W213 lane change assist -possible to activate retrospectively?

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

Proeliator2001

Active Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2015
Messages
64
Car
W213 220d AMG P+
I've got a w213 with the full drive pilot package. It's an early 2016 car so was out before the lane change assist was deemed legal in the UK. I'm assuming it's legal now as i see it offered in the merc configurator.

I've got all the right hardware so i wondered if it's possible to retrospectively activate it within the software. I asked my dealer to look at it during the first service i had done earlier in the week and they've said nothing about it and the feature isn't working/but present in assistant menu. They seem to give up immediately with things line this so does any enlightened soul here know if it's possible or not?
 
MB may not support the 'retrofitting' of this function, in which case the dealership can't do anything.
Current models require software downloads from MB to enable functions so it may be impossible without factory support.
If it's at all possible the guys from Comand.co.uk are the ones to approach.
 
As above, comandonline.co.uk would know the answer... but in essence on my W204 (if this is anything to go by) the lane keeping assist - not the active one - requires two radar sensors on each side behind the rear bumper, two new wing mirrors, new steering column with vibration, and possibly also a front-facing camera on the windscreen or even new windscreen with camera... not sure about the front-facing camera but either way it will not be cheap.
 
Last edited:
...I've got all the right hardware...

Which hardware bits are you referring to specifically? You seem to suggest that MB fitted all the bits then somehow disabled this feature?
 
Last edited:
I've got a w213 with the full drive pilot package. It's an early 2016 car so was out before the lane change assist was deemed legal in the UK. I'm assuming it's legal now as i see it offered in the merc configurator.

I've got all the right hardware so i wondered if it's possible to retrospectively activate it within the software. I asked my dealer to look at it during the first service i had done earlier in the week and they've said nothing about it and the feature isn't working/but present in assistant menu. They seem to give up immediately with things line this so does any enlightened soul here know if it's possible or not?

I would be surprised if the hardware is all there. Mercedes are not known for fitting parts that 'might' be needed in future.

In order to work out if it can be retrofitted/enabled i will need your full VIN number emailed to me at [email protected]
 
I'd be utterly amazed if the car doesn't have the required hardware. As i said, it's got the full drive pilot package so has blind spot assist, autonomous steering, stop start pilot, blind spot assist etc etc. It has sensors and radars and cameras coming out it's rear end :). It won't undertake cars if driving above 55mph on adaptive cruise so it can see what's in other lanes front and back.

The only thing it should need to be able to change lane is software. I'm sure it was disabled only due to legislation at the time it was sold. I'd hoped a simple software update would restore functionality and that merc would be doing it as a matter of course. They sold remote parking as pre-installed (since it needs the remote control module along with surround cameras) whilst waiting for the law to catch up so i dont see why they couldn't do the same with lane change assist. Mine doesn't have surround cameras, but i don't think lane change would use or rely on it and you don't need 360 camera to select it on the configurator if memory serves.

All the above reminds me how bloody complex cars are these days. I started driving with manual choke carburetors and here I am wondering if the car will change lane for me!
 
...but in essence on my W204 (if this is anything to go by) the lane keeping assist - not the active one - requires two radar sensors on each side behind the rear bumper, two new wing mirrors, new steering column with vibration, and possibly also a front-facing camera on the windscreen or even new windscreen with camera... not sure about the front-facing camera but either way it will not be cheap.

Ignore me... got it all wrong :(
 
Email sent. I'll update thread if i hear back.
 
Hi all, new to the forum as i found this thread while searching as I wondered the same.

I asked Mercedes this as they have added Lane Change Assist to the 2017 configurator for saloon and coupe (I haven't checked the others). Mine is a June 2016 dealer ex demo with Drive Pilot.

Response from Mercedes is not promising:

"Following enquiries with our Technical Specialists, I can confirm that even though you do have the Drive Pilot option, it will not be possible to adapt your car for Active Lane Change Assist. There are currently no plans to make this function available for UK cars.

I am sorry if this is disappointing news, but hope that I have been able to clarify the present information that we have. Should you have any other requirements please do not hesitate to contact me or any of my colleagues."


I am disappointed by this because I am not aware of any technical reason why they couldn't add it. It has been available from launch in other markets.
The only issue I could see is (a) effort and (b) explaining to owners that their car's behaviour will be different than before.
 
I got a similar, if poorer, response...

"Regarding your recent enquiry into your car’s command system, we have spoken to our technical department who have advised that there is no direct retrofit of this system currently available. We would still suggest you go to get in touch with your local Mercedes Benz Retailer about a possible individual solution."

I like the misspelling of COMAND!

It sounds like a cop out to me too, it's got to be software only unless the turn signal isn't on the canbus or something seemingly trivial like which would scupper a software update activating this feature. Oh well, I'm not overly bothered i just hoped it was now possible to get what should have been on the car from day one.
 
