# Forward Collision Assist



## sbay_GTI (Jan 5, 2012)

Anyone else having issues with the feature activating with nothing in front of them? Clear weather, no road debris on a straight road.
We just purchased this in Jan 2018. Driving ~40 mph and the brakes slam on automatically and the big red warning - but there is nothing in the path of the car . The rear assist is great, several times it has tapped the brakes and alerted while backing up in a parking lot and a car suddenly appears. Very nice feature. Just polling here as I plan to ask VW to replace the module since this has happened several times. i wouldn't have paid for the feature if I have to drive with it turned off.

Thanks in advance.


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## DevilishGTI (May 14, 2007)

Mine likes to make sure I’m awake at 4:30am when leaving for work. My driveway has an incline and the road makes the car think I’m about to slam into a wall. Lol scared my wife to death the first time it did it to her!


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## type17volkswagen (May 2, 2004)

sbay_GTI said:


> Anyone else having issues with the feature activating with nothing in front of them? Clear weather, no road debris on a straight road.
> We just purchased this in Jan 2018. Driving ~40 mph and the brakes slam on automatically and the big red warning - but there is nothing in the path of the car . The rear assist is great, several times it has tapped the brakes and alerted while backing up in a parking lot and a car suddenly appears. Very nice feature. Just polling here as I plan to ask VW to replace the module since this has happened several times. i wouldn't have paid for the feature if I have to drive with it turned off.
> 
> Thanks in advance.


Since new ours had done this about once or twice a week. We get the "big red warning" for no reason that's apparent to us, though it does NOT activate the brakes. I took it in once when I found a stored fault code for the sensor ( C110B F0 [008] - Limited Visibility ). They recalibrated it but it didn't make any difference - it still happens as frequently. We bought it in January so when it first started I thought the issue might be winter-grime on the badge / sensor so I started cleaning it regularly, which, as you already, know didn't help. I've also played around with the setting in the infotainment. I've changed it from early, to normal, to late which also didn't make a difference.

I guess we're lucky that it doesn't jam on the brakes, though the warning is loud.

Thanks for posting this up though. I never posted about it because I was thinking it was just ours.


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## sbay_GTI (Jan 5, 2012)

*Thanks for the replies*



type17volkswagen said:


> Since new ours had done this about once or twice a week. We get the "big red warning" for no reason that's apparent to us, though it does NOT activate the brakes. I took it in once when I found a stored fault code for the sensor ( C110B F0 [008] - Limited Visibility ). They recalibrated it but it didn't make any difference - it still happens as frequently. We bought it in January so when it first started I thought the issue might be winter-grime on the badge / sensor so I started cleaning it regularly, which, as you already, know didn't help. I've also played around with the setting in the infotainment. I've changed it from early, to normal, to late which also didn't make a difference.
> 
> I guess we're lucky that it doesn't jam on the brakes, though the warning is loud.
> 
> Thanks for posting this up though. I never posted about it because I was thinking it was just ours.


Sorry to hear that, but it's good to hear we are not alone. I've made all the same assumptions as you have regarding dirt, snow even small bits of trash blowing around that could be causing it to trigger. Ours had given us the light multiple times, but assumed we were on a curve or too close to a car which was 20 feet ahead and may have braked. We also witnessed the warning coming on without any cars in front of us or in the oncoming lane. The abrupt braking is a little disconcerting as we were lucky not to have a tailgater. I'm assuming the rear assist is only activated when in Reverse. Oh my, the possibilities. I'll post once I get some resolution from the dealership.

Thanks for your replies everyone.


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## KarstGeo (Jan 19, 2018)

DevilishGTI said:


> Mine likes to make sure I’m awake at 4:30am when leaving for work. My driveway has an incline and the road makes the car think I’m about to slam into a wall. Lol scared my wife to death the first time it did it to her!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


That is not the collision braking that is part of the front assist, but the "maneuver braking" that is part of the park pilot system (parking beepers). You can turn it off in the infotainment menu. Our Atlas does the same thing sometimes...just have to creep out of the driveway.


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## type17volkswagen (May 2, 2004)

KarstGeo said:


> That is not the collision braking that is part of the front assist, but the "maneuver braking" that is part of the park pilot system (parking beepers). You can turn it off in the infotainment menu. Our Atlas does the same thing sometimes...just have to creep out of the driveway.


Atlas [not equal] Tiguan. Is his Tiguan a trim level that has front assist?


