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Dear Land Rover (UK, USA, et al.), your CarPlay rollout sucks

Preface: Jaguar Land Rover, please prove me wrong on all that follows below.  I can’t wait to update this post and tell everyone how great you did in fixing yes another issue you have with tech and transparency.

So we’re just under a month from when “A spokesperson for the brands confirmed to MacRumors” that CarPlay/Android Auto was incoming.  But still nothing actually official from Jaguar Land Rover. 

  • Many dealers still seem to have no idea on what is or isn’t possible.
  • Many dealers just won’t upgrade an eligible vehicle.
  • Many dealers spread misinformation about how it’s going to work.
  • Does the upgrade cost $300?  Does it cost $400?  Is it free?

There’s still no official announcement on your website describing the process.  (Heck your website (USA) still says that InControl Touch Pro is only available on a 2017 Evoque)

I get messages like this daily because there’s so much confusion:

directmessage-carplay

 

How about a clear and informative page on your website that owners can refer their dealers to and everyone can get what they want and be happy :)

How about a page the owners can print out that the dealer can refer to in TOPIx, again with clear instructions on what needs to be done.  They can select their vehicle from a list and know what they can or can’t have, etc, etc…

2018-10-19T10:30:57-04:00October 19, 2018|
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CES 2018: JAGUAR LAND ROVER’S INNOVATIVE CONNECTED TECH

All the CES tech announcements from JLR – most of it hyperbole and pointless but some interesting bits.  Notes on top, official PR below that.

Qualcomm

It’s not totally clear but are they switching away from the current Intel Atom to the Snapdragon or is the Snapdragon used for other functionality?

Gentex

Their work with Gentex sounds interesting but if the HomeLink Connect app is just another InControl app and not actually integrated into the head unit then I really don’t care.  The "Full Display Mirror, set to feature in upcoming Jaguar Land Rover vehicles" does look cool.  You can read about it on the new Cadillac CT6 here.

Gentex-Aftermarket-FDM1 (3)

Panasonic

"Panasonic is showcasing Jaguar Land Rover’s Touch Pro Duo system. This intelligent technology performs as a digital butler" They love making this butler comparison, but I’d seriously fire my butler if they kept unplugging my iPod from my car and completely ignored me when I asked if they could start it.  Maybe firing is too harsh – the butler was clearly sent out into the field before they were fully trained.  You’d think they’d send them to the best schools.

Mycroft AI

Their own "open source digital assistant" – they can never just go with the industry…

 

Official PR:

As the automotive industry moves towards 5G, Jaguar Land Rover vehicles are taking steps towards ultra-fast connectivity with an announcement at CES 2018, in Las Vegas, the world’s largest consumer electronics show.

  • Jaguar Land Rover is developing the Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) technology of the future
  • Vehicles to benefit from ultra-fast connectivity with Qualcomm Technologies
  • Jaguar’s first electric car, the I-PACE, will connect drivers to their homes with new HomeLink Connect app developed in conjunction with Gentex

Whitley, Coventry UK, 8 January 2018: As the automotive industry moves towards 5G,  Jaguar Land Rover vehicles are taking steps towards ultra-fast connectivity with an announcement at CES  2018, in Las Vegas, the world’s largest consumer electronics show.

Every future Jaguar or Land Rover is set to benefit from the highly advanced QualcommⓇ Snapdragon 820Am Automotive platform. With this, Jaguar Land Rover vehicles will feature ultra-quick and efficient connectivity, limitless in-car entertainment and over-the-air downloads. Customers will also benefit from immersive in-vehicle experiences with stunning displays and graphics throughout. This new platform has been designed to increase vehicle intelligence and awareness to aid road safety.

CES offers a glimpse of Jaguar Land Rover’s high-tech future, showcasing technologies that will enhance our customers’ experiences. This new exciting relationship with Qualcomm Technologies is a great example. The new Snapdragon 820Am Automotive platform will play an integral role in bringing breakthrough 5G technology to future cars, improving connectivity, safety and personalisation.

