch to ON and the Headlight Switch to AUTO (see Owner's Manual page 2-39), but I think Infiniti should use a more elegant solution. 4) One final note: I suggest that Infiniti include voice commands for Intelligent Brake Assist and Daytime Running Lights ("Intelligent Brake Assist On," "Intelligent Brake Assist Off," "Daytme Running Lights On," "Daytime Running Lights Off"), all accessible while in 'Alternate Command Mode'. This way the driver could toggle these settings without having to find a button, navigate a series of menus, or look away from the road. |
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