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## DevilishGTI (May 14, 2007)

I drive an SEL R-line


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## bnern (Jun 2, 2007)

I just came to the forums to look up this exact issue. 
I got my 2018 Tiguan SE the first week of June and this exact scenario happened to me a few days ago. 
Totally clear day, no cars or anything within sight. All of a sudden I got the big red warning and the Tiguan definitely braked hard very briefly. Scared the hell out of me. I guess I'll take it in to get looked at- at the very least to make sure they make a report of it. I'm guessing my speed was around 45/50 MPH.


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## 1054521247 (Jun 17, 2018)

god dang how many more problems this car will have????

1. sunroof leaking (not on my SEL-P yet)
2. b pillar rattling (definitely )
3. remote start not working right (definitely)
4. jerky transmission shift (a little bit/some time)
5. collision assist (definitely. Texas highway speed limit mostly 75 i always stays around 85 and this front assist show up scared the sh*t outta me but it didn't apply the brake. luck that it didn't or i will be somewhere else. other day i was driving on a country road around 50 and it did apply the brake. called dealer they told me probably the front is covered with something and i checked it was not) 

taking the cr4p to dealer tomorrow and see what is going on. i have that front assist off for right now.


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## trillsx88 (Nov 27, 2007)

This happen to me today. The road was clear and got the same warning and my car braked really hard. It was pretty scary. Then i realized my side assist stop working and cant activate it again for some reason.


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## porsche911sc (Jan 31, 2018)

Im so glad I got an early model where this assist crap was deleted and I saved $850 on top of that. I drove a rental Passat with some of this crap on it this week on a trip and its def not ready for prime time. Like so many other things on this vehicle. 



1054521247 said:


> god dang how many more problems this car will have????
> 
> 1. sunroof leaking (not on my SEL-P yet)
> 2. b pillar rattling (definitely )
> ...


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## vdubs kopfschuss GLI (Sep 25, 2014)

ive had mine deactivate during a heavy rainfall. but thats about it.


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## Les-star (Jun 27, 2018)

Got my Tig last week and my warning light came on during heavy down pour while on the highway. Didn't know what it was until checking the manual. Lucky the car didn't apply the breaks on me! Definitely would've caused an accident.

I'll leave it off for "safety". Never had nor needed this feature before but will definitely take it to the dealer.


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## Tigolphun (Apr 13, 2018)

The two times mine has gone off, I found it pretty helpful. If it had not acted, I would have, but later and likely not as effectively.

It does switch itself off during heavy downpour though which kinda makes sense as the sensors likely won't operate properly.


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## jpik (Sep 11, 2017)

Mine has been at the dealer all week. I’ve gotten the red dash alert on my SEL-P many times since purchase in March (nothing around me, and no emergency breaking) but I’ve had 2 times where I was on clear roads on clear days where I went from 45-0, thankfully with no one behind me. VWUSA is already on it. The unfortunate thing is my family has our first long car trip vacation on Monday and the only loaner is a jetta. I doubt they’ll have this figured out by Friday close. Even the recall on the rear bolts took 3 days.


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## bestvw (May 2, 2005)

1054521247 said:


> god dang how many more problems this car will have????
> 
> 1. sunroof leaking (not on my SEL-P yet)
> 2. b pillar rattling (definitely )
> ...


North American Tiguan Sucks!


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## rkfast (Jun 28, 2018)

bestvw said:


> North American Tiguan Sucks!


This post sucks.


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## 1054521247 (Jun 17, 2018)

bestvw said:


> North American Tiguan Sucks!


i would not said it sucks but there are a lot of problems with this car. My friend over the sea has a 2018 tiguan in China. It is far better than North American Tiguan a lot more stuff to play around like heads up display, auto hold and auto park.


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## Wilsonium (Dec 22, 2004)

I'm not a fan of the current HUD available for the Tiguan... it does not project onto the windscreen instead projecting on this piece of standing plastic. I think it might even fold down... it's not what I would expect as an OEM HUD feature.


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

I also experienced the forward collision light going off with nothing in front of me. Luckily it not apply the brakes. I also think the blind spot monitor is sporadic as well. I know the systems have their limitations but there is definitely something wrong. Going to take it in to get checked. Car has less than 400 miles.


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

DevilishGTI said:


> I drive an SEL R-line
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk





type17volkswagen said:


> Atlas [not equal] Tiguan. Is his Tiguan a trim level that has front assist?


I noticed the tiguan sel (non premium) is the only trim that has front assist without a camera behind the rearview mirror. They use the VW symbol in the grill instead of the mirror camera (for lane assist, light assist and enhanced front assist) in conjunction with the grill radar. 

