onefastdoc

Well, I was driving my 2014 MDX SH-AWD Advance Ent through Palm Springs and the ambient temp was 93 degrees. I got a warning on my dash that said "LKAS & LDW Can not operate. Camera too hot." WTF? So did Acura not do any hot weather testing on the new MDX? Or maybe they thought that when it gets hot, people wouldn't use the lane keeping assist system and lane departure warning?

What a joke. I emailed Acura customer service and told them my new $60K car sucks. The stereo sucks, the Nav/MFD sucks, this LKAS/LDW failure in hot weather sucks. I hope they listen, or they will one day be out of business. The MDX has been the only Acura worth getting for years, and if they can't sell the MDX, they are done. Just look at their direct competitor Lexus. Model for model, Lexus just makes a better car. Maybe I'm just pissed cuz I jumped ship and went with Acura instead of staying with Lexus and now regret it.

Whatever, I'm done ranting. Guess I'll just have to find some cooler weather to drive in.

RL06tech

Should have read the manual!!! Darn stupid printed material.
BTW, once the interior cools it works again.

The stereo sucks? Really????? My ELS rocks. Even with Bluetooth from HTC one Harman Kardon! LEXUS, really? Ive never driven an RX that holds a candle to the MDX. BTW the ELS makes Lexus Mark Levinson sound like a Toshiba.

Rocket_man

93 degrees is barely warm here. There are nights when it doesn't get below 90 deg.

You mean the manual says these features don't work when its hot?

mrgold35

Can you set the A/C to come out the windshield defrost vents to cool the camera?

93 ambient air temp in the southwest in direct sunlight can mean 120-160 degrees on the surface to the touch; especially darker colors. 93 in AZ feels a lot hotter than 93 in GA when you touch your steering wheel that was sitting in direct sunlight for a few hours. The camera processor would also be in the same temp range or +120 degrees trying to work.

Acura figured it wasn't worth the extra cost to improve the tolerance range since 1% of 1% of all owners would encounter this issue.

Edward'TLS

Damn, electronic things didn't work in the 2014 MDX when it got too cold the past winter, and now also when it gets too hot.

Not too good with such limited operation temp range.

RL06tech

Lets be clear at 90 degrees a car left in the sun will have a temperature that can reach 140 degrees, no CCD in the market regardless of device will work at that temp, Im sure that the camera for the LKAS is set to turn off at a much lower temp simply as a safety issue. The same issue in the cold, for example my 3000 dollar D 800 sensor is not rated to function below 0 degress farenheit, plus, as a video camera it can only work for 30 minutes at a stretch without turning off for heat management. Ergo this is not a Honda issue, its a technology issue that will affect all similar video systems. Once the camera reaches it operating temp it will work just fine, that's what the AC is for anyway. However given that the sensor is right beneath the windshield, I wouldn't be surprised that in desert temps of 100 or more not even the AC will do the trick. Again Im surprised how people buy something that is more than 50K, and don't even bother to read the manual before using it. Using the camera analogy again, its one twentieth of the MDX's price yet it has a 500 page manual, that if you don't read every page of it you cant operate 75% of the device. Why anyone would think that a modern car with dozens of complicated electronic subsytems would be any different is beyond comprehension. A modern luxury car is significantly more complicated than a basic Cesna, yet, before you fly a Cesna you have to spend mths taking classes. Same thing applies to large boats, everyday I see morons piloting 500K yatchs that don't have a clue of how to operate a digital throttle, the navigation aids or a basic 2 way radio, however, all they have to do is plunk down some money and drive off! Mayday, Mayday! Danger Will Robinson!

kinmanc

RL06tech, are you saying that MDX owners who have this happening to them are lazy morons who do not read the manual and do not know how to drive? The manual only warns you that the camera may not work when it gets too hot, but it does not tell you HOW to prevent it from happening. This is happening just because we drive our car on a hot day, how can it be our fault?

I understand that the camera can get very hot under the sun, but that's something that Acura must have known also. Acura could have done something to cool the camera, like putting a fan or routing some AC air to it. If the car is designed to work under normal driving conditions, including hot days, then it must work. Otherwise it is a design flaw.

I have this happening twice last month! I live in northern California, and it wasn't even that hot.

mrgold35

Acura might modify the camera by the MMC if enough owners notify their dealerships about the problem and the conditions when the systems fails. Maybe the system tolerance might be lower than Acura is expecting to see normally.

RL06tech

There are a plethora of instances in which the system will not work, rain, snow, fog, wet pavement, sun right ahead, dirty windshield, etc. All are germane to using an optical system, if you have trouble seeing the lines the camera will too! In fact the system works best at night where the LEDs offer excellent contrast. The manual covers many of the limitations. In fact all similar systems on the market suffer the same limitations since they are made by the same company! Thus I think its idiotic to complain about Acura when its system is as good or bad as everyone elses. In my experience the system works 95% of the time. That's pretty darned good for brand new tech that has well known limitations, Its an assist device not a critical component of the vehicle. Just as the radar cruise, it doesn't make a self driving car. However you're glad you have it when you have to drive 600 boring highway miles through South Dakota with virtually no driver input other to see where you are going.

Rocket_man

Most dashcams would have no problem working at these temps. If Acura picked a camera with such poor temp range then shame on them. As for reading the manual before operating.... I guess I'd assume like most buyers that the features they advertise will work during expected operating temps. Otherwise they should more openly disclose this. Not many people read the owners manual BEFORE they buy the car. I think Acura could have spec'd more appropriate parts to make sure these safety features work when you drive the car as the owner expects. One more lesson on how cheap Acura is getting and one more thing to look out for on the TLX as it probably has the same camera.

RL06tech

A dashcam does not sit in a sealed enclosure at the top of the windshield.

Rocket_man

Actually it pretty much does. They do have small vents though, so why then would Acura seal the enclosure? Doesn't sound smart. I'm just saying there is no engineering reason why this has to be, it is just laziness of the designer. They may have found this during testing and instead of fixing it they just put a comment in the owners manual that basically says... "The parts we picked and the design we made means this thing over heats and won't work until it cools off. Sorry, but putting this disclaimer in the owners manual is easier than fixing it. Maybe we'll do better next time. It is partly your fault for living where it gets hot so don't blame us completely."

You know, they could have put a similar statement to cover their @$$ on the dampers... "The dampers we put on this car don't work well in the cold. In fact they are downright annoying. We're too cheap and lazy to fix it, so this warning in the manual says that this is expected behavior and you're stuck with it. If you want a quieter car you should have paid more."

Edward'TLS

If Acura doesn't seal the enclosure, then moisture will creep in and fog up the inside glass, which will then fuck up the camera operation big time.

Just remember how the interior windows all got fogged up during the cold and wet days.