SAFETY- Would you purchase a car with automatic braking?

No. No. The 'Brake auto assist' so-called safety feature leads to driver complacency and is more of a hazard than a a safety feature. .. Oh, I can turn and slap my three kids in the back seat. "MOM he touched me" .. " Well she was breathing MY air" Ok kids, while we are going 65 on the Interstate I don't have to worry, the car will take care of its self.... --- My Opinion Mark

I agree, and do not like the idea of not having control over my vehicle. It is like taking any responsibility away from the driver. Does this mean he/she can drive drunk?

Exactly Rowefast. AWD is one thing to assist an inexperienced driver on ..say...ice. But you nailed it. ... °°° geez. dude it's almost *hic* 2 am but no * hic* °°worries, if my car °°° heads for a *hic* tree my computer will take over and call a UBER or a cab. What *hic* say we have anoder round on *hic* me*

Well, it's possible to turn this feature on and off? In bumper to bumper traffic situations or for inattentive drivers, I could see how this might be helpful. I really don't think anyone expects the driver to intentionally take their eyes off the road and turn around to talk with people in the back seat? And, driving under the influence is a really bad thing, who would do that? You're putting yourself and others in great harm. SO, what do think about SELF DRIVING GOOGLE CARS.? They could be here in 5 years? Talk about giving up control? Once the insurance industry and automakers get this going, it will likely change the way people drive at least in urban areas. They'll probably sock it to people who want to continue driving a "non-self driving car". At least in large cities like LA, I can see how this will greatly reduce traffic accidents and fatalities. There's going to have to be an option for going out on the road. No self driving car will work with my teardrop trailer.

Mark, you hit the keyword. --inattentive drivers-- either pay attention or call a cab. And Self-Driving Google cars a WAY more than 5 years away. More like 20. or 30.

David, I pay very close attention, but, I've been in a couple of rear enders, don't like it. I drove 25 miles each way in bumper to bumper traffic here in LA for twenty years. After a couple of accidents, I decided to take the train. My stress level dropped a lot and I enjoy driving again even more. You can definitely control what you do, the problem is the other drivers. Sorry to disagree, but, I think Google cars may be here sooner than you think. It's going to be a difficult switch for a lot of people. Believe me, there's lots of drivers here who really need a Google car. And, when I'm driving with the trailer, I need to be extra vigilant and anticipate what people will do even more. The length of my trailer with the car is 28 feet. Finally, the only thing great about Google cars are the test vehicles have gone 1 million miles without an accident that they caused. All of the accidents that they're involved in has been the other drivers fault.

See this link, http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2015/01/15/google- expects-public-in-driverless-cars-in-2-to-5-years/

Mark. No apology necessary for a friendly gentleman's disagreement. But I stand behind my words. Also I would like to clarify a point --- when you say and I quote "I've been in a couple of rear enders" does that mean somebody drilled you or you rear-ended somebody?

Honestly, I have been hit twice, and I failed to stop in time once. It happens, especially in stop and go traffic where cars speed up or suddenly pull in front of you and just stop. That's why they're called accidents. I don't know where you live, but, Los Angeles traffic is the second busiest area in the USA, sometimes, we're number one. Not a good thing to brag about. It's very intense here, and over the years, things have changed bringing drivers in from all sorts of different places who unfortunately don't always follow the expected rules of the road. For example, we're all taught, at least I was in driver's training, you should always pull to the right for emergency vehicles. Well, only one half of the people do that and it causes problems. Did you see my question about the Sprinter? I may have put that in another thread.

David, just read your post on the Sprinter, thanks.

The Sprinter has a turbocharged diesel-powered engine with 188 horsepower and 325 foot pounds of torque. I'm looking at it for a small motor home. We're thinking of a used one, they get 20 mpg. I've never had a diesel. I'm just thinking about it right now and doing some research. I wouldn't want to get into this and find that they're just as problematic as the VW diesel-powered cars. These engines certainly have a lot of torque, but, they're no rockets, it takes 19.6 seconds for an 11,500 pound coach to reach 60 mph. And, they use the Mercedes Benz 5 speed transmission. A few years ago, they used an inline Five with a 2.7 litre. For a vehicle this size, I would definitely rather have a V6.