Nick Rogers Executive Director, Product Engineering for Jaguar Land Rove (sic)

 

Qualcomm Technologies is one of many partners showcasing Jaguar Land Rover-related tech innovations at CES 2018, demonstrating readiness for next-generation Connected and Autonomous (CAV) technologies.

Gentex

Jaguar Land Rover is working with Gentex to incorporate the HomeLink Connect system into its InControl apps so drivers will be able to control home devices from their vehicle’s infotainment screen. The technology allows the new Jaguar I-PACE, the brand’s first electric car, to be even more connected to a customers’ world, allowing them to adjust heating systems, turn on home lighting, unlock the front door and more, all from the driver’s seat and without picking up their phone.

Gentex is also showcasing the new Full Display Mirror, set to feature in upcoming Jaguar Land Rover vehicles. The system captures video from a rear-facing camera and streams the feed to the LCD-integrated mirror, giving drivers an unobstructed, panoramic view behind the vehicle.

Panasonic

Panasonic is showcasing Jaguar Land Rover’s Touch Pro Duo system. This intelligent technology performs as a digital butler and is available in the new Range Rover Velar, Range Rover and Range Rover Sport. The screen technology developed by Panasonic complements the intuitive user interface created by Jaguar Land Rover.

CloudCar

Jaguar Land Rover entered into a strategic partnership with CloudCar a year ago. Since then, CloudCar has made progress in developing the next generation of their innovative cloud-based infotainment solution which will be demonstrated at CES in the latest Range Rover Velar. The futuristic infotainment system uses machine learning and natural language understanding to generate a completely customised experience for the driver.

LISNR

Jaguar Land Rover is committed to the safety of road users and has a range of strategic partners specialising in data security. LISNR, one of Jaguar Land Rover’s start-up portfolio companies, will be at CES demonstrating their data-over-audio solution that accomplishes short-range, secure wireless data transmission across all connected devices. Their use of sound, as the conduit for data transfer, removes any need for traditional connectivity or device pairing. LISNR can be used in offline environments for a variety of functions such as remote app pairing, user authentication, and keyless access.

Quanergy

Quanergy, providers of LiDAR and other sensors to Jaguar Land Rover, will be at CES showcasing 3D Aware Smart Sensing technology. This advanced connectivity is shaping self-driving technology, which will allow Jaguar Land Rover vehicles to learn to respond in an instinctive human-like way.

Mycroft AI

Mycroft AI, another Jaguar Land Rover start-up portfolio company, will be showcasing the world’s first open source digital assistant. The smart software allows companies to deploy intelligent personal assistants anywhere.

2018-01-14T12:13:24-05:00January 14, 2018|
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Jaguar Land Rover to Road Test Future Technology on the UK’s First Connected Corridor – Digital Gauges still not used

Official PR below for full story and yes like all the other tech they show off, seems cool – But, as we see 6 years later and they still can’t even use the 12.3” Digital Gauges right in front of the driver for the demo.

JLR_Emergency_Braking_Research_2_(126233)

Official PR:

  • A new 41 mile ‘living laboratory’ of UK roads will be used to test and develop next-generation connected and autonomous vehicle technologies
  • A fleet of 100 ‘smart’ connected and autonomous technology research vehicles, including Jaguar and Land Rover models, will test new systems that enable cars to talk with each other
  • Car-to-car communication and ‘Over the Horizon’ warnings will make driving safer, improve journey times and prevent traffic jams
  • Car-to-car communication will allow cars to warn others vehicles. Ambulances, Fire and Police vehicles can alert drivers that they are approaching

Whitley, UK: Jaguar and Land Rover is investing in a 41 mile ‘living laboratory’ project on UK roads to develop new Connected and Autonomous Vehicle (CAV) technologies. The new CAV test corridor, which includes 41 miles of roads around Coventry and Solihull, will be used to evaluate new systems in real-world driving conditions.

The £5.5m ‘UK-CITE’ (UK Connected Intelligent Transport Environment) project will create the first test route capable of testing both vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure systems on public roads in the UK. New roadside communications equipment will be installed along the route during the three year project to enable the testing of a fleet of up to 100 connected and highly automated cars, including five Jaguar Land Rover research vehicles.

