The Japanese automaker plans to offer its ProPilot Assist adaptive/intelligent cruise and lane-control system on 2018 models of its all-electric Leaf later this year.
Nissan is touting the system's benefits but also taking pains to clarify that the system is not a self-driving feature, a distinction that should temper expectations. That's in contrast with Tesla, which has been criticized for allegedly over-emphasizing the capabilities of its more-advanced, semi-autonomous technology and for naming it Autopilot.
“ProPilot Assist is a hands-on driver-assistance system. ... It’s a feature that requires the driver to remain engaged," said Andy Christensen, senior manager of Intelligent Transportation Systems Research for Nissan. "It is not a self-driving feature. We don’t talk about that. We don’t talk about the car doing the driving. It's assisting the driver. The driver's role hasn’t changed. We’re just providing assistance."
Instead of doing the driving itself, the system is designed to offer relief to human drivers in heavy traffic and on long trips on limited-access highways. The system, for example, does not switch lanes or know if the vehicle is approaching an intersection.
Nissan says the system is part of its overarching Intelligent Mobility approach to the development of self-driving cars, with the ultimate goals of zero emissions and fatalities at some point.
The company says it plans to expand the ProPilot technology with 10 model launches through the Renault-Nissan Alliance in the U.S., Europe, Japan and China by 2020.
It may not be a major selling point for the Leaf, however.
"Are people going to buy the Leaf because it has this system? I would say no," said Michelle Krebs, senior analyst of AutoTrader.com. "Clearly, however, the future is autonomous electric vehicles. This is a step in that direction. GM, for instance, is doing an autonomous Chevy Bolt."
Krebs said that when she drove the system during a demonstration this week, "it confirmed to me that a big job faces the industry in educating consumers on when and how to use these systems, as well as making clear what they do and don't do."
Journalists and analysts were given the chance this week to drive a handful of Rogue SUVs equipped with the technology. They started and ended at the Nissan Technical Center in Farmington Hills, traveling to Royal Oak and back on I-696.
Drivers were told to wait until they were on the interstate before engaging the system, which was accomplished by pushing a blue button on the steering wheel and setting the speed using a second button.
Once the system was up and running, a Free Press journalist was able to drive uneventfully along the route with only an occasional reminder to grip the steering wheel. But the system is mostly limited to highways with well-marked lanes. Therefore, the driver must take control to exit the highway.
A couple of things differentiate the system from more basic forms of adaptive cruise control, which can maintain a set distance behind another vehicle in one lane of travel — lane control and the way it stops in traffic.
The steering wheel turns on its own to maintain a centered position in the lane, including through standard curves and under overpasses.
The driver, however, must keep both hands on the wheel with a light grip. If the system does not detect the driver's hands after a few seconds or if the grip is too light, a series of increasingly urgent warnings — sounds, and eventually brake pulses — will prompt the driver to grasp the wheel.
If the driver still does not grasp the wheel, the car is programmed to begin slowing down, flash its hazard lights and eventually stop in the lane.
The other piece that sets ProPilot Assist apart from some other systems is how it will brake to a temporary stop in traffic but can resume operating on its own. The system allows the vehicle to come to a complete stop for up to three seconds and accelerate again without prompting. A stop longer than three seconds requires the driver to hit the resume button or tap the accelerator.
In the U.S., Nissan has confirmed plans to introduce ProPilot Assist on the 2018 Leaf. The Leaf is scheduled to be revealed globally in Japan in September and will go on sale in the U.S. by the end of this year.
However, recent news might hint at where ProPilot Assist could show up next. It was introduced last month in Japan on the X-Trail, which is the name for the Rogue there, and it will be available on an upcoming model of the Qashqai — the name in Europe for the Rogue Sport. The system is also available on the Nissan Serena, a minivan sold in Japan.
Pricing for the upcoming version of the Leaf has not been announced. Officials said ProPilot Assist is likely to be available as part of a package for the Leaf, but pricing has also not been determined.
©2017 the Detroit Free Press. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
