Ford’s BlueCruise hands-free system under investigation after fatal crashes

Federal security regulators have opened an investigation into Ford’s hands-free driver help system, BlueCruise, after it was energetic throughout two recent crashes into stationary automobiles that killed a number of folks.

The Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration’s Workplace of Defects Investigation (ODI) mentioned Monday that it has confirmed BlueCruise was energetic in each crashes. One befell in February in Texas, and the opposite occurred in early April in Pennsylvania. They’re the first-known fatalities ensuing from crashes involving the usage of BlueCruise.

The investigation into the 2 crashes ratchets up the scrutiny on BlueCruise, which is presently out there on the Mustang Mach-E, and sure Ford F-150s (together with the Lightning), Explorers, and Expeditions. The Nationwide Transportation Security Board has already opened an investigation into the Texas crash. Ford didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.

The brand new probe comes simply days after ODI closed its most high-profile driver-assistance investigation to date into Tesla’s Autopilot. The security company initially opened that probe in 2021 after a number of experiences of Teslas crashing into stationary emergency automobiles whereas the drivers had been utilizing Autopilot. In closing the investigation, ODI mentioned final week that it decided a “crucial security hole between drivers’ expectations of [Autopilot’s] working capabilities and the system’s true capabilities” created “foreseeable misuse and avoidable crashes.”

Ford introduced BlueCruise in 2021. It is just out there on pre-mapped highways, and Ford pairs it with a camera-based driver monitoring system that checks whether or not drivers’ eyes are nonetheless on the highway when the system is energetic. These symbolize a lot tighter constraints on the system than Tesla places on the usage of Autopilot. However whereas it’s highly-rated by some, together with Consumer Reports, the latest crashes and ensuing investigations recommend there could also be a extra elementary downside with superior driver help techniques than a few of these corporations are keen to confess.