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Ford Advancing Hands-Free Driver Assist Technology and Making it More Mainstream with F-150, Mustang Mach-E
Ford F-150 F-150 Hands-Free Active Drive Assist Pricing Announced, Available Q3 2021 Active-Drive-Assist

  • Coming first to 2021 F-150 and the all-electric Mustang Mach-E as part of available Ford Co-Pilot360™ Technology, Active Drive Assist allows for hands-free driving on prequalified sections of divided highways called Hands-Free Zones that make up over 100,000 miles of North American roads
  • Ford developed available Active Drive Assist based on advanced computing of camera and radar sensing technologies to provide real-time hands-free driving opportunities and enable the addition of more such zones in the future
  • Ford is advancing the technology with state-of-the-art innovations and promoting its more mainstream adoption by making it standard or a relatively affordable option for certain F-150 pickups and Mustang Mach-E all-electric SUVs; expected first year sales of 100,000 vehicles with the technology hardware
  • The technology will become available in the third quarter of 2021 via Over-the-Air Update, demonstrating Ford’s bumper-to-bumper OTA capability for complex innovations to help improve vehicles over time and keep customers at the forefront of technology
DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 30, 2020 – Henry Ford helped millions of people lay hands on their first automobiles beginning more than 117 years ago. Today, his company is helping many more people take their hands off steering wheels by applying the same approach to democratizing technology to Ford’s state-of-the-art Active Drive Assist hands-free driver assist innovation.

Ford developed Active Drive Assist based on advanced computing of camera and radar sensing technologies to provide real-time hands-free driving opportunities. The technology also enables expanded hands-free driving zones in the future based on system and customer patterns.

The advanced new driver assist feature will arrive first on 2021 F-150 and 2021 Mustang Mach-E, included as standard on certain models or as relatively affordable option on others, with both vehicles becoming available to customers in late 2020. Ford expects to sell more than 100,000 F-150 and Mustang Mach-E equipped with Active Drive Assist technology hardware in their first year of alone based on company sales and take-rate projections.

“As breakthroughs in new technology allow us to help reduce the stress of long highway drives, it’s important to make sure these capabilities can be enjoyed by the largest spread of people possible,” said Hau Thai-Tang, chief product platform and operations officer, Ford Motor Company. “Active Drive Assist can help improve the driving experience while ensuring people remain aware and fully in control, all for a price unmatched by our competitors – a commitment to affordable innovations that has driven us since Henry Ford put the world on wheels.”

High tech priced right

When Active Drive Assist is not equipped as standard, it will be priced competitively, including:

  • For F-150, Active Drive Assist will be available as a part of the Ford Co-Pilot 360 Active 2.0 package for $1,595. The Ford Co-Pilot 360 Active 2.0 package is standard on F-150 Limited and available as an option on Lariat, King Ranch and Platinum models.
  • For Mustang Mach-E, it will come standard on CA Route 1, Premium and First Edition variants. It’s also available on Select trims for $3,200 as part of the larger Comfort and Technology package, which includes features such as a 360-degree camera, heated front seats and heated steering wheel.
For customers purchasing F-150 and Mustang Mach-E at this year’s launch, the hardware enabling Active Drive Assist – including forward-facing camera and radar sensors – will be available through the Ford Co-Pilot360 Active 2.0 Prep Package, while customers choosing to purchase the software for $600 will receive it through an Over-the-Air Update in the third quarter of next year.

Over-the-Air Updates are quick and easy wireless upgrades that can help enhance quality, capability and improve the ownership experience over time while reducing dealer trips. This will be an early demonstration of the Ford system’s bumper-to-bumper update capability to wirelessly update nearly all vehicle computer models, enabling the addition of this type of complex innovations that require software upgrades to vehicle functions.

For example, early F-150 customers can purchase the prep package that includes the Active Drive Assist hardware and Active Park Assist 2.0 even more affordably for $895, which includes a $100 early adopter incentive. When Active Drive Assist is ready to launch with software updates, customers will then be able to purchase the software – plus a three-year service period – for $600 and receive it via Over-the-Air Update.

In the second half of 2021, new customers will be able to purchase the hardware and software together in the Ford Co-Pilot Active 2.0 package, without the need for an Over-the-Air Update to initiate the feature.

By offering innovative new technology on its most popular, mainstream nameplates, Ford expects to quickly expand the number of vehicles on the road equipped with hands-free driving technology based on company sales projections. This includes approximately 80 percent of Mustang Mach-E vehicles that are expected to be equipped with the technology.

Ford plans to continue adding mapped areas to Active Drive Assist in the future, enabling hands-free driving on even more roads and highways. After a three-year service period, customers can choose to purchase this competitively priced connected service to continue enjoying Active Drive Assist and receive new improvements via Over-the-Air Update.

How it works

Available Active Drive Assist builds upon available Intelligent Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop-and-Go Lane Centering and Speed Sign Recognition. It allows you to operate your vehicle hands-free while the driver is monitored by a driver-facing camera to make sure you’re keeping your eyes on the road, with the potential for more enhancements in the future. This feature is available on prequalified sections of divided highways called Hands-Free Zones that make up over 100,000 miles of North American roads.

An advanced driver-facing camera will track eye gaze and head position to ensure drivers are paying attention to the road while in Hands-Free Mode as well as when they’re using hands-on Lane Centering Mode, which works on any road with lane lines. Drivers will be notified by visual prompts on their instrument cluster when they need to return their attention to the road or resume control of the vehicle.

As part of the available Ford Co-Pilot360 Active 2.0 package, customers will also receive Active Park Assist 2.0, the latest iteration of park-assist technologies to give drivers some peace of mind when parking their F-150 or Mustang Mach-E. With Active Park Assist 2.0, simply holding a button will allow the vehicle to take control of parking in parallel and perpendicular spaces with ease. It also offers Park Out Assist with side-sensing capability so drivers can confidently navigate out of a parking spot when someone’s parked too close.

*Active Drive Assist is a hands-free highway driving feature. The Active Drive Assist Prep Kit contains the hardware required for this feature. Software for the feature will be available for purchase at a later date.

*Active Drive Assist functionality expected 3rd quarter 2021CY. Separate payment for feature software required to activate full functionality at that time.

Ford F-150 F-150 Hands-Free Active Drive Assist Pricing Announced, Available Q3 2021 Active-Drive-Assist-HMI
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BoilerTimmay

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I'm pleasantly surprised that this is $600. I really didn't know what to expect after swallowing the pill of having to pay for it at all on top of the $1000 prep package.
 

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I’m really not a fan of self-driving technology. We see all the stories about Teslas crashing while on auto-pilot. Yes, Tesla’s quality is rubbish. But what we’re doing is taking the possibility of human error out of the responsibility for driving, and just shifting that to a dependency on technology which needs to be error-proof, while being able to anticipate or successfully react to every possible scenario. I’d much rather keep the responsibility for piloting in human hands, supplemented by crash-prevention assists.
 

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I'm pleasantly surprised that this is $600. I really didn't know what to expect after swallowing the pill of having to pay for it at all on top of the $1000 prep package.
And yet Ford still requires the top-of-the-line, $6,900 502A High package on the Lariat to get a f*cking heated steering wheel, which was a $125 option in my cloth-seated, 2017 Explorer XLT. It’s not even available on the F-150 XLT at any price. Jagoffs!
 

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BoilerTimmay

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I’m really not a fan of self-driving technology. We see all the stories about Teslas crashing while on auto-pilot. Yes, Tesla’s quality is rubbish. But what we’re doing is taking the possibility of human error out of the responsibility for driving, and just shifting that to a dependency on technology which needs to be error-proof, while being able to anticipate or successfully react to every possible scenario. I’d much rather keep the responsibility for piloting in human hands, supplemented by crash-prevention assists.
I get your point, I'm a little skeptical but I would give it a chance. It isn't like you can sleep, or even disengage. This is just letting the truck do the work while you supervise, ready to take action. If you trust the truck in an evasive braking situation, It can probably get down the road just fine.

Now, the big issue is road construction. My common trip and Indy->Detroit and Indy->Chicago. Plenty of construction on 65/69... My Lincoln has all of the previous gen assist features and I do not trust it to not put me in a wall or barrel, meaning I turn of the assist due to it changing the steering to make it easier to stay in the wrong lanes that have been augmented.
 

BoilerTimmay

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Considering what Tesla costs this isn’t that bad.. my gut is telling me this is going to be light years behind Tesla’s autopilot.
I agree, but as a techy, I am happy it will only cost me $600 to try it out. If it really sucks I will ask for my money back. I'm really not counting on it being out in 2021 either... But IMO the park assist is worth $1000, one Chicago parking garage mishap and you have paid for it, and I do trust that tech based on v1 in my lincoln.
 

Rick1982

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Do we know of anywhere that has posted a map of the current roadways that are covered by these 'Hands-Free' zones? Would love to know if any of the interstates around me will be included or if they will all, initially, be focused around the major urban centers of the nation.
 

Agashi25

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I agree, but as a techy, I am happy it will only cost me $600 to try it out. If it really sucks I will ask for my money back. I'm really not counting on it being out in 2021 either... But IMO the park assist is worth $1000, one Chicago parking garage mishap and you have paid for it, and I do trust that tech based on v1 in my lincoln.
As someone that lives downtown Chicago all you really need is a backup camera and sensors. I highly doubt park assist is going to help you squeeze into ultra tight spots. I’m bet it only works if there is X amount of space left and I’m sure it’s generous.
 

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A BIG "No Thank You" to hands-free driving! I can't imagine this even working in Ohio with how people drive there (let alone the Chicago area). Maybe in the middle of Montana?

Vehicles should never be made with this feature. Sorry, but my opinion.
 

Agashi25

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A BIG "No Thank You" to hands-free driving! I can't imagine this even working in Ohio with how people drive there (let alone the Chicago area). Maybe in the middle of Montana?

Vehicles should never be made with this feature. Sorry, but my opinion.
Vehicles should absolutely be made with this feature. Too many dumb fucks out in this world. I would feel way better knowing people had autopilot with safety features than that dumbass smoking a cigarette on their phone swerving into my lane.

To each their own.
 

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I’m really not a fan of self-driving technology. We see all the stories about Teslas crashing while on auto-pilot. Yes, Tesla’s quality is rubbish. But what we’re doing is taking the possibility of human error out of the responsibility for driving, and just shifting that to a dependency on technology which needs to be error-proof, while being able to anticipate or successfully react to every possible scenario. I’d much rather keep the responsibility for piloting in human hands, supplemented by crash-prevention assists.
Jim -
Having had 2 Tesla's, I find your comment that "Tesla's quality is rubbish" not only misplaced, but highly inflammatory. Tesla has not released full auto pilot, so unless you're a Tesla engineer and you've been working on the full hand's free driving program, it's a bit hard to make any statement on the quality.

But I get it, you don't like Tesla and you don't like hand's free driving.
 

Agashi25

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Jim -
Having had 2 Tesla's, I find your comment that "Tesla's quality is rubbish" not only misplaced, but highly inflammatory. Tesla has not released full auto pilot, so unless you're a Tesla engineer and you've been working on the full hand's free driving program, it's a bit hard to make any statement on the quality.

But I get it, you don't like Tesla and you don't like hand's free driving.
I am also confused by his statement. Tesla AutoPilot and Enhanced Self Driving has been fantastic in my personal opinion.
 

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Interesting how many people have a problem with self-driving vehicles, when they don't have a problem sitting in an airplane with auto-pilot at 40k feet. As long as you're still paying attention, and have the ability to re-take control, then there shouldn't be any issues. Most of the horror stories you see in the news are almost always the driver's (human's) fault for either sleeping or sitting in the back seat. I don't claim to be an expert on this technology, I'm only sharing my personal observations of humans.....just me thinking out loud, not judging previous posts to this thread.
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