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GM is expanding access to Super Cruise and plans to allow drivers to use the hands-free advanced driver assistance system on approximately 750,000 miles of roads in the United States and Canada. The expansion, which will nearly double the automaker’s Super Cruise network by 2025, will include rural and minor highways that often connect small towns and townships.
The upgrade comes as automakers increasingly push the boundaries of advanced driver assistance systems in a bid to attract customers and generate revenue beyond vehicle sales.
Super Cruise uses a combination of lidar map data, high-precision GPS, cameras and radar sensors, as well as a driver attention system, which monitors the person behind the wheel to ensure they are watching the road. When the system is activated, it accelerates or brakes to maintain a selected following distance with a vehicle ahead, steers to maintain its lane position and performs an automatic lane change to pass slower traffic and the ability to deploy the system while towing a trailer. Automatic lane change is not available while towing, the company said.
The expanded Super Cruise network will not be available to Cadillac CT6, Chevrolet Bolt EUV and Cadillac XT6 owners, according to the company.
Unlike Tesla’s Autopilot driver assistance system, Super Cruise users do not need to have their hands on the wheel. However, their eyes should be directed straight ahead. Ford offers a competing hands-free system called Blue Cruise, launching in 2021.
Super Cruise was launched in 2017 as the industry’s first true hands-free ADAS on the market. However, GM was not considered a dominant player – despite the system’s capability – because it severely limited access to Super Cruise. For three years, the system was only available on one model, the Cadillac CT6, and was limited to certain divided highways.
The automaker has also gradually expanded its Super Cruise highway network, first reaching 200,000 miles and then double it to 400,000 in 2022. GM has also added the system to more makes and models. Today, 15 vehicles worldwide are equipped with Super Cruise, including the Chevrolet Bolt EUV, Chevy Suburban, Chevy Tahoe and Chevy Silverado, the GM Hummer EV SUV and all Cadillac models. Super Cruise with towing function will be offered in new models like the 2024 Chevrolet Traverse or the 2024 GMC Acadia
As GM progressed, Tesla gained followers largely because of its affordability. Tesla made its Autopilot system standard in all its vehicles and drivers could access it on all highways. The automaker’s upgraded systems, namely the $12,000 Full Self-Driving software that has gained fans, have additional capabilities and can even be used on city streets.
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