Ford released a video today showcasing their BlueCruise hands-free driving system. Ford employees have tested the new driver assistance feature over the last few months in Canada and the US.
Ford employers using a variety of vehicles have driven over 100,000 miles during the testing round. This included the mother of all road trips, where Ford tested the software in a cross-country driving scenario. The software was tested in practically all weather conditions, terrain and road conditions during this road trip.
Map of more than 100K miles of divided highways where BlueCruise hands-free driving will work after OTA push to Mustang Mach-E and 2021 F-150. More miles to be added. pic.twitter.com/qKWQsg47SV
— Mike Now at Threads Levine (@mrlevine) April 14, 2021
Ford chose to test the software via its employees instead of consumers. This led to a bit of jab at Tesla from Jim Farley, the Ford CEO:
BlueCruise! We tested it in the real world, so our customers don’t have to. pic.twitter.com/dgqVkWH31r
— Jim Farley (@jimfarley98) April 14, 2021
Tesla recently came under fire due to their testing of FSD via consumers. As the NTSB noted, the Beta was a “potential risk to motorists and other road users”.
Ford’s BlueCruise is still in its infancy, and won’t be available until later this year. It is also limited to pre-mapped roads and highways, unlike Autopilot which can be used almost anywhere.
With costs between $1,500 and $3,200 depending on the vehicle, the software is affordable to the everyday driver. The Mach-E requires an additional three year $600 subscription to connect to the service over-the-air (OTA).
