Mercedes Crosswind Assist

PLOUGHLIN wrote:All Sprinters since early 2012 have had Active ESP system as standard. Cross Wind Assist can be activated on them all. Panel Vans may be activated by default.

That's what we were told by our local MB dealer, all panelvans have it as standard.

The original information came from Hymer. Hymer list Crosswind assist as an important point of difference for their motorhome as only Mercedes have it. They also make great play in their sales pitch that with a mercedes chassis you can configure the vehicle to how you want it, whether it be a leather steering wheel or the latest electronics in road safety.

To my mind it is the sales department at AS who are missing the point.

I would seriously consider a Hymer Mercedes next time if AS are not offering the chassis options.

As far as I can ascertain mine has it installed and activated as a part of the BB9 electronic stability package and I do get a light that flashes on the panel occasionally during extreme crosswind conditions when on a motorway.

spot on Plato!!

It is a brilliant chassis but if you are spending potentially upwards of £70k then you have every right to expect all the options available that you require. A/S just order dozens of chassis to their spec and that's what you get, why not allow those that can afford it to spend the extra cash to get what they want!
What annoys me most is that I was categorically and quite bluntly that it was not possible to have this upgrade and no such thing existed on a chassis cab. It is not unreasonable surely to expect the dealer or manufacturer to know the specification of the vehicle they are selling!
Even more amazing when you read Jaytee's post that his van already has it.....I suspect all new vans probably have!

plato2012 wrote:The original information came from Hymer. Hymer list Crosswind assist as an important point of difference for their motorhome as only Mercedes have it. They also make great play in their sales pitch that with a mercedes chassis you can configure the vehicle to how you want it, whether it be a leather steering wheel or the latest electronics in road safety.

To my mind it is the sales department at AS who are missing the point.

I would seriously consider a Hymer Mercedes next time if AS are not offering the chassis options.

From groundhog's comments it would appear that is the case.  Surely they should know what is on the base vehicle?

As I said in my earlier post, our local MB dealer looked our vehicle up on their database and was able to confirm that ours does have the Crosswind Assist.  He said that it had been specified to have it; now who exactly had specified it I don't know.  AS or MB?

It was on mine as supplied 

Having driven in some very windy conditions in the mountains of Spain and Portugal earlier this year and experienced some hair-raising side/cross winds - I have been following this thread with some interest.
First of all it’s a real shame that there appears to be very little knowledge of this “Cross Wind Assist” feature on behalf of both the coach builder and indeed to some extent the base vehicle supplier.
As has been stated earlier, Hymer, on the other hand, actually emphasise and embrace the fact that this safety feature is on or available within their Mercedes supplied motor homes!
In project parlance I believe this is called taking ownership of your product and not adopting the attitude of “you’ll have to go to Mercedes for that” – I recall that I read that somewhere on the forum before!!
It’s a point (and IMO a very important safety feature) that AS would be well advised to acquaint themselves on and have it front and centre within their sales/technical team and dealerships!
Anyway enough of the rant, I have done my own research and this is what I have established;-
As can be seen from the link (extract copied for easy reference) which Ploughlin kindly posted, Mercedes are very clear in stating which vehicles can or cannot be upgraded.
 
Stuttgart – Crosswind Assist is now also available as a retrofit solution for numerous variants of the Sprinter. The most important prerequisite: the vehicle must be fitted with the current version of Adaptive ESP, available since January 2012. Almost all owners of vehicles built between 2012 and mid-2013 are therefore now able to retrofit this highly effective safety feature to their vehicle. The mid-2013 model change saw Crosswind Assist become part of the standard specification of all the most common Sprinter variants.
Mercedes-Benz dealerships will provide customers in their area with information about the specific options for and procedures involved in arranging professional retrofitting. In all cases retrofitting is an inexpensive solution that, in Germany for example, costs less than 200 euros, including installation.
 
As I read it, it falls into 2 groups;
1. Those vehicles built between 2012 and mid 2013 where a retro fit (some hardware I believe – not too sure) and a software update will give you the feature.
2. All subsequent vehicles have CWA embedded as part of the Adaptive ESP and if not already operating then should just require a specific code insertion to get it functioning.
 
When enquiring at my MB dealer the initial response (service counter) was that it was not possible! Then the technical guru came back to me and said yes it was but was I sure I wanted it?
In his words “it is pretty violent” when it kicks in – he crosses the Severn bridge every day to and from work in a panel van (14 reg) and each time it operates it catches him unawares but he agrees that it does its job!!
According to my local MD commercial dealer my vehicle falls into the second group and the code (supplied by MB Germany and it’s the only way the vehicle computer can be accessed) costs £53 (Vat ex) + 1hours labour and the use of the diagnostic equipment to make the necessary changes - £135 +vat in total.
So in conclusion – you pays your money and makes your choice – for me, as it’s a safety feature and it helps to militate against lane drift then I will be installing the mod and hopefully seeing the benefits on windy days!
Hope this helps.

Liam

Great post Liam.

I am confused  (I find that easy nowadays ). Mine is mid 2013 and has the CWA already functional. So why do you owners of later models have to pay to get it functional? Or, why is mine already functional? I presume it is functional as I do get an occasional orange warning light when there is a bad gust in a crosswind on motorways but haven't taken my eye off the road to actually see what it is. Great fun eh?

