Advice on Parking Heater and Adaptive Cruise please?

[bullock]

Hi all, brilliant forums here; really helped with deciding on my first Transporter

I'd value opinions on the ONLY two undecided specs from my Kombi T32 204 DSG Highline build. I have ticked too many boxes and wondering if I should back-track on 2 options...

The van will be multi-purpose, used for work, as a car and also occasional camping. I've never had a parking heater before but it seems like (with some good insulation) the factory-fit heater could keep us cosy all night? it's a big spend so was worried it may be too loud to run during the night if on a campsite? It seems logical to get it factory fitted, with the aux heater and 2nd battery to save the work pulling the van apart again?

The other query is the adaptive cruise with city braking etc. Am I being sucked in?! I pay quite a lot of attention when I drive, do I suddenly need this assistance? They make all the options sound so appealing, it's hard to see through the marketing sometimes

Grateful for any thoughts

Was told today that the comfort dash is no longer available on Kombi... Bit of a letdown tbh, it gave some valuable storage grrrr

 

[Pauly]

I would look at it on the basis that if you didnt have the heater and second battery would you end up putting it in later so you could go camping ? If so then i would defo spec it and save yourdelf the heartache and inconvenience later plus it will all be under warranty with VW
ACC im not so sure about, never tried a vehicle with it so dont know how good/useful it is so comes down to personal preference i suppose

Not heard about the comfort dash being gone, dont just believe your dealer i would definitely make some inquiries as plenty of dealers have told people no simply because they are not aware/dont know how, personally i would ring VWCS and confirm with them before ordering if you want it !

 

[DaveyB]

Agree with Pauly. Have driven a car with the acc and city breaking, and personally did not like it. Definitely recommend getting on to VWCV regarding comfort dash and would not believe a word that comes out of a stealers mouth. Some can claim ignorance as they just don't know any better, others just can't be arsed to find out. The have been posts on here whereby folk have called VWCV who have then called to educate the dealer and lo-and-behold van arrives with comfort dash.

 

[pezzas]

Acc is ace! One of the main reasons I went with a t6 tbh. Slow moving traffic is a pleasure but motorway rush hour, it does leave too much of a gap for my liking.
From my perspective you can retro fit the leisure battery and heater but acc will be a one shot deal...
Let us know how you get on

 

[Loz]

I had ACC on my previous car and loved it so we got it again on our T6 not disappointed, plus the city breaking will be a compulsory item in the near future just like ABS is now according my man at Thatcham. So as insurance companies begin to recognise AEB as a claim saving feature you may benefit in the future with it.

 

[Twoguns]

Acc is ace! One of the main reasons I went with a t6 tbh. Slow moving traffic is a pleasure but motorway rush hour, it does leave too much of a gap for my liking.
From my perspective you can retro fit the leisure battery and heater but acc will be a one shot deal...
Let us know how you get on

You can change the gap. I think there's five levels you can change. I also love it, favourite option on the whole van, really useful when your stuck behind the 40mph gang on 60mph roads who can't maintain a constant speed. Takes a little getting used to, to have the confidence that it will break for you but once used to it its a really relaxing drive.

 

[Gareth]

Sorry to jump on the thread, I have acc, how do I know if I have city emergency breaking

 

[daveyboydanger]

Parking heater is brilliant. Not too noisy for a camp site at all. You will notice the ticking every now and again inside the van. I like that sound and find it almost comforting. Some people get annoyed by it.

 

[Caravellet6]

City breaking on our other car always turned off pita

 

[carlg]

Sorry to jump on the thread, I have acc, how do I know if I have city emergency breaking

It's all part of the same thing .if you scroll through mfd you will see a section for front assist ,make sure it is ticked .

 

[carlg]

I have Acc ,I was using it today ,it is really good .
To alter the distance ,just press the center button with the symbol of a car on it .

 

[Loz]

Sorry to jump on the thread, I have acc, how do I know if I have city emergency breaking

You most probably have, but check your build label inside your service book cover for PR code. 6k4 is the code for;
Forward collision warning incl. autonomous emergency braking, for adaptive cruise control "high"

You can get a list of your full build code from your friendly parts manager.

Alternatively, find a large cardboard box, put it in the street and try and drive into it..

 

[Andrew]

My opinion is get the warmth and enjoy the camping. Why spend money on city breaking when you're perfectly capable of driving it yourself. Save the brass, go camping and enjoy yourself.

 

[ehuplad]

I ordered 'front assist including city emergency braking system (6K2) for £205 + vat
Not a fan of cruise control but wanted the safety feature and there is a huge different in price.
It was a pain for the dealer and I to track the option down, I knew I had seen it but could not find again.
Turns out it is not in the price list or brochures but is in the configurator and the dealers build version.
Dealer said no originally then days later rang me all excited that he had found it, there are some good dealers out there.

 

[former member]

It's BRAKING.
Used ACC; good novelty value but I'd rather use the eyes fitted in my head to judge distance.

 

[Howler]

I've got ACC, think it's awesome! I do have the distance turned all the way down on it though. Do a lot of motorway driving and cruise control is great but you constantly have to be changing lane's to stop yourself switching it off. ACC takes that away, you come up on someone going slower than you and can't pull out, it keeps a safe distance (only a fool breaks the 2 sec rule ), they pull back in or you flick the indicator and it continues on at your set speed.

With regards to the emergency city braking, yes we all have eyes and are perfectly able to drive ourselves, but it only takes a second to spill coffee in your lap, look down, and go into the back of someone. Just an extra safety net. Could never ever use it but you bury your new T6 in the back of someone and I bet you'll wish you'd ticked that box.

 

[Pauly]

I rear ended someone in my T6 on the 6th day of ownership, thankfully not too serious but insurance took it away for a new front end ! Wished id had it then !!

 

[former member]

Wouldn't have helped in Galicia when someone pulled out to the side/front. That was plain old good reactions, stamping on the brakes and being glad they work very well.
It was SO close.

 

[bullock]

I'll push the dealer on the comfort dash, it wasn't a main dealer but a well known online broker that informed me as they were quoting; perhaps their info is out of date. For the discount on offer, I'll likely drop it tbh...

Perhaps I'll keep the spec and instead cancel christmas

 

[gmaster]

I have the comfort dash and in my opinion its a must. It is definitely available, it's just a case of whether your dealer is willing to put the effort into getting the option codes right and then checking the build code with VWCV.

I also have the emergency city braking and it has kicked in once. Obviously as a bloke I knew I was going to brake in time any way!

In terms of the ACC I've never driven with it and it was about a £900 option when I was looking at it. I decided against it as I thought it would mean that my driving style would be determined by the drivers in front of me. In other words, if the car in front is inconsistent with speed it would also make me inconsistent with my speed, thus having a negative effect on fuel efficiency.

One thing I did spec' into my build is the side assist. This really does make you check your mirrors and think before you move. You may think that it has the opposite effect, but the amber lights help you think about blind spots and the speed of the cars approaching from behind.

I looked at it like this......Safety features, such as the Side assist and the emergency brake assist (even side airbags) will pay for themselves if they work just once. The ACC is a really nice option to have and if you an get it under £500 I think it's worth it.