Headquartered in Dearborn, Mich., Ford Motor Company (News - Alert) was founded in 1903 by Henry Ford and is currently touted as the second largest U.S-based automaker and the fifth largest in the world. With the intention of keeping its wheels far ahead of its competitors, the company recently revealed its plan to seamlessly integrate driver-assist technology into cars us mere mortals can actually afford.
With the ability to navigate traffic and park perfectly, this solution is definitely ideal for someone who lives in any city around the world. I can tell you first hand that parking in Brooklyn can literally take hours, and when its opposite-side-of-the-street-day, you can forget about being able to park anywhere remotely near your home.
With the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration strongly in favor of this innovation – as the organization believes it will promote safety and ultimately reduce accidents – many other companies are putting the pedal to the metal in hopes of being the first to market with this offering. Some of the major companies in line for the position include Audi, Mercedes-Benz and BMW.
Additionally, General Motors (News - Alert) is already offering lane-centering capabilities as well as some other pretty cool functions that will be introduced with its new Cadillac XTS that has a "super cruise" ability that allows drivers to sit back and relax, as it virtually drives itself with a little help.
"Ford is bringing it to a mass-market brand," analyst Dave Sullivan of AutoPacific stated.
With plans to power driver-assist systems in the brand spanking new 2013 Ford Fusion which will be hitting the road this fall, the automaker is claiming this snazzy vehicle will come complete with cameras and sensors to help the car stay in the proper lane or even detect vehicles that are in the car’s blind spot. Something else the less than great parkers around the country will be happy to hear is that this car can parallel park itself.
I am extremely supportive of any technology that can help people to live longer lives as many innocent individuals are taken too soon because of car accidents related to not paying attention for seconds at a time. I wonder what the Department of Motor Vehicles has to say about this though because if a car can now drive itself, do we really need to take a road test anymore?