Jaytee,
As I have reported above and according to my MB guru - it appears to be clearly noticeable when the CWA intervenes  - in his words "it can be violent" - (asymmetric braking and deceleration affected). 
I guess it depends on your speed, the cross wind strength and the amount of drift involved. 
It might be worth while getting your dealer to confirm your CWA is active next time you are hooked up to the diagnostics machine or perhaps he can tell you from your vin number.
Our confusion is not helped by the lack of knowledge and understanding of the base vehicle held or offered by the motorhome manufacturer. 
I cannot understand this lack of interest or even curiosity in the base vehicle - but then I am old!!!

Liam

I am now wondering if on my first trip down the M1 in the MH during quite a severe gale the CWA is why I ended up in the adjacent lane very suddenly? (As did the adjacent lorry  ) Or was that because the CWA didn't work  

It's the age old thing of comparing and having the same excpectations of the motorhome and caravan businesses as we do of car manufacturing companies.

Car companies build in hundreds of thousands and employ tens of thousands. Motorhome companies build in tens or hundreds, in A/S's case on three different van maker's chassis and employ a few hundred staff who mostly screw together the vans. They probably have an awful lot more to think about than the idiosyncrasies and minutiae of each chassis that they build on.

Maybe its just me - but if I was employed in manufacturing or selling a product I would make it my business to know the finer points and particularly this feature which is SAFETY related. 
Perhaps an occasional  morning spent with their local base vehicle suppliers for relevant technical and sales staff would be a good starter.
I am sure it could even be a deal clincher in some instances if you could refer the customer to the superior CWA attributes of the base vehicle - just as ABS was when it first arrived on the motoring scene.
Liam

Jaytee wrote:I am now wondering if on my first trip down the M1 in the MH during quite a severe gale the CWA is why I ended up in the adjacent lane very suddenly? (As did the adjacent lorry  ) Or was that because the CWA didn't work  

CWA should have stopped that - if you look at the MB video on youtube it clearly shows the CWA fitted vehicle remaining in lane whilst for the same conditions the standard vehicle ended up over half way into the other lane.  
Liam

Liam wrote:

Jaytee wrote:I am now wondering if on my first trip down the M1 in the MH during quite a severe gale the CWA is why I ended up in the adjacent lane very suddenly? (As did the adjacent lorry  ) Or was that because the CWA didn't work  

CWA should have stopped that - if you look at the MB video on youtube it clearly shows the CWA fitted vehicle remaining in lane whilst for the same conditions the standard vehicle ended up over half way into the other lane.  
Liam

Does seem like it is not activated. Will get Northside Merc to suss it next time I visit them. Thanks Liam.
You and the boss both OK?

John,
Probably worth a check with your friendly dealer- just to be sure.
All fine this end of the country - just waiting for some fine weather to arrive - its raining at the moment!
Liam

It is done! Van came back from MB in Truro today, first time they have done the upgrade and although they had the software they needed to "download the codes from Germany", all I need now is a crosswind to test it out.... will let you know!!

groundhog wrote:It is done! Van came back from MB in Truro today, first time they have done the upgrade and although they had the software they needed to "download the codes from Germany", all I need now is a crosswind to test it out.... will let you know!!

Well done, at the moment my MB dealer is waiting for the "code" authorization from MB HQ for my van to be upgraded - I understand that MB treat the code release in a similar fashion to providing new keys! and as such they have to do some security checks to ensure that it is not a stolen van!. 
I don't think my dealer has done this mod before either - I guess most "white vans" are unlikely to be bothered retro fitting this mod.
Hopefully it will be done before we head off for Germany. 
Obviously  I will also relay my experiences with 50mph + crosswinds in the future.
Liam

Crosswind Assist fitted today at Mertrux Nottingham £53.00 plus £79.20 labour plus VAT. It took just 5 days to obtain the disk and codes for my vehicle from Germany and was "very simple" to update. Because it is a retro fit the Flag symbol will not flash on the console during operation, it will be the ESP light. All I need now is some strong winds to try it out.

Presumably this "cross-wind assist" is very clever and knows when you are not simply swerving to avoid a pedestrian who has stepped off the kerb?  

I have no idea if mine is activated or not but have never found myself unexpectedly on the next lane, or been aware of dark forces applying the brakes to some of my wheels. Perhaps the semi-air suspension mitigates some of the tendency to go where the wind blows?

Pete Taylor wrote:Presumably this "cross-wind assist" is very clever and knows when you are not simply swerving to avoid a pedestrian who has stepped off the kerb?

Generally, vehicles with ESP (or whatever abbreviation the manufacturer uses for stability control) have sensors that detect steering input and others that detect rotation and other directional changes of the vehicle itself. The more conventional process is where it monitors steering input and checks to ensure that the vehicle direction is changing appropriately.

My understanding is that crosswind assistance just extends this to check for changes in vehicle direction when there is no corresponding steering input, using individual wheel braking to correct if it exceeds normal limits.

Mojo,
I am obliged to you for this response; for a 19 year-old you have wisdom beyond your years. ;-)
 I have spent a life-time, in engineering, questioning machine-code.

Just had the 0's and 1's rearranged in the van's "brain" by the MB dealer today so should now have an active Crosswind Assist. All set for our forthcoming trip to Germany - well we will be in the right place if we have any issues! It took less than an hour to complete.
Will report back if and when I experience it in operation.
Liam

I really think the hab checks are silly money for what they 'actually' do. They are only 'checks' and I cannot for the life of me see where they can justify the time. On my last one they didn't even check the batteries. (I witnessed marked the seat attachments which have to be removed to access the batteries).

Jaytee wrote:I really think the hab checks are silly money for what they 'actually' do. They are only 'checks' and I cannot for the life of me see where they can justify the time. On my last one they didn't even check the batteries. (I witnessed marked the seat attachments which have to be removed to access the batteries).

Don't know why this ended up on this thread   .