What it has though is far less sophisticated than the technology that we are seeing coming out in cars now. Your 4 Runner also has throttle by wire and brake by wire with an electronic actuator.

A car can't drive itself if it requires physical movement of the throttle cable to accelerate or if it requires physical engagement of the brake pedal to stop.

 

Like Steve said, I'd have no issue with it. Brake by wire systems have been in use for quite a while, and I've never even heard of the pedal hydraulics ever being activated other than in manufacturer testing/certification.

And you just know there will have to be a failsafe before it gets approved, just like trucks with air brakes. They have service brakes provided by mechanical springs, and the air pressure actually keeps the springs compressed so the brakes don't apply. Any leak or failure in the system and they return to the default state of being fully applied. I suspect the drive-by-wire equivalent will be a little more elegant than that, but expect to see a similar concept at play.

 

It's not necessarily a true or complete brake-by-wire system, but, yes, it does use a electronic booster, on that you are correct. It has already had a safety-recall.....fortunately not with my VIN.

https://www.motorsafety.org/tag/2020...ore-gx-recall/

Having said that, I'll admit I like the feel of the GX's brakes.....and a number of reviewers have also mentioned it. They have that same now-instant response to the pedal, without any significant free-play, that one used to feel in German sport-sedans......maybe still in your S560.

 

It is a brake by wire system, its just a half measure between the two. The position of the brake pedal tells the brake actuator how much pressure to exert on the hydraulic brake system...electronically.

 

Like I said above (I was probably editing it when you replied)...I do like the feel of it. It reminds me of past German sport-sedans with the instant response....without being too touchy.

 

Since this thread is 'bout headlight's......It'd sure be great if the i/p lighting wasn't lit up unless the headlights are on, as I see many ppl drive w/ either drl's or no headlights on at all in the middle of the night....Yea I see a difference w/ xenox's vs led's..... I like the warmer daylight lighting of the xenox's than other hid's as well as the instant on as other hid's that need to be warmed up. Great thread btw.......

 

I drove the Pacifica at night for the first time in a long time, I was surprised by how yellow the HIDs looked after being used to the LEDs in the Mercedes

 

I do agree with the CR article, halogens do get the job done effectively when done right.

There is just nothing high tech or neat about them. My Dad had a '97 740iL and the headlights were insane, non-HID. That was almost 25 years ago and I still remember being wowed by them.

LED is cool but honestly I think a good HID setup is probably best, blending performance with ease of service. AFAIK you can just swap out HID bulbs. Ballasts go but that's not nearly as common.

 

Does the Pacifica have the automatic high-beam/low-beam dimming like my Encore GX does? As I mentioned earlier in the thread, that is one feature that, while still not quite perfect (maybe 98-99%) has improved tremendously over the years....especially compared to those absolute junk-dimmers of the 60s.

 

You think that until you have a car with LEDs, they really are superior. I wouldn't go back to HIDs. LED headlight failures are very rare.

Compare them to the LED or Laser headlights on a 2021 7 Series, no comparison.

Yep, it does. Works great.

 

It's about time that Chrysler used some reliable electronics.


(just kidding)

 

riding motorcycles here in Eastern WA black darkness on an ‘03 Road King I outdrove the stock headlights at 35-40. Installed HID and the light let me see a deer standing broadside in the road AND NOT LOOKING AT ME - so no eyes reflecting. Had the plenty of time to stop safely.
When I moved to the Ultra Classic in 2008 there was an LED Hi-Low headlight option. It had heat sinks that could be contorted to fit the housing- they were still working on the heat dissipation then. Light quality reminded me of a Cessna landing light.

In 2013 I installed HID in my Prius V - last year 1 burned out and this year the wiring harness for the HID failed- both replaced for NC by manufacturer.

I picked up an ‘04 SC430 last year and it has OEM HIDs with no issues. Will probably replace with LEDs when needed.

Bottom line for me I agree with an earlier comment that you don’t realize how drastic a difference from Halogens - which I thought were great versus the old headlights.

 

Agree. Once you have LEDs, it is impossible to think back to what was before.

 

Haha its true!

Same with HIDs vs Halogen, hard to go backwards

 

On a motorcycle quality headlight is of utmost importance, even more so than a car. For the bike in the photo, I actually ordered a new "adaptive" headlight from JW speaker, which has a lean sensor and additional light elements that light up into the curve, unlike regular headlights that point the light away from the direction of the curve when you're leaning the bike into it. Great new tech that is made possibly only with LEDs.


The old headlight is Denali M5, it is a very high quality light, but it has no adaptive function. I've installed it onto my other bike to replace it's old halogen one. Day and night difference.