Maybe the VW symbol has bugs on it or something- I remember a while back my friend with a cx5 had cleaned his symbol with car soap when he was washing it, and it put a layer of ultra thin like soap scum on it that no one could figure out. It looked clean but it would constantly say that the radar was not available. Maybe you washed the front vw symbol with something that is causing these symptoms? Try using a gentle cloth with just warm water to clean it.


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

I'm taking mine in next week to get it checked out and will update everyone. Based on what others have posted, there should be a recall on this. Imagine if it slams on the brakes for no reason and someone rear ends you. That's a huge liability. They need to test this system more or not offer it at all. Either way I'm not giving up on this car by any means but I hope they can permanently fix it at some point down the line. I can live with the blind spot monitor not working all the time but a system that can randomly slam on the brakes is scary.


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## JSWTDI09 (Feb 22, 2009)

ice4life said:


> I noticed the tiguan sel (non premium) is the only trim that has front assist without a camera behind the rearview mirror. They use the VW symbol in the grill instead of the mirror camera (for lane assist, light assist and enhanced front assist) in conjunction with the grill radar.


I have an SE trim level and I do have the front assist without the front camera for lane assist, etc. I believe that the SE and the SEL (not SEL-P) do this. Therefore the SEL is not the only one.

Have Fun!

Don


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

JSWTDI09 said:


> I have an SE trim level and I do have the front assist without the front camera for lane assist, etc. I believe that the SE and the SEL (not SEL-P) do this. Therefore the SEL is not the only one.
> 
> Have Fun!
> 
> Don


Sorry about that- was trying more to emphasize the lack of camera and the fact he had an sel over availability. VW always tries to come out with new cheaper ways to accomplish things and constantly messes up. This is an example of it. It was designed to need both the radar and camera. Failsafes. Now with only one it is messing up.


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## MisterF (Jul 26, 2018)

ice4life said:


> Sorry about that- was trying more to emphasize the lack of camera and the fact he had an sel over availability. VW always tries to come out with new cheaper ways to accomplish things and constantly messes up. This is an example of it. It was designed to need both the radar and camera. Failsafes. Now with only one it is messing up.


What if we add the camera? Several people are adding the camera in the mirror to activate the rain sensing wipers. They are buying the Chinese part for pretty cheap. Is this the only camera that the SEL P has on the front? Or is there another one?


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## JSWTDI09 (Feb 22, 2009)

MisterF said:


> What if we add the camera? Several people are adding the camera in the mirror to activate the rain sensing wipers. They are buying the Chinese part for pretty cheap. Is this the only camera that the SEL P has on the front? Or is there another one?


They are installing a rain/light sensor instead of just a light sensor. The camera is something different. From what I understand, adding lane assist camera is not a simple upgrade. It requires more than just changing a sensor but I am not certain of all of the details.

Have Fun!

Don


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## tiguanmarcus (Sep 11, 2017)

I've also had the front collision assist falsely engage multiple times - about 3 to 4 times since i've owned the car for nearly 1 year. Luckily I was not travelling fast on all occasions otherwise a bad accident would've happened.


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## ice4life (Nov 6, 2017)

JSWTDI09 said:


> They are installing a rain/light sensor instead of just a light sensor. The camera is something different. From what I understand, adding lane assist camera is not a simple upgrade. It requires more than just changing a sensor but I am not certain of all of the details.
> 
> Have Fun!
> 
> Don


I mean if you could get the camera, then there would be wiring and coding. And I would not want to mess with something like this for fear of it all malfunctioning and engaging when it shouldn't which is the problem in the first place.


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

tiguanmarcus said:


> I've also had the front collision assist falsely engage multiple times - about 3 to 4 times since i've owned the car for nearly 1 year. Luckily I was not travelling fast on all occasions otherwise a bad accident would've happened.


Did you take it to the dealer and if so what did they say? This is one issue that has me worried. I wish there was a way to permanently switch it off.


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

Took mine in on Wednesday and they found no fault codes and were not able to reproduce it after about 14 miles of driving. It only happened to me once so I'm hoping it's just a fluke. Glad to have the car back .... the Jetta loaner was way too small.


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## MisterF (Jul 26, 2018)

shervsr20 said:


> Did you take it to the dealer and if so what did they say? This is one issue that has me worried. I wish there was a way to permanently switch it off.


I believe you can turn off front assist in the car menu on the radio.


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

MisterF said:


> I believe you can turn off front assist in the car menu on the radio.


