Is 360+ worth the upgrade?

[kvenerable]

So this is a dumb question now. I criticize car play as I haven’t found a use case for it. My previous newest vehicle prior to 2020 was a 2007 F150 which had the rare factory nav (because I ordered it that way & sure got my use out of it over the next decade), so I am biased towards the in car.

But for car play. Can it use apps like your Gaia one? I’d forgotten there are some things (like nav for off road) which in car can’t possibly use well. Does car play put those up on the screen? I haven’t had cause to use something like Gaia but if it functions on the car screen the same as it would on your phone, then that could be interesting to a lot of people.

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[kvenerable]

Yes, I use Gaia thru CarPlay. But just use the Nav straight up when on the road (with Sirius going too)

note a minor glitch with Gaia for me is I have to have Gaia up on the phone when I plug it in or I don’t get all the trail “detail”. Need that detail, like earlier today over in SW Utah…

 

[MJE]

Oh awesome thanks for that. I may have to check out that app. SW Utah is so beautiful down into Arizona as well. Looking forward to going back before long!

 

[AWallace151]

I’ve made multiple road trips in my OB with 360+ and it’s a game changer. Makes the drive a bit less mentally taxing. Changes speeds as needed, keeps me a safe distance from the vehicle in front of me, and it takes the gas mileage to 32-34 mpg. Definitely worth it, plus it will make the resale more attractive as well.

 

[Petroph]

After driving a vehicle that has it. I will never own a vehicle without it. ?

 

[Leenaya]

Have said it before but now that I have a badlands without 360 and have seen how easy it is to drive, I don't need or want the 360 system as I know how to drive safely. I am sure for some people it is a good idea but not for me. If you get used to it working and suddenly it flakes out and doesn't work but you think it will you could end up killing someone or yourself, or both. I would rather just stay alert at all times like I have for the last 20 years with no accidents.

 

[Tigger]

I had a 2021 BB without the 360+ and I now have the 2022 OB with it.
Is it a must? No.
But, is it a must for the cost? Yes.

That is, without the plus it is still well equipped but all the added features are nice and convenient, especially for the price.

 

[GaryS]

I notice that people either consider it a must-have, or not worth it. I'm in the latter camp. I never use cruise control. Over the years I try it occasionally on long trips but then just turn it off. My driving style requires me to pay constant attention and micro-adjustments, and just sitting there and letting the car do the work is not relaxing to me. That said, the lane centering is interesting, but basically a gimmick to me (my car - off the lot - came with the 360+). I find the warnings to subtle though, and I compare it unfavorably with my Subaru. If I had ordered the car I would not have ordered it.

 

[cgparsons1983]

It's the only thing I didn't add to my Badlands, and I have no regrets. I don't like control being taken away from me. If I did, I would have bought a Tesla. Just be aware though if you don't get it, then you have no built in nav. Doesn't matter much to me because I use Android Auto with Google Maps, but it's something you should know. Also, my Badlands still has the button on the end of the turn signal that turns on "lane centering assist" or something similar. If you don't have the + package, then it basically just tells you when you're getting too far on either side of the road, and it tightens up the steering, but I don't really like using it.

 

[Jrl]

I'm interested in the stop and go feature, which I guess I'd have to get the 360+ to get it. Sounds interesting enough, but how does it perform in the real world?

Works great , had it in my 2010 Lincoln MKS 3.5 turbo , it is very good on stop and go . Ford definitely has that feature right .

 

[DaveInSA]

It's the only thing I didn't add to my Badlands, and I have no regrets. I don't like control being taken away from me. If I did, I would have bought a Tesla. Just be aware though if you don't get it, then you have no built in nav. Doesn't matter much to me because I use Android Auto with Google Maps, but it's something you should know. Also, my Badlands still has the button on the end of the turn signal that turns on "lane centering assist" or something similar. If you don't have the + package, then it basically just tells you when you're getting too far on either side of the road, and it tightens up the steering, but I don't really like using it.

That's lane departure warning / lane keeping on the stalk. It can either vibrate the steering wheel or nudge you back in to the road if you pass over a line, if it can see the line.
Lane centering is much more aggressive with keeping you in the middle of the lane, again, when it can see the lines properly.

I could live without the lane centering, but I absolutely love the adaptive cruise control, and probably won't get another car without it. Using it in stop and go traffic on my drive home from work when I go in to the office is very nice.

 

[Glamdring70]

Just be aware though if you don't get it, then you have no built in nav. Doesn't matter much to me because I use Android Auto with Google Maps, but it's something you should know.

To add to my response way upthread, don't get it for the factory Nav. The built in Nav is a turd.

I mean, it's fine if you tell it to find the closest gas station or a McDonald's, but I have found that not much else is built into the map. I can not search for most small business / retail places by name. And even if you know an address number, the navigation may not. Instead it will guide you to the middle of the road it thinks you're looking for. Even though I have it set to just use the faster routes, it defiantly directs you off highways and down every frontage road and bypass that it can find. It drills down too far searching out for those things especially on long distance drives. I do want the "fastest" route, but I don't give a rip about the like 37 second faster detour it found over using a direct, intuitive route. If you ask for shortest distance it has the same problem and takes you on a crazy maze to save a hundred feet of driving and adding lots of stops and lights to the route.

Previously I used a Garmin GPS, and while it may not have every conceivable business name in the database, it can find an address number for you. It has enough logic to just have you take the right freeway exit instead of getting off two exits early and then making two rights and a left to get where you're heading to. The factory nav is powered by Sirius and has a 5 year service subscription. Zero chance I would renew it instead of just switching to Carplay with Apple/Google/Waze/etc.

 

[DaveInSA]

To add to my response way upthread, don't get it for the factory Nav. The built in Nav is a turd.

I mean, it's fine if you tell it to find the closest gas station or a McDonald's, but I have found that not much else is built into the map. I can not search for most small business / retail places by name. And even if you know an address number, the navigation may not. Instead it will guide you to the middle of the road it thinks you're looking for. Even though I have it set to just use the faster routes, it defiantly directs you off highways and down every frontage road and bypass that it can find. It drills down too far searching out for those things especially on long distance drives. I do want the "fastest" route, but I don't give a rip about the like 37 second faster detour it found over using a direct, intuitive route. If you ask for shortest distance it has the same problem and takes you on a crazy maze to save a hundred feet of driving and adding lots of stops and lights to the route.

Previously I used a Garmin GPS, and while it may not have every conceivable business name in the database, it can find an address number for you. It has enough logic to just have you take the right freeway exit instead of getting off two exits early and then making two rights and a left to get where you're heading to. The factory nav is powered by Sirius and has a 5 year service subscription. Zero chance I would renew it instead of just switching to Carplay with Apple/Google/Waze/etc.

Sirius only provides the traffic data and 'travel link' which gives weather data, fuel prices, parking, etc.
The basic insert an address and get navigation is the sync system itself.

https://www.ford.com/support/how-tos/sync/sync-3/using-siriusxm-traffic-and-travel-link-with-sync-3/

 

[JerryC]

Not sure if I posted this before about lane centering.
Several weeks back we took a 6 hour roundtrip through heavy crosswinds. I took the 4 Runner instead of of the BS for the extra room for our guests.
Big mistake. I fought the wheel for nearly the entire trip. Actually had sore upper back muscles the next day.
The BS with lane centering on would have spared me from most of that.

 

[kingtj]

Just to add a few more random thoughts here?

First, I *do* own a Tesla (Model 3 Performance) as my daily driver. I bought the Bronco Sport Badlands for the things the Tesla really isn't ideal for. (Driving on trails or dirt roads, for example, or using anything requiring a tow hitch, or tailgating situations, or long road trips where I don't want to deal with the time penalty of waiting for it to recharge at multiple points along the way.)

I have come to REALLY appreciate the adaptive cruise control feature, so I'm a little upset I didn't buy a Bronco Sport with the 360+ on it. But honestly, Ford made it so unclear and confusing to figure out what was and wasn't included with various names for Sync packages, I didn't realize I bought one without it until after I got it home. Once you've used adaptive cruise, you can't go back to the "dumb" type without constantly getting frustrated at how stupid it is, needing you to keep adjusting your cruise speed when you come up on slower traffic in your lane, etc.

That said? I don't know how much I care about the rest of the 360+ package, so maybe it was just as well not to pay extra for it. I can assure people that for GPS navigation on regular roads, Waze on a smartphone can't be beat! It's awesome having Apple CarPlay allowing me to use Waze as the default GPS in the Bronco Sport. Waze not only does a good job routing, but warns you of everything from police presence to potholes in the road to cars stalled on the shoulder ahead. All that info gets updated by other drivers using Waze who mark those things, and it will prompt you to say yes or no if one still exists as you drive past it. The "hard core" Waze users can even install a separate app to edit the street map and submit changes if they find any errors. On my Tesla, I'm stuck using their built in GPS system which is based on Google map data with a custom Tesla interface over the top of it. It's good, but lacks all the extra info Waze gives you.

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