Jeep's Hands-Free Driving Tech Sets Its Sights on Super Cruise and BlueCruise
Adaptive cruise control is so 2020. It’s the price of entry for vehicles above a certain price point, and indeed every trim level of the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L gets this advanced driver assistance feature. To really wow buyers, automakers must offer a hands-free system like GM’s Super Cruise or Ford’s BlueCruise, the latter of which is just rolling out. With the launch of the 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L, most of the pieces of Stellantis’ answer to these systems are in place by way of the automaker’s new Active Driving Assist feature, but the full hands-free variant is still some months off.
How Active Driving Assist Works
What separates Active Driving Assist from plain old adaptive cruise control is a more sophisticated sensor suite that involves cameras that inform the various other ADAS systems, as well as three forward-looking and two-rear-facing radar units. The system also uses a predictive algorithm to infer the intended direction of travel and to keep the vehicle centered in the lane. But in 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee L models equipped with the feature, you’ll have to keep a hand on the wheel.
Capacitive Touch Steering Wheel
Using a capacitive-touch steering wheel allows the system to much more accurately detect when the driver physically has a hand on the wheel and not, for example, just a sock full of quarters draped over one spoke to simulate a thumb. For now, Active Driving Assist is simply adaptive cruise with vastly better lane centering, and it works on most roads with robust lane markings.
Take your hands off the wheel for too long and the green instrument cluster surround glow will turn yellow. If you still fail to grab the wheel, it will glow red and then the system will stab the brakes suddenly to wake you up. If you still don’t grab the wheel, it will park the vehicle.
