[Jerry Differding]

Hello - newbie to this forum. Current owner of a 2014 CX-5 GT looking to possibly switch to the CX-3.

One of my questions when moving forward is peoples thoughts on the I-Activesense package. Do you feel it is worth the $2000 upgrade?

Thanks for your insights.

 

[DJ9999]

Welcome. It was a must for me. Radar Cruise Control is awesome (assuming you're in the US and its included), rain sensing wipers, auto headlights are a must for me. Some people don't like the nannies, I find them handy and added peace of mind.

 

[greaseman85]

For me it wasn't worth it. Sure it was nice to have auto headlights (had them in my previous car), but not a necessity, I do miss it sometimes. Radar cruise control is pointless for me, I don't drive on the highway much, most of my driving is city. Rain sensing wipers, meh. Lane departure warning is normally good, but on the CX-3 is kinda half-assed. It does not vibrate the steering wheel or seat like other cars do, it just makes a fake rumbling noise coming out of your speakers, which is something you could easily ignore or if you doze off behind the wheel will do absolutely nothing to wake you up like an actual feedback does. At any rate I don't fall asleep behind the wheel or get distracted to drive out of my lane.

So for me, the auto headlights would've been the only thing I care about, but not worth it for $2000.

 

[DJ9999]

I don't look at it as spending $2000 on the package. I didn't pay retail MSRP so the cost was negotiated down, then the savings on my insurance premiums. All the while enjoying the benefits of the suite of features and will certainly have a higher resale value when the time comes.

 

[inflex]

I drive a lot of freeway and love the radar cruise control.

The safety features like the brake assist and collision detection are nice too. Not that I rely on these things, but they are great safety features.

Rain sensing wipers are good... usually set and forget but not totally hands-free.

Lane departure is probably a bit aggressive and can be annoying. Gets fooled by line patterns on roads (eg tar snakes or pavement seams).

High beam control and blind spot monitors are unreliable. HBC will get fooled by lights in the distance on a dark backroad. Blind spot monitors don't work reliably in high traffic volumes, often generating false alarms or no warnings at all.

 

[greaseman85]

The "higher resale value" thing is a scam, its a tactic dealers use to sell you something you don't need, just like when they try to sell you extended warranty. Dealers don't give you money based on what's in your car, but based on what similar cars have been sold for in the area. They have a system where they show you the prices of what other dealers have sold a car similar to yours and say "this is what your car is worth". They've probably faked the numbers anyway.

My insurance cost is already low, about $400 for 6 months. I doubt having that extra package would reduce it by much. Even if it reduced it to $300 for 6 months (I highly doubt it but let's pretend), its a saving of $200 a year. I generally keep a car for 2-3 years before I get a new one. Even if I keep my current car for 4 years that would be a saving of $800 vs a cost of $2000, or even $1500 if negotiated. Now keep in mind most of us finance cars, so that cost gets added to the loan which means we'll pay a couple hundred dollars more in interest.

If you use those features, great, then the iACTIVESENSE is a great value. But for me, it's not a good value at all.

 

[Jerry Differding]

Thanks everyone for your insightful comments. I greatly appreciate it.

 

[santa]

I drive a lot of freeway and love the radar cruise control.

The safety features like the brake assist and collision detection are nice too. Not that I rely on these things, but they are great safety features.

Rain sensing wipers are good... usually set and forget but not totally hands-free.

Lane departure is probably a bit aggressive and can be annoying. Gets fooled by line patterns on roads (eg tar snakes or pavement seams).

High beam control and blind spot monitors are unreliable. HBC will get fooled by lights in the distance on a dark backroad. Blind spot monitors don't work reliably in high traffic volumes, often generating false alarms or no warnings at all.

I have to agree with most of what You say
We bought the top spec, mainly to get all the gadgets (here in Denmark, the I-activsense package is part of the top spec and can't be ordered for the other specs).
We love the radar cruise control and distance control.
The rain sensor work quite well, it's our first car with rain sensor, so I canøt compare with others makers rain sensors.
The Lane departure is set to least intrusive, which works quite well.
HBC works perfectly for me, but we mainly have twisty roads and hills but I do agree that it detects both front and rear lights rather far away on straight roads.
BSM works flawlessly for us. We haven't noticed it not working or giving false alarms and the rear traffic alert also works well (only seen it in action a few times).
Overall we're happy to have bought the top spec and paid the extra money for the gadgets.

 

[greaseman85]

No problem Jerry, good luck!

make sure you come back here and post some pics if you do decide to get a CX-3

 

[greaseman85]

Blind Spot Monitor is a bit finicky, I agree. But it is included in the GT by default (and I believe Touring) without buying any extra package.

 

[DJ9999]

The "higher resale value" thing is a scam, its a tactic dealers use to sell you something you don't need, just like when they try to sell you extended warranty.

I disagree with this point. Packages that add value usually mean the vehicle is worth more than a the same model without it on the used car market. You pay more for AWD than FWD when new and if that is important to a used car buyer, they will pay more for AWD than FWD when used. And that a GT will have more resale value than a Sport. I-Activesense vs non I-Acitvesense is the same.

These safety nannies are becoming common place, most 16 models have them in some sort. A few years from now they will be expected and used car shoppers would likely pay more for a model that has them than one without.

Instead of looking at it like a $2000 option, I break it down:

$1700 invoice price, $10/mo insurance savings = $600 over 5 years, you may get $500 more for it when you sell in 5 years so your "loss" is then only $600 over 5 years and you get the benefits of all the features. So look at it as spending $600, not $2000.

 

[greaseman85]

Of course theoretically the vehicle is worth more if it has an extra package, I completely agree, but the reality may be different. The value of the car I traded in according to kbb.com was $15K, but the dealer tried to give me $11K and showed me "proof" that this is what cars similar to mine have sold for by other dealers in the area. Now what did he mean by "similar", I don't know. He may have been showing me the price of a base model or a model that is missing many features mine had.

 

[heartmyGT]

Package was $1500 if I would've got it with my GT. I decided not to opt for it. Already comes with BSM & backup camera, etc. like someone else mentioned I really do miss having auto headlights & wipers but not worth that much extra. I keep my headlights on all the time & have the dash lights perfectly adjusted so that solved that issue. I'm mostly in traffic so I hardly use the cruise control as it is. Though I really enjoyed the few longer trips I've taken & liked the reg CC. I'm not sure I fully trust the auto braking systems yet.

Nice to have the extras if you could afford them though. If you like those features & getting a deal go for it. I just get what I like in a car & what I can afford since I don't see a car as a real investment. I had a little equity in my last car which does help with the trade in & it was a much more expensive vehicle but I don't expect it. Any extra $$ in the scheme of auto owning/buying is a bonus!!

 

[burnashburn]

I keep going back and forth on whether or not to get the package, but this thread has me leaning against getting it. I'm looking at getting the GT and I believe it comes with some of the features built in as someone mentioned earlier. This is my first new car purchase (have purchased used cars from owner in the past) so I'm a newbie to all this. Wondering if you are able to pick and choose certain features from the I-Acitvesense package or it's an all or nothing situation.

 

[DJ9999]

IMO, with the 17's discount on i-Activesense, its a no brainer. I'm currently in a Touring loaner and I sure do miss the added conveniences.

 

[mainemanx]

IMO, with the 17's discount on i-Activesense, its a no brainer. I'm currently in a Touring loaner and I sure do miss the added conveniences.

Yes, the i-ActiveSense option is now only $1,170 here in the States ... as DJ9999 sez, getting it's a no-brainer!