As the name suggests, the Lane assist is a helpful feature that alerts you when you may be swerving or veering in and out of traffic. The system is designed to help you stay safer as a driver and can be utilized for that purpose.
It utilizes a camera on your windshield to help you avoid the consequences of unintended lane departure. While this feature is intended to help drivers avoid swerving and veering in and out of a lane, it isn’t always needed.
Many Toyota vehicles are equipped with the Toyota’s Safety Sense feature, including the 2021 Toyota Highlander, which has a very accurate Lane departure warning. Keep reading to learn how to use the feature efficiently and turn it off when not needed.
Toyota Lane Assist 101
Toyota calls their lane assist program the lane departure alert. The Lane Departure Alert is a technology designed to detect when the vehicle is leaving its lane unintentionally, and the system can take corrective action. This corrective action comes in two different forms.
The first is an audible warning to alert the driver to veer back within the lane markings. On certain vehicles, the system will take minimal control of the steering to turn itself back within its desired lane should there be no steering input from the driver.
There shouldn’t be anything you need to do for the system to work other than ensuring the system is activated. Some lane assist systems are activated by pressing a button, while others are automatically activated when you turn on your car. You can find out by pressing the Toyota LDA button on the steering wheel, which looks like a vehicle veering out of its lane.
Lane departure warning is designed to help you avoid crashes, drifting, or departing your lane. The system detects lane markers and alerts you when a tire touches a lane marker. The warning is usually a flashing indicator that beeps from the corresponding side. In some systems, the steering wheel or driver’s seat vibrates gently. Generally, lane departure warning systems will not alert you when your turn signal is on.
Some vehicles are equipped with lane-keeping assist, a more advanced version of lane departure warning. If the system detects a potential lane departure and you do not respond in time, lane-keeping assist will gently steer you back into the lane.
Note: The lane departure warning system searches for lane markings when your car is on a straight or slightly curved road, and your turn signals are off. The system will not alert you when you use your turn signals or turn your steering wheel quickly.
Most lane assist systems function best on highways, and some systems only operate at speeds over 35 mph.
How Does the Lane Departure Alert Work?
The lane departure system uses a camera near the rear-view mirror to recognize lane markers. For the system to function properly, there must be visible paint stripes on both sides of the vehicle. It will NOT recognize curbs. If the system detects that your car is too close to the left or right-side lane markings and your turn signal is not on, a warning light, a vibration, or sound alert will be activated.
In addition to the camera, the lane-keeping assist has a steering input assist. Lane-keeping assist will gently turn the steering wheel to keep your vehicle between the left and right lane lines, gently steering your vehicle in the opposite direction of the lane boundary.
In some systems, the tugging on your steering wheel will become stronger the closer your vehicle gets to the lane markers. As such;
- If you veer from your detected lane while traveling at more than 50km/h, the LDA system will sound a buzzer and display a visual warning on your Multi-Information Display.
- It’s then up to you to move safely back into the center of your lane to avoid any potential risk of collision.
- If your Toyota has LDA with Steer Assist, the system may add extra steering support for a short period to help keep your vehicle in its lane.
How do you turn off Toyota Lane Assist?
The Lane Departure Assist (LDA) feature activates once your car hits a speed of 32 mph. This button will have an indicator light to show when the system is active. However, these alerts can be distracting when you don’t need them. To turn off lane assist on a Toyota highlander, follow these simple steps:
- Find the LDA button located on your steering wheel. The button looks like a vehicle swerving out of its lane
- Press the LDA button to turn on the LDA system. This will turn the LDA indicator and lane lines on.
- Press the LDA button again to turn off the LDA system. The system will remain on or off even if the engine switch is turned to ignition on mode.
- Once the system has been turned off, it will remain off until you decide to switch it on again.
What Is Lane Departure with Steering Assist?
Toyota Lane departure warning with Steering Assist is a safety system that helps drivers avoid making unintentional deviations from their lanes. It is a valuable piece of the technology that, when activated, refines a driver’s steering in full control of their vehicle. In addition, it’s easy to turn the Steering Assist feature on or off and adjust its sensitivity.
How Lane Departure with Steering Assist Works
The Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist feature uses sensors and radar technology to sense when your Toyota drifts out of its lane without the turn signals. If the system detects a sudden or unexpected lane change on the highway, it uses a steering assist mechanism to help the vehicle stay in its lane. The system is activated if traveling speeds above 32 MPH on the highway.
