Mercedes-Benz is the first company to receive permission for SAE Level 3 autonomous driving in the United States, beating Tesla to the market. Mercedes-Benz is working hard to establish itself as the leading provider of autonomous driving in the United States. The business has announced that it's Level 3 hands-free driving service, named Drive Pilot, will be available through dealers in Nevada and California for a $2,500 yearly subscription for 2024 EQS sedans and 2024 S-Class cars. Both states approved it in January and June of this year.
- Mercedes-Benz will launch its Drive Pilot Level 3 autonomous driving option in California and Nevada later this year on certain 2024 S-Class and EQS sedan models. It costs $2500 each year to subscribe.
- In stop-and-go traffic in some metropolitan cities in those two states, the technology allows you to take your hands off the wheel and your eyes off the road.
- The device only works at speeds less than 40 mph and with a car in front of you.
Mercedes' Drive Pilot takes over the entire management of your car—acceleration, braking, and steering—at speeds up to 40 mph, allowing you to simply goof off. You may use the central infotainment screen to watch YouTube videos, send text messages, or simply look out the window in awe.
Highest Level Unlocked
The Society of Automotive Engineers has classified autonomous driving into five tiers. Level 1 is essentially cruise control, with radar sensors keeping a safe distance from the automobile ahead of you. Level 2 accomplishes this as well as steering, but you must maintain your hands on the wheel, your eyes on the road, or both.
Level 3 examines the traffic surrounding the automobile and responds accordingly, exactly like a real, living, sober human would. Drive Pilot is a Level 3 feature that allows you to take your eyes off the road and your hands off the wheel.
Loaded with Features
Mercedes-Benz has been offering this feature on its S-Class sedans in Germany for over two years. Drive Pilot enlists more than 15 different safety systems and combines them to drive the car for you. Among these systems are, but are not limited to:
- Active Steering Assist in conjunction with Active Lane Change Assist
- Active Brake Assist features pedestrian and bicycle recognition, cross-traffic detection, and emergency braking for traffic congestion
- Distronic Active Distance Assist, which comprises Active Speed Limit Assist and Active Stop-and-Go Assist
Avoidance Steering Assist
Lidar in the front grille, redundant steering systems in case one fails, radar to measure the speed and distance of cars around you, two cameras facing forward, ultrasonic sensors to detect near-vehicle surroundings, and a special antenna array on the roof to provide highly accurate positioning are among the other safety technologies.
There's also a microphone in the wheel well to detect road dampness and a microphone inside the car to listen for sirens on emergency cars, both of which will result in the Drive Pilot returning control to you. All of this (and more) provides the automobile with all it requires to safely drive itself and you through monotonous stop-and-go city traffic jams.
Unlike last year, when Mercedes gave rides in a Drive Pilot-equipped Mercedes Benz E-Class, M-B let me take the wheel—or rather, let it take the wheel. My vehicle was a red EQS 580 sedan that seemed to be mostly stock on the interior and outside.
There are turquoise-colored lights on the outside that glow when the system is active, both to alert other cars and to police so they don't penalize you for texting while driving.
To activate the system, there are buttons on the steering wheel. You must be on a motorway in Los Angeles, San Francisco, or Las Vegas, or on one of the roads Mercedes has designated for Drive Pilot. And there must be a vehicle in front of you. In certain cases, simply hit one of the wheel-mounted buttons, and you're done.
$2500 Annual Subscription
The Drive Pilot will be available at certain Mercedes-Benz dealerships later this year. The technology is fully installed through a subscription through the "Mercedes me" connect shop in the United States for particular S-Class and EQS cars. It cannot be retrofitted onto current vehicles, nor can it be retrofitted onto a new vehicle that does not already have it installed by the manufacturer.
The annual fee is $2500, which is costly, but Drive Pilot comes with a lot of technology. You must first view a seven-minute film that explains what it is and how it works before you can use it. But then go ahead and get stuck in traffic. You could even look forward to your commute.
