2023-08-29 12:00:04
Step by step, the semi-autonomous car is making its way in Europe. Germany has become the second country to approve Ford’s use of Blue Cruise, its functionality that allows the driver to take their hands off the wheel.
Some manufacturers, such as Tesla, already have capabilities of this type available on some roads in the Old Continent, something that the blue oval already offers in its latest models in the US and the UK.
The brand ensures that, in the second quarter of 2023, they have already had more than 270 million kilometers logged in what they call “Level 2+” of autonomy, 40% more than what they reached in the same period of the previous year. According to their data, more than 100,000 customers are Blue Cruise users.
In the US, all Mustang Mach-Es come with a 90-day free trial of Blue Cruise. From there, you can contract a subscription of $800 per year or $2,100 for three years. This system, along with Tesla’s FSD or similar proposals from Chinese brands are an additional revenue stream that brands are exploring.
Mustangs have an infrared camera behind the wheel that detects the degree of driver attention. He can take his hands off the wheel only in specific areas of highways – in Germany it is 95% of them – and the vehicle monitors if he is distracted or, for example, if he uses the phone while driving.
If detected, it beeps and if no action is taken, it will brake on its own. Emphasizing the safety of the system was one of the keys to the approval by the German Federal Transport Authority (KBA).
This body had already approved a similar system for BMW and Mercedes-Benz, also limiting it exclusively to highways.
The Ford Mustang Mach-E will be the first model to offer Blue Cruise. Ford
The director of the electrical division of Ford of Europe, Martin Sanderstates that “they are pleased to offer this innovative technology that can ease the fatigue of long highway trips, with a safe and relaxed way to reach your destination.”
After Germany, Ford is considering extending this system to Spain, even approving it before the end of the year. “It is expected to happen reasonably soon,” they say from the Spanish subsidiary of the brand. “We have been working on it all summer, with fluid relations with the authorities.”
Both officials from the Ministry of Industry and the Directorate General for Traffic have been able to witness a demonstration of the Blue Cruise. A Spanish engineer responsible for its development at Ford, Arantza Domínguezstates that “the technology is ready to be used on highways by all models that have the appropriate sensors.”
“In the future,” he stresses, “it may even be extended to national roads, but for now, guiding a car autonomously through a tight curve is impossible. The driver would have to help turn the steering wheel.”
The approval in Germany marks a milestone, as it is the first country in the European Union to have approved it and, in theory, paves the way for other community markets to request it. Ford affirms that he “is developing the Spanish cartography” to introduce it into the Blue Cruise system.
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