The part about a highway and normal setting has been discussed before. I think the best idea mentioned was that once a mic is hooked up for the VR, it monitors the noise level and adjust automatically. I'm not sure if this is being worked on or not, but I know it has been mentioned a few times.

As for the mute thing, I thought the same thing and remembered reading about that request before I got my unit. I was in my car listening and was pulling up to a drive-thru. I thought about it, then I realized that the pause button will do exactly that. DOH! So, I think mute is already taken care of. As for attenuation, I think it would be nice to lower the volume a set amount, not quite silencing it, but I'd just as soon hold down the lower volume button.

George