The system first uses an onboard camera to determine the vehicle’s position on the road by detecting white or yellow lane boundaries. The camera sensor works best on straighter roads and in favorable weather and road conditions. If the Lane Departure Alert system senses that the vehicle is unintentionally deviating from its position, an audible alert is activated and informs the driver of the situation.
If the vehicle is equipped with an activated Steering Assist function, the system will provide small and automatic corrective steering inputs to help keep the vehicle in its lane. The Toyota Steering Assist feature is available on certain vehicles with electronic power steering (EPS)
How to Enable or Disable Steering Assist
It is a simple process to activate or deactivate the Steering Assist function. You first press the recognizable LDA button on the steering wheel. Then you navigate to the LDA menu on the dashboard using the scroll buttons on the steering wheel.
Once in the menu, you can turn the Steering Assist on or off and adjust its sensitivity. You can also turn the entire LDA feature by just pressing the LDA button on the steering wheel again.
As with any other automated driver-assist system, it’s important to note that this system should only be used as a complement to human-controlled steering. Inclement weather, windy roads, and other situations may affect the system’s ability to sense road boundaries and operate properly. However, it is effective in many situations as long as the driver fully controls the vehicle.
Toyota’s Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist is a helpful safety tool found on select Toyota models. Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist comes with the comprehensive Toyota Safety Sense package that includes many other advanced driver-assist safety aids. As a result, learning to operate Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist is simple for all Toyota models.
How to Activate Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist
Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist is easy to activate. To start:
- Find the Lane Departure Alert/Lane Trace Assist button on the car’s steering wheel.
- Press the button and hold it until you see an indicator light appear.
- Go to the ‘Settings’ menu on the Toyota’s multi-information display (MID).
- Select ‘On’ for the safety feature on the Steering Assist menu.
- Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist is now activated.
Along with setting up Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist, you can use your Toyota’s informational display center to change the Steering Assist component of the safety system. If you see the message “LDA On. Steering Assist Active,” both safety features are fully activated.
Steering Assist will make minor adjustments when your vehicle changes lanes unexpectedly to keep the car centered in its lane. However, the “LDA On. Steering Assist Inactive” means that your Toyota’s safety system won’t automatically return the vehicle to its lane if it starts to veer.
However, Lane Departure Alert is still active, so you’ll get an audible alert if the car changes lanes without the turn signals. The message “LDA Unavailable Below Approx. 32 MPH” means that the safety system is active, but your vehicle travels at speeds below the level at which the system activates.
How to Disable Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist
Along with activating Lane Departure Alert with Steering Assist and choosing your preferred system settings, you can also deactivate the system on demand. Press the Lane Departure Alert button if it’s on to turn the system off. The icon will disappear from the infotainment display.
Sometimes, particularly on long drives, we lose concentration and drift out of our lane. Lane Departure Alert (LDA) is programmed to scan the road ahead and identify lane markings. You’ll get the crucial warning you need if you start to drift.
Ideal for highway driving, Lane Trace Assist (LTA) works with Active Cruise Control (ACC) to observe road markings and make adjustments to help you maintain your position by applying for extra steering support and sounding an audible alert.
Should You Turn off Toyota LDA?
It depends on your preferences. The lane departure warning, or lane departure alert on all Toyota models, is an active safety feature designed to keep you firmly in your lane.
However, you can also adjust the settings of LDA so that it doesn’t bother you as much. For example, if you press the LDA button to turn LDA on, you can also use the right arrow on the steering wheel to go to settings.
Once you’re in the settings menu, scroll to the LDA screen by looking for the same icon on the steering wheel. Here you can change:
- Steering assist (on/off)
- LDA sensitivity
- Alerts (aural/visual)
While most car safety experts recommend keeping LDA on, the choice is entirely yours. Maybe by adjusting the settings, you can eliminate some of the features that annoy you.
But advanced safety features alone can’t protect you when you’re behind the wheel.
How to Change the Settings and Controls on the Toyota LDA
You can change the settings using the same LDA button on the steering wheel. Once pressed, you can also navigate to the LDA menu using the buttons located on your steering wheel. Scroll through the menu pages until you see an icon identical to the LDA icon on your steering wheel, then select it.
From here, you can turn on or off the Steering Assist feature and adjust the LDA system’s sensitivity between high and standard. Another feature on the menu looks like a cup of hot coffee. This feature indicates the Sway Warning feature, which detects excessive swaying within the lane
When to Turn off Toyota Lane Keep Assist
You can turn off lane assist when you need to listen to the navigation system and the alerts distract you. Or when you are driving on snow, and the road’s lanes are not visible. You can also turn it off if it keeps steering you off the lane while trying to overtake other vehicles.