Correct but I don’t think it permanently turns it off. You have to do it every time you start the car... or maybe I’m missing something?


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

Happened again today. This time I was going around a slight curve with cars parked on the shoulder. It didn’t apply the brakes and only beeped for a second or two. I guess it thought I was going to hit the parked cars but I was well between the lines. Debating whether to take it in again.


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## brianmiami (Aug 16, 2018)

Just got mine 3 weeks ago (SEL), had the Collision Assist pump the brakes twice with no one in front going 55-65 on highway. 
Also have faulty rear traffic alert as well. 
2nd time in 2 weeks car is in shop. (dead secondary air pump on week 2).


Really having buyers remorse on this car. Expected more features on SEL trim, and the ones it has don't even work properly... :-(


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## vdubs kopfschuss GLI (Sep 25, 2014)

my Tig is now on day 2 of the dealer trying to figure out what is going on with my forward collision assist. 
talked to them last night and they said they re calibrated 4 times and the warning still activated. they are now pulling apart the entire front end of my car for the 3rd time to try and figure out what is happening.

my only concern, is since i am lowered they are going to tell me that its my fault and i will have to pay for whatever is done. 
this sensor has nothing to do with suspension, correct? i mean, i can understand re calibrating it since it is lowered, but for it to not work at all after 17k miles? 

am i just getting paranoid about getting stuck with a huge bill?


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## shervsr20 (Jul 22, 2018)

vdubs kopfschuss GLI said:


> my Tig is now on day 2 of the dealer trying to figure out what is going on with my forward collision assist.
> talked to them last night and they said they re calibrated 4 times and the warning still activated. they are now pulling apart the entire front end of my car for the 3rd time to try and figure out what is happening.
> 
> my only concern, is since i am lowered they are going to tell me that its my fault and i will have to pay for whatever is done.
> ...


The only way I think they should blame you is if the lowered suspension changed the angle of the radar sensor. I think someone mentioned here that VW cut costs by omitting a camera in the system. That probably would have prevented any issue at all. I noticed mine comes on sometimes if I'm going around a corner and it thinks I'm going to hit a parked car or a guardrail ( and I'm doing the speed limit ). No slamming of the brakes yet... fingers crossed. lol

It might be wishful thinking but maybe VW will put out some sort of retrofit with a camera in the front grill. 

Let us know if they find anything.


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## i_am_sam_i_am (Nov 2, 2017)

ice4life said:


> I mean if you could get the camera, then there would be wiring and coding. And I would not want to mess with something like this for fear of it all malfunctioning and engaging when it shouldn't which is the problem in the first place.


Out of curiosity, what tech does the SEL/SEL-P use for ACC that the SE model doesn't? 
I would assume that since the SE is equipped with Front Assist, it uses the badge radar. Is there anything preventing ACC from being activated somehow?


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## MisterF (Jul 26, 2018)

i_am_sam_i_am said:


> Out of curiosity, what tech does the SEL/SEL-P use for ACC that the SE model doesn't?
> I would assume that since the SE is equipped with Front Assist, it uses the badge radar. Is there anything preventing ACC from being activated somehow?


There is a special button on the steering wheel that sets the distance from the car in front of you.

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## i_am_sam_i_am (Nov 2, 2017)

MisterF said:


> There is a special button on the steering wheel that sets the distance from the car in front of you.


Yes, that is for the SEL and SEL-P models equipped with ACC. The setting for the default distance is also available within the Infotainment screen.
But I am wondering what those models use to enable the feature that the SE model doesn't. Is it simply in the coding or is there something physical as well?


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## MisterF (Jul 26, 2018)

i_am_sam_i_am said:


> Yes, that is for the SEL and SEL-P models equipped with ACC. The setting for the default distance is also available within the Infotainment screen.
> But I am wondering what those models use to enable the feature that the SE model doesn't. Is it simply in the coding or is there something physical as well?


To my understanding it uses the same radar. It will need coding. You also need the steering wheel buttons if yours doesn't have that button.

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## i_am_sam_i_am (Nov 2, 2017)

MisterF said:


> To my understanding it uses the same radar. It will need coding. You also need the steering wheel buttons if yours doesn't have that button.


If this is true, then the default option for distance would be made available withing the Infotainment settings negating the need for the button. (The steering wheel button allows you to change distance settings - not a priority in relation to my curiosity).

Has anyone seen this coding option within VCDS or OBDEleven?

*EDIT: I was mistaken about being able to set the default distance within an Infotainment menu screen. Without the steering wheel control button, there wouldn't be a way to change the following distance.


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