Sudden braking (2024 HEV)

[MrChumley]

I’ve had my new Ultimate a couple of weeks so still getting used to it.

Yesterday, I was approaching a roundabout when the car in front pulled away then stopped as someone came from the right. I lifted my right foot enough to keep my distance, but the car had other ideas and hit the brakes so hard I nearly went through the windscreen and the car behind me nearly ended up in my boot. Given I was a few yards behind the car in front, and I have whatever the “safety” feature is called set to “late” intervention, this seemed both unnecessary and unhelpful.

Is this normal, or is something not working properly?

[pharaoh]

I have never had this happen in my Tucson, but I have experienced it in a previous Skoda a few times and it's very disconcerting and possibly dangerous in some circumstances.
Back to the Tucson: Mine is a 2022 model and I assume yours is the updated version, so some things have changed in the way some safety systems work.
I'll base my comments on my car and you can decide whether they're applicable to yours.

The system you refer to is labelled Forward Safety in the settings in the infotainment screen. In the sub menu of that are Active Assist, Warning Only and Off.
Mine is on Active Assist by default as that's what the setting reverts to every time the ignition is switched off and then on again.
If you choose to select Warning or Off, you will have to do that each time you start the car. This might have changed in your model, although I doubt it.
If as you say, yours is set to Late Assist, you'll probably find you need to enter that setting each time you turn on the ignition. It's somewhat annoying, but that's how many of these safety systems are set up in the factory.
There is no option on my screen to alter the sensitivity of the radar that picks up other cars.

Why yours appears to be so sensitive I don't know, but I think it might be something you need to get used to if you don't alter the setting every trip.
Maybe worth speaking to your dealer if you get no helpful replies here.

[Pogleswood]

Having recently swapped from a 2022 Tuscon Hybrid to a 2024 hybrid Hyundai have made the Forward Collision Assist a lot more more sensitive than the previous version, presumably to meet current NCAP requirements, ours has caught me out on a couple of occasions recently mainly with vehicles in front turning left slowly, although you can turn the feature off I do worry that in the event of an accident it could cause issues with any insurance claim.

[MrChumley]

Thanks for the replies. Seems like yet another safety feature that hasn’t been thought through properly. I’ll have another play with the settings and see what, if anything, is saved once set.

[pharaoh]

although you can turn the feature off I do worry that in the event of an accident it could cause issues with any insurance claim.

If you turn off the feature, does it revert to ON when you switch off/on the ignition ?
If it reverts to ON, then by the time any insurance assessor get to view the car, the feature will have reverted to ON. Just a thought.

[Pogleswood]

although you can turn the feature off I do worry that in the event of an accident it could cause issues with any insurance claim.

If you turn off the feature, does it revert to ON when you switch off/on the ignition ?
If it reverts to ON, then by the time any insurance assessor get to view the car, the feature will have reverted to ON. Just a thought.

In theory yes, but the eCall SOS is automatically triggered once airbags are deployed in the event of an accident along presumably with a log that stores the status of the vehicles systems prior to the accident, I do know this is the case in the US where similar systems have been used for many years, and can’t imagine that Hyundai will have changed the system much for European regulations.

[pharaoh]

presumably with a log that stores the status of the vehicles systems prior to the accident

I did wonder if that might be the case. However, as the Forward Collision system gives us the option to turn it off I fail to see how an insurance company could withhold a payout if we'd done so, although I'm sure the baskets would try.

[MrChumley]

It’s an interesting point. I don’t think there’s anything in my policy that says any particular feature of the car has to be activated. If you turned something off by reprogramming the car, I think insurers could object, but if it’s a menu option I don’t see how they could.

On a related point, some years ago when I declared parking sensors as an optional extra, my premium went up because, in the words of the insurer, these safety features tend to cause more accidents due to drivers becoming complacent.

[pharaoh]

my premium went up because, in the words of the insurer, these safety features tend to cause more accidents due to drivers becoming complacent.

Whilst insurers will put up their prices for the smallest reason, they do have a point. Drivers are being conditioned to become too reliant on electronic aids and are losing the capacity to think for themselves and use their common sense.

[MrChumley]

Just to follow up on this, the Forward Safety feature does come back on when the engine is turned off and on again, but it keeps the "Late" setting. I think what happened must have been an aberration though, as I came much closer (but not close) to rear-ending someone a couple of days ago when they braked rather suddenly, and all I got were a few beeps and a message saying "warning only".