Cadillac’s self-driving system known as Super Cruise makes its debut on the 2018 CT6 on sale this fall.
To mark the introduction, Cadillac on Monday kicked off a cross-country trip with 12 CT6 sedans equipped with Super Cruise. The fleet is traveling from New York to California and will cross 16 states plus the District of Columbia. (Motor Authority will be joining the fleet for part of the journey to bring you a firsthand report.)
This initial version of Super Cruise is designed for single-lane, limited-access highway driving and lets you sit back and relax without worrying about gripping the steering wheel every few seconds like some rival self-driving systems.
You’re free to take control at any time, for example if you want to pass a slower moving vehicle ahead, after which the car will revert to Super Cruise mode if the conditions are right.
You can’t nod off just yet. Super Cruise isn’t foolproof and requires you to monitor the road at all times. Road construction, heavy rain, snow or other environmental conditions can impact accuracy, and thus safety.
To ensure you’re concentrating, Super Cruise uses a detection system that monitors eye movements. If it thinks you’re not paying attention or requires you to take control and you fail to do so, the system will issue a series of warnings and ultimately bring the vehicle to a controlled stop.
Super Cruise relies on multiple data inputs to control the vehicle including adaptive cruise control to maintain a safe following distance to the car in front, plus lane-centering technology that relies on cameras to detect lane markings. This data is also compared to GPS and LIDAR mapping data which knows which lane on the highway you’re currently in and any changes in elevation or pavement coming up ahead.