I am guessing here... but perhaps there is no software adaptation for RHD vehicles yet? Might be worth checking if it is available for the Japanese market?
 
It's listed as available feature in the online UK configurator, as i mentioned and as poster above mentioned. It's why we both went looking to see if it could be simply enabled on cars built before legislation caught up.

And besides, you're argument is flawed, the car can change lanes left and right so it doesn't matter if its left or right hand drive. Be a bit pointless if it could only ever auto lane change in one direction ;). The logic should be indicator pointing left, is there a lane to the left, is any vehicle in the way now or imminently, assuming all good steer the vehicle across.
 
WTF is a "possible individual solution"?? :)
Does that mean if you slip them a tenner they'll enable it?

I assume there are no technical restrictions to enable this because the prerequisites are fitted to the car. As far as I can tell these are:
- stereo forward facing camera, used for lane identification and tracking
- Blind spot assist radar for detecting obstacles either side of car
- Steering assist for keeping vehicle in lane (and therefore able to apply force to steering system to move it out of lane)
- Comand Online with GPS mapping to verify road is a dual carriageway (not 100% it uses this data)

I also assume they created a single build of the software globally and enable and disable features based on the local market and customer selected options.
Therefore, I assume:
- The functionality was developed, validated and released during vehicle development and disabled for early UK models in the configuration due to the local law. The 2017 models are not running some new version of software specifically with this feature added - it was always there, just disabled in 2016 cars.
- The functionality works both sides of the vehicle irrespective of the side of the road the local market drives on
- A dealer does not need to install new firmware or carry out any kind of post-installation tests to validate it, and no additional development work is needed to validate it on our vehicles.

With all this in mind, the only reason I can think of for not enabling it on our 2016 cars is that they would have to communicate this new feature and it's behaviour to vehicle owners.
You can imagine if you had driven the car for a year with Drive Pilot without this function (and didn't know about it), went for the service where they enabled the feature and didn't explicitly tell you about it, the first time you put on the turn signal while using Drive Pilot, it could be quite the shock! In short, it's more work for no more revenue but a slightly higher risk of grief from unsuspecting customers!

I went back to Mercedes saying I was disappointed and I suggested that if customers asked for it, they should permit the dealers to do it (since if you ask for it, you probably know about it, how it works etc.). I guess it could be off by default and you have to enable it from the menu.

No response so far, but not expecting one either. It's not the end of the world, and it's fun to sometimes get back involved with driving the car. Like the olden days.
 
Bridawg, some of your assumptions are likely to be wrong, as motor manufacturers don't quite work the way you expect, so there may well have been a software update to become compliant with whatever UK legislation had to be worked around. The main reason (i'm a cynic) they don't retrofit functionality is that they want you to buy a new car, and each extra feature will help with a few people buying a new car.

Please can you contact us via Mercedes Retrofit Specialist - Comand.co.uk (tell Alfie message is for Richard, and tell me your VIN) - I do recon this is probably possible to enable with ensuring all the related control units have the latest firmware etc etc etc

Cheers
Richard
 
Hi All,

New the forums here but on this topic, I have just placed an order for a new E Class. I have gone for the driver assistance plus package and my order form does state lane change assist on there, however, I do not expect it to actually be enabled. It was disabled from the beginning by Mercedes when the car was launched because its not legal here in the UK (and other parts of Europe, only Germany has it enabled I believe - Mercedes are lobbying the EC to get it legalised).
If it were to be enabled by updating software, that would make it a modified car and if anything were to happen, from an insurance point of view, you wouldn't be covered and you could be prosecuted.
I fully believe that all that is required is a software update to enable it once it is legal here in the UK but the million dollar question is whether Mercedes will allow it for existing cars with all the prerequisite technology. Im hoping they won't be douches and say yes!
I confirmed with my dealer before ordering whether it was enabled or not and they said no, not in the UK market.

Have a look here if you want further reading on the subject:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/new-laws-see-driverless-cars-9725714
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/...cle-insurance-and-electric-car-infrastructure
https://www.engadget.com/2016/05/18/queens-speech/

MercBoy2017
 
Last edited:
Quick update
I got my W213 in late June and am loving it. Very nice interior with nice options.
One of the options I chose was the driving assistance package and I can CONFIRM that my car does have active lane change assist. To be clear, when drive pilot is engaged, I put my signal indicator on for 2 seconds and it does change Lane (and speed up if the adaptive cruise is set to faster than what I was overtaking). You can change lane without anything in front of you as well.
This did completely surprise me as I didn't think it would be enabled until the new motor related laws were put before parliament.
Might be worth trying on your car to see if a OTA software update has brought in this functionality.
MercBoy2017
 
Might be worth trying on your car to see if a OTA software update has brought in this functionality.
MercBoy2017

Good news. Considering the OTA SW update, I doubt apply to any drive train components, just telematics/entertainment. An update on the workshop data might have been made and a workshop visit could make a difference.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom