Toyota confused LTA and LDA — won’t their customers end up confused as well??

Toyota confused

When the Toyota symbols page update was finished, we noted that Toyota is clearly confused about the symbols they had applied to Lane Tracing Assist (LTA) and Lane Departure Assist (LDA). For the record, LTA is an advanced version of LDA. But with Toyota confused, how are their drivers likely feeling.

This may turn out only to be a mistake inside a single owner’s manual — that is, another owner’s manual fail — but it needs addressing.

We found LTA first in Lexus models and the symbols were applied consistently. Oddly, the company chose to use an original LDA symbol as a start point. That would be the yellow/amber/orange symbol to the far right. That symbol has been in use for years by many manufacturers. They then created the green and white versions to round out LTA.

LDA was then assigned another pre-used symbol — the one that has a car seemingly running through a fence in yellow/amber/orange (far right) — and then also created green and white versions. The yellow light has also been in use for some time as a lane departure warning.

Then comes the Toyota Venza that quite literally flipped the script. They assign the symbol showing a vehicle crossing a lane or fence to lane tracing! Lane departure then gets the symbol of a car in a lane. The colors remain true.

The problem is that LTA is an active system keeping the car centered in its lane. LDA is simply a warning system, signaling a lane crossing when perhaps one was not intended. The symbols being backward could conceivably cause a serious problem for a driver.

Its an easy mistake to make, but for the sake of your drivers, Toyota, change the Venza manual! The others are consistent with the Lexus versions.

Through all of that, the vehicles include some called Lane Change Assist (LCA)! We’ll just ignore that here.

We keep all these actually related symbols on the same page, which can be seen here here.

Cars are changing, and among those changes is the growing number of symbols and indicators that will invariably show up on your dashboard or instrument panel. Every year, new features are added to vehicles, each of which is accompanied by a new symbol or symbols and likely a new acronym.

At DashboardSymbols.com, our aim is to help you understand what is happening to your vehicle at the first sign of trouble — a new warning light illuminated on your instrument panel. Its all here on this website. Our first intention is to bring the latest technologies down to earth and understandable for everyday drivers.

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Remember that only proper service and repair procedures will ensure the safe and reliable operation of your car. In addition, proper safety procedures and precautions, such as the use of safety goggles, the right tools and the equipment should be followed at all times to eliminate the possibility of personal injury or improper service which could damage the vehicle or compromise its safety.

These posts are for information sharing purposes only, and should not be used in lieu of an OEM service manual or factory authorized service procedure. We are not in the auto repair business nor do we publish automotive service manuals. Nothing we include on these pages and posts has been reviewed, approved or authorized by any vehicle manufacturer.

Technology is always changing and what is current and accurate today may be literally out-of-date and inaccurate tomorrow. And when it comes to the current state of flux in the auto industry, nothing could be more true.