This fleet will test a range of different communication technologies1 that could share information at very high speeds between cars, and between cars and roadside infrastructure, including traffic lights and overhead gantries.

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, today announced the UK Government’s support for the UK-CITE research with a £3.41 million grant from the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK. This funding for collaborative research is part of the Government’s £100m Connected and Autonomous Vehicles fund.

Dr Wolfgang Epple, Director of Research and Technology, Jaguar Land Rover, said: "This real-life laboratory will allow Jaguar Land Rover’s research team and project partners to test new connected and autonomous vehicle technologies on five different types of roads and junctions. Similar research corridors already exist in other parts of Europe so this test route is exactly the sort of innovation infrastructure the UK needs to compete globally. 

"The connected and autonomous vehicle features we will be testing will improve road safety, enhance the driving experience, reduce the potential for traffic jams and improve traffic flow. These technologies will also help us meet the increasing customer demand for connected services whilst on the move."

JLR_Emergency_Braking_Research_(126231)[3]JLR_Emergency_Vehicle_Research_(126230)

Connected technologies are key enablers for future Intelligent Transport Systems. These would help traffic authorities monitor and manage traffic flow by capturing data from all connected vehicles and then provide the driver or autonomous car with guidance to optimise the journey.

To improve traffic flow, connected cars could co-operate and work together to make lane changing and exiting from junctions more efficient and safer. Technologies like Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control (CACC) would enable vehicles to autonomously follow each other in close formation, known as platooning, making driving safer and ensuring road space is used more efficiently.

Over the horizon warnings

In the future, warning messages that are today flashed onto an overhead gantry above a road could be sent direct to the dashboard – and repeated if necessary. This would have the potential to eventually replace the overhead gantry, which each cost around £1m to install.

The Jaguar Land Rover research team will be real-world testing a range of ‘Over the Horizon’ warning systems. As well as warning drivers, these would inform future autonomous vehicles, helping them react and respond to hazards and changing traffic conditions automatically.

JLR_In-car_Gantry_Reseach_(126232)

Dr Epple added: "A well-informed driver is a safer driver, while an autonomous vehicle will need to receive information about the driving environment ahead. The benefits of smarter vehicles communicating with each other and their surroundings include a car sending a warning that it is braking heavily or stopping in a queue of traffic or around a bend. This will enable an autonomous car to take direct action and respond. Drivers would receive a visual and audible warning that another car is causing a hazard out of sight or over the horizon.

"The approach of an emergency vehicle can often be stressful for drivers. If we can inform the driver, or the autonomous car, much earlier that an emergency vehicle is approaching, we can ensure that the best decisions are made to move the vehicle out of the way safely and conveniently, to let the emergency vehicle pass by."

Jaguar Land Rover’s ‘Emergency Vehicle Warning’ system would identify that a connected ambulance, fire engine or police car is approaching through car-to-car communication. The driver would then receive a warning, long before flashing lights and sirens are audible or visible.

JLR_Emergency_Vehicle_Warning_Research_3_(126229)

2016-02-01T20:39:59-05:00February 1, 2016|
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J.D. Power 2015 Customer Service Index Study of Dichotomy: Yay Jaguar! Better luck never Land Rover.

Jaguar Land Rover should have put out a one line press release that said:

“Thank you but we’re still working on things”

Instead they list their accomplishments without ever mentioning the other half of their company that actually came in last place.  It’s a little embarrassing.  Jaguar should be very proud of what they’ve accomplished but at the same time for all their talk of synergy and being a family, to have Land Rover come in dead last really should temper any excitement. 

jd-csi-jag-lr

Crazier still is putting out a picture like the one below knowing that right out of frame are some Land Rovers which came in dead last in same survey.  How do they all look at each other with straight faces?  Even the J.D. Power guy has to be concerned.

jlr-csi-corp

Something is still very wrong at Jaguar Land Rover.  Cars are great – some of the best out there but these customer service issues have to stop.

Go read how long it took multiple California dealers to fix a clearly documented rattle in a brand new $137,000 Range Rover Autobiography: rangerovers.net – Rattle in 2015 RR ATB

2015-03-19T11:26:24-04:00March 19, 2015|
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