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GM doubles miles open to its Super Cruise technology

DETROIT — General Motors said on Wednesday owners of certain vehicles equipped with its Super Cruise assisted driving system will now be able to use it on 400,000 miles (643,740 km) of North American roads, doubling the current operating area as Tesla and other automakers race to deploy hands-free cruising technology. GM's Super Cruise system, like Tesla's Autopilot system, is a driver assistance system, and does not enable true autonomous driving. Spurred by Tesla's aggressive deployment of Autopilot, and Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk's promises of a more advanced "Full Self Driving" system, GM, Ford, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz are racing to deploy competing partial automation technology in major markets. At the same time, safety regulators are showing concern that drivers do not understand that Autopilot and similar systems are not designed to take over driving in every circumstance. The GM system's sensors and software allow a motorist to cruise with hands off the wheel on highways that have been mapped in detail. But the driver is expected to stay alert and ready to take over the car. GM uses technology to monitor the driver, and Super Cruise will sound alarms or slow the car to a stop if it detects that a driver is not responding. Starting later this year, GM plans to enable vehicles equipped with Super Cruise and the company's latest vehicle electronic system to operate hands-free on major, undivided highways in the United States and Canada, as well as additional miles of divided, interstate highways. Currently, Super Cruise operates only on interstate, divided highways. The expansion, enabled by wider digital mapping, will allow owners of properly equipped GM vehicles to cruise hands-free on stretches of Route 66 and the Pacific Coast Highway in the U.S. West or the Trans-Canada highway in Western Canada, GM said. Many of the new roads GM has mapped are in rural, heartland states where GM pickup trucks are popular. GM plans to offer Super Cruise as an option on its Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra large pickups later this year. GM has said previously it intends to offer Super Cruise as an option on 22 models by the end of 2023. Depending on the model, Super Cruise costs $2,200 to $2,500 to add as an option. (Reporting by Joe White in Detroit; Editing by Matthew Lewis) Related video: Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC Technology Super Cruise

Three automotive tech trends to watch in 2018 and beyond

Every year, technology plays a bigger and bigger role in the auto industry. To put things in perspective, 10 years ago iPod integration and Bluetooth were cutting-edge in-car innovations, and smartphones and apps weren't yet a thing since the first iPhone was only about six months old. And I can't recall anyone talking about autonomous cars. Compare that to today, with mainstream coverage of the auto industry dominated by autonomous technology, along with electrification and almost every move made by Tesla. These three topics were the most significant trends of car tech in 2017 and I believe they will continue to shape the auto industry in 2018 and beyond. Let's examine them. Full Autonomy Gets Closer to Reality While there were many developments this year that indicate we're inching closer to fully autonomous vehicles, I was behind the wheel for hours to witness one of them. In October I had the chance to test Cadillac Super Cruise on a 700-mile, 11-hour drive from Dallas to Santa Fe – and had my hands on the wheel for maybe 45 minutes max throughout the entire trip. Super Cruise is far from making the Cadillac CT6 or any GM vehicle fully autonomous, and has limitations such as functioning only on pre-mapped main highways. While it simply adds a layer of lane centering to adaptive cruise control, the technology will go a long way in making mainstream drivers more comfortable with letting machines take over. On a separate front, GM is pushing ahead with fully autonomous vehicles and announced last month that it plans to launch of fleets of self-driving robo-taxis in several urban areas in 2019. While most automakers are also in the race to make autonomous cars a reality, GM's turbocharging of its efforts appeared to be in response to Waymo, which announced just weeks earlier that its Early Rider Program in the Phoenix area would go completely driverless. The Early Rider Program launched last April, offering the public a chance to ride in Waymo's autonomous Chrysler Pacifica minivans. In this new phase of testing, Waymo is using its own employees as guinea pigs instead of the public while the vehicles operate without a human behind the wheel, and takes another giant step forward for fully autonomous driving.

GM drops price of Spark EV to $25,995; lease to $139/month

The drive to lower EV prices continues. GM announced today that the base model 2015 Chevy Spark EV 1LT would get a price cut to $25,995. That's $1,500 less than it used to be but the bigger news might be the lowered lease price. Instead of $199 a month, all that Chevy is asking for to get you into an all-electric Spark now is $139 a month (39 months, with no money due at signing), down from the 36-month, $199-a-month lease cost with a $999 down payment. Sadly, the number of states where the Spark EV can be bought is almost as small as the lease payment: the car is available only in California, Oregon and Maryland (well, Maryland won't be ready until the summer). GM is doing more than just lowering the MSRP. On top of the federal and state tax incentives available, GM is offering bonus cash in all three states ($1,000 in California, $1,200 in Maryland, and $3,500 in Oregon). If you're wondering why those numbers vary so much, take a look at the already-available state EV incentives in play: California offers $2,500 and Maryland $2,300. Somehow, they all balance out. If you do some addition with the $7,500 federal tax credit, you see that the Spark EV can be had for $11,000 off the MSRP no matter where you buy. If you qualify for everything, $14,995 is a darn good deal for an EV, especially one as fun as the Spark. Related Video: 2015 Chevrolet Spark EV Repriced to Offer Greater Value As low as $14,995 after full federal and state tax credits and Chevrolet Bonus Cash 2015-04-14 DETROIT – Chevrolet announced today Spark EV 1LT's new manufacturer's suggested retail price would start at $25,995. Depending on an individual's tax situation, the Spark EV is eligible for federal tax credit up to $7,500. "Chevrolet is committed to making EV driving more accessible, affordable and fun" said Steve Majoros, director of Chevrolet Car and Crossover Marketing. "The Spark EV is already the most efficient – and one of the most affordable – EVs you can buy. 2015 Spark EV customers will benefit from an impressive blend of technology, capability and low cost of ownership, now at an even more impressive price." California and Maryland Spark EV owners may also qualify for a $2,500 California state rebate or $2,300 Maryland excise tax exemption. Additional Chevrolet bonus cash is also available: $1,000 in California, $1,200 in Maryland, and $3,500 in Oregon. After full federal and state tax credits and Chevrolet bonus cash, the Spark EV could be as